Site of Reynolds Presbyterian Academy
Albany, Shackelford County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Founded on counsel of the Reverend French McAfee; named in honor of a pioneer rancher, Barber Watkins Reynolds (d. 1882), the Reynolds Presbyterian Academy opened in 1898, with classes meeting in a vacant storehouse. A Richardsonian Romanesque-style building was finished and occupied 1899, and a dormitory added in 1907. Dramas, lectures, musicals drew patrons from a large region. In 1909, the school became a college; closed about 1915. Reynolds Presbyterian Orphanage used the plant in 1916-23. Site was sold and the fine masonry building razed in 1928. (1974)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Founded on the counsel of the Reverend French McAfee and named for pioneer rancher Barber Watkins Reynolds, this Presbyterian academy opened in 1898 in a vacant storehouse before moving into a fine Richardsonian Romanesque building the next year. Its dramas, lectures, and musicals drew audiences from across a wide region, and in 1909 it became a college, closing about 1915. The buildings later housed a Presbyterian orphanage before being sold and razed in 1928.
Why it matters
It reflects the church-founded academies that carried education and culture across the sparsely settled West Texas frontier.
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Related people
- · French McAfee
- · Barber Watkins Reynolds
Themes & tags
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