Site of Rusk Public School No. 2 for African Americans
Rusk, Cherokee County, Texas
Marker Inscription
By 1884 the Rusk Public School District maintained two schools: No. 1 for its Anglo students and No. 2 for its African American students. A yearly average of 50 students met in a small house built here about 1895 to house Rusk Public School No. 2. In 1939 the Rusk Independent School District erected a new school building southeast of downtown Rusk for its African American students. Named after long-term principal G. W. Bradford, the facility was used until Rusk integrated its schools in the 1960s. Many graduates of this school became highly respected professionals.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
By 1884 Rusk's public schools were split by race, with the segregated No. 2 school for African American children meeting in a small frame house built here around 1895. In 1939 a larger school rose southeast of downtown, later named for its long-serving principal G. W. Bradford, and it educated Black students until Rusk integrated in the 1960s. Despite meager resources, the school sent many graduates into respected professions.
Why it matters
It documents both the injustice of Jim Crow-era 'separate but unequal' schooling and the determination of Black educators and families who turned underfunded classrooms into launchpads for success.
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Related people
- · G. W. Bradford
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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