Van Vleck Independent School District
Van Vleck, Matagorda County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Education was a priority for the residents of Matagorda County. During the 1880s, private schools were the primary source of education for Matagorda County students. By 1899, a small railroad came to the county and it started to grow. Previously known as Hardeman, the community was now renamed Van Vleck after the Southern Pacific Railroad Superintendent, W.G. Van Vleck. A small school was built in 1901 for white students. By 1914, a new three-story wooden structure was built. In 1918, a bond was passed to assist with building and equipment needs for the white and African American schools of Van Vleck. In 1938, Van Vleck school board members voted to ask the Texas Department of Education for the organization of an independent school district for Van Vleck. That same year, they voted to apply for a grant from the Public Works Administration to help build a new school. Architect C.A. Johnson was hired to design the new building. With the newly organized Van Vleck Independent School District, board members wanted to consolidate the smaller community schools into the Van Vleck district. By 1939, the communities of Ashwood, Cedar Lake, Cedar Lane, Hasima, Liveoak, Lukefahr, Mount Pilgrim, Sargent and Shiloh had transitioned all high school students to the Van Vleck school district. The new school became the center of the community for entertainment and culture. In 1966, Van Vleck schools offered voluntary integration of African American students into the white schools. During the 1970s and 1980s, many additions were made as the school district continued to grow. For over a century, Van Vleck schools have fostered education in Matagorda County. (2014)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
As the Southern Pacific Railroad reached Matagorda County around 1899, the community of Hardeman was renamed Van Vleck for a railroad superintendent, and a school for white students followed in 1901. Bonds in 1918 funded buildings for both the white and African American schools, and in 1938 residents organized an independent school district and won a Public Works Administration grant for a new building. Smaller community schools consolidated into the district, which offered voluntary integration of Black students in 1966.
Why it matters
Van Vleck's schools trace the arc of rural Texas public education — from railroad-era one-room schools through segregation to the slow arrival of integration.
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Related people
- · W. G. Van Vleck
- · C. A. Johnson
Related events
- · School integration
Themes & tags
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