The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-09-11

carriage IN New ! DIRK III lS5N anu u' g..
SA{ Tho ngc of sixty. He was .Woni 70
mike this boast. y cant ,eaem I. zen ,heir
EATERS, 10 read fuehtly In from three
weeks to three months.
4 u. transferred to City
II I,ichmord in 1916 and which continued
&under Inc direction Of tho 4..chmond
j,nrcastcrlar1 school trustees Until jan
&7,,ary 10. 1884, when the school With us
po,Iipnent was vested in tho common
Council OF the city Of Richmond. From
THAT date until the beginning OF the ci w
n tynr mo school was In operation under the
direction OF trustees appointed oy the
(. Council and public examinations were
held annually under the snpcrntenaehce
of five prominent citizens selected -, ~
the Council The school btlinng WIS
N !, II, 4 Il Ino,v known as the Valley School,,
located just across the street MN -
present city JILL.
Nh April, 1869. a number of citizons o.
4 Richmond pctitioncd the City Council 70
81. est ab1ishb public schools. Fifteen thou-
gE sand dollars were appropriated py the
and this, with Sl5'Uo rcc ean see
;f5 from the Peabody Fund, a total OF s'V' .,
\ Was the entire amount avallable ior llie
i3tsessionsiof 1890. -,
ss Mr.. Andrew Washburil was olected su-
3perlntendcnt and held office for one year.
when he was succeeded pS M. or r,i.ss'
e II. Benfortl. on the dcnth OF MI Ben
ford. in 1876. Mr.. James H. Peay became
Il superintcndent and he was followed ny
Mr., +. III. Garnett, Colonel John B.
* Cary and Mr. VIM. r. Fox. the present
Incumbent, who has hdld office since Feb
Il ruary, 1889.
It is significant that during the first
session Of the public school, 1857 ", mere
we're TAI more negro than white scholars
enrolled. The enrolment was: White
I children, zoos; negro children. 149.
y There were during TINT session twenty
one white school-rooms and twenty-hine
negro school-rooms presided over ny
fifty white teachers. $40, III,
III 1870 the City Council granted $lVAVo
for the erection OF school buildings, ana
Leigh, Bellevue, Bethel, Baker (coiored)
and Central (old) Schools were built or
bought, .5.%
cost Of $4,000, as the Central School.
The city had purchased the property dur
+ ing the war and had offered 1t as q pres
ent TO President Jefferson DayiA Who
however, had declined to accept It. II
was, therefore merely a question OF book
keeping to turn the property over to the
X School Bonrd. THE White House" was
used as Central School until n few years
back, when 1t became the Confederate
Museum and new Central School was
built Mt No. 4o7 North Twelfth Street.
Just behind the Presidents homo. During
this year, 1870. there was an enrolment Off
800 more scholars than during the pre-
vious years, and there were etghty-tWo
more white than negro scholars enrolled.
X In 1872 the white High School was
founded, and in 1876 the negro High School
came into existence, having been turned,
over to the city, together with the build
sing and equipment, by the Richmond
Educational Association. q society sup
ported by Northern capital. The organ
izntion Of the high schools placed the
S public schools on a frmt foundation for
not only did It furnish excellent edlca-
ional advantages to those who had passed
K through the grammar schools, but 1t fur
pnshed n supply of well equipped teach
FRS, that We're earnestly demanded by the
various public schools. Out of the POS
public school teachers now on the lists.
81 are graduates Of the Richmond High
K Scholastic out OF 217 of the white teach
sers, and all eighty-one of tho colored
6s teachers. ,yftyr.t
Began to Teach Music. .5
LIN February, 1902. music was introduced
into the schools. and In September 1903
a5 manual training was inaugurated. 9,a
Drawing was taught last session for
the first time AS early as 1890 a business
course was In operation and school OF
stnography and typewriting had been
.f founded. Is
When an examination is made Of the
conditions that surrounded the public
schools In 1861 and the conditions that
prevail In the school or to-day, 1t will
he found that the march of cducationa
progress has been little short Of mar
velous, rs the following table will point
%a 1860 1905
Total enrolment OF
scholars ,..,.,,... 2,757 121S