Evening star., 1945-11-11
BY John Clagett Proctor

by Jonn Clagett Proctor
The Paul Lawrence Dunbar Senior
High School, on First street between
N and o streets, where is to be cele-
brated this month the 18th anniversary
of the coiored high school course of
education in the District of Columbia,
is certainly not only one of the finest
school buildings in Washington, but else
where as Eell, and typifies in itself
the great progress made in Negro scho-
lastic education in this city, from the
humblest beginning to one of the out
standing school systems in this country.
The earliest colored high school here
had its beginning in November, 1870, in
the basement of the Fifteenth Street
Presbyterian Church, on the east side
of Fifteenth street between I and K
streets, and was known as the Prepara-
tory High School. From the basement
of this church the school was removed
to the Thaddeus Stevens School, and
remained there from 1871 to 1872, and
from 1872 to 1877 1t was housed in
the Charles Sumner School. Later it
was located in Myrtilla Miner School,
which then stood at the corner of
Seventeenth and Church streets, and
there it remained until 1891 when it
took up its quarters on M street be-
tween First street and New Jersey ave-
nue., where it was known as the M street
High School, and when the present
structure on First street was completed
in 1916, it became the Dunbar High
School, receiving its name from Paul
Lawrence Dunbar, well-known Ameri-
can author Of Negro descent.
AT Library of Congress
This noted composer was born in
Dayton. Ohio, June 27, 1872. He attended
high school, and while editor in chief Of
the school paper wrote the class poem
for the school paper. Later, when he
secured employment in the Library Of
Congress as an elevator boy and as
assistant there, he continued to write,
recite and publish his works. In 1898
he was married, and from this time on
he gave full time to writing. He died
of tuberculosis at his Dayton home
years of age, and like many men of
talent, his work then, and not suntil
then, became quite popular, being
brought to the American readers largely
through the efforts of William Dean
Howell.
Some of Dunbar's short stories and
sketches. especially those dealing with
the American Negro, are regarded as
charming and far superior to his novels,
which deal with scenes on which the
author is not so much at home. How
ever. his most enduring work, it is said,
is his poetry, some of which is in liter
ary English, but his best is in the
dialect of his people. Those set to
music, include among others: Little
Brown Baby" How Shall I Woo Thee"
"Lil Gal," over the Hills" When I
Gets Home" "An African Love Song"
"Beyong the Years" Invitation to
Love-" Loves Forgetfulness" and Re
turned"
High Schools Beginning
The credit for introducing in Wash
ington the colored high schools, or the
preparatory high school, as originally
called, was due primarily to William
SyphaX, president and treasurer, and
William H. A. Wormerly, secretary of
the board of trustees for the colored
schools of Washington and George
town. Both of those men were prom
inent here at that time, and were.
pioneers in the development of the
colored school system.
Mr.. Syphax was born in the County
of Alexandria, then in the District OF
Columbia, now Arlington County, Va,
in 1925, and died in Washington on
Monday evening, June Is, 1891, after
having resided here for SIS years. He
was the first president of the board of
trustees of the colored schools of Wash
ington and Georgetown and served as
such from 1868 to 1871, and organized
the preparatory high school before men
toned. He also supervised the building
of the Abraham Lincoln, the Thaddeus
Stevens and Charles Sumner schools,
and named all three.
In 1851 he was appointed to posi-
ton in the Department of the Interior,
where he served under nine different
secretaries and during this period was
also associated with all the prominent
movements in the city in which his race
was interested. At the time of his
death he left wife, two daughters and
son. Six years ago, portrait of this
early official of the school board was
presented to the Dunbar School by Mrs.
Mary Gibson Hundley, a teacher of
French in that school, and grand
daughter and only direct descendant of
Mr.. Syphax, whose daughter Mrs.
Syphax Gibson, was a teacher in the
public schools here, and she was the
mother of Mrs. Hundley. The Syphax
School, on Half street, between N and
o streets S.W., is named for William
Syphax.
Humble Start
The first colored high school here
opened with four pupils in one room,
equipped with SO seats, but by the end
of the year all the seats were occupied
with advanced students. promoted from
the various grammar schools.
Capable teachers at that time were
hard to be found, and Miss Emma j.
Hutchins, white woman, became the
FIRST teacher, and A. e. Newton, a white