Details for Sweet Home Vocational and Agricultural School

Historical Marker — Atlas Number 5187012565

Data

Marker Number 12565
Atlas Number 5187012565
Marker Title Sweet Home Vocational and Agricultural School
Index Entry Sweet Home Vocational and Agricultural School
Address 3340 Sweet Home Rd.
City Seguin
County Guadalupe
UTM Zone 14
UTM Easting 593240
UTM Northing 3259260
Subject Codes educational buildings; educational topics; African American topics
Marker Year 2001
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark Yes
Marker Location
Private Property No
Marker Condition In Situ
Marker Size 27" x 42"
Marker Text Located in southwest Guadalupe County, the Sweet Home Vocational and Agricultural School served the educational needs of Negro students in Guadalupe County from 1924 until 1962. It was built in part with money from the Rosenwald Fund, a philanthropic endeavor developed by Sears, Roebuck Company president Julius Rosenwald, to improve the quality of education for rural citizens through the construction of modern schoolhouses in the early 20th century. Sweet Home was one of six schools built in Guadalupe County under the Rosenwald school program. Master carpenter Henry Singletary and his assistant, Jesse C. Ussery, completed the schoolhouse in 1925. The total cost of construction was $5,500, of which $1,100 came from the Rosenwald Fund. Known as a four-teacher type school, it boasted four primary classrooms, a kitchen and a library. Additional buildings constructed on the property included a girls' dormitory, an industrial building and a house for the teachers, which also served as the home economics classroom. Sweet Home served as a county training school, providing education beyond the eighth grade for students from a three-county area. Its primary focus was on modern industrial and agricultural training. By 1935 Sweet Home was an accredited public high school. Its students won many agricultural, athletic and educational honors before it closed in 1962. The school building, which retains much of its original features and character, continues in use as a center for community activities. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2001

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