Burrell Normal School (1903 – 1969), was a private school for African American students established in 1903 in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

, Alabama, U.S.. The school was for grades 1 to 12, and served as a

normal school A normal school or normal college is an institution created to Teacher education, train teachers by educating them in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. In the 19th century in the United States, instruction in normal schools was at the high s ...

. A historical marker for the school was erected by the Florence Historical Board and is located at W College Street at Burrell Street in Florence. It was also known as Burrell Academy, Burrell High School, and Burrell–Slater High School.

History

The school was first named Burrell Academy and was initially located in

Selma Selma may refer to: Places * Selma, Algeria *Selma, Nova Scotia, Canada *Selma, Switzerland, village in the Grisons United States: *Selma, Alabama, city in Dallas County, best known for the Selma to Montgomery marches *Selma, Arkansas *Selma, Cal ...

, Alabama. It was founded in 1869 as the first school for Blacks in the city of Selma, and was destroyed by a suspicious fire in 1900. In 1903, the school was rebuilt by the

American Missionary Association The American Missionary Association (AMA) was a Protestant-based abolitionist group founded on in Albany, New York. The main purpose of the organization was abolition of slavery, education of African Americans, promotion of racial equality, and ...

(A.M.A), which had decided to change the location of the building based on need to Florence, Alabama. The first class to attend the new school was in 1904, and the first graduating class was in 1906. In 1905, they had four teachers, including the principal. Benjamin F. Cox was the first principal, serving from 1905 to 1906. In 1906, Cox was transferred to an Albany Normal School in Albany, Georgia; and George N. White was promoted to the role of principal. In 1937, the Florence City Board of Education assumed its operation of the school and changed the name to Burrell High School. In 1951, the school was moved to the Slater Elementary School Building, and the name was changed to Burrell–Slater High School. The Burrell–Slater building burned in 1958, and a new Burrell-Slater building was constructed on the original site by 1960. In 1969, after racial integration, it became the first vocational school in the city. The 1908–1909 catalog for the Burrell Normal School can be found at the

Alabama Department of Archives and History The Alabama Department of Archives and History is the official repository of archival records for the U.S. state of Alabama. Under the direction of Thomas M. Owen its founder, the agency received state funding by an act of the Alabama Legislatu ...

References

{{Authority control Educational institutions established in 1903 Educational institutions disestablished in 1969 Historically segregated African-American schools in Alabama Schools in Lauderdale County, Alabama Schools in Florence, Alabama