R. E. Hunt High School was a public

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

Columbus, Mississippi Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Lowndes County, on the eastern border of Mississippi, United States, located primarily east, but also north and northeast of the Tombigbee River, which is also part of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterwa ...

, United States. It served as the high school for black students until the public schools were integrated in 1970. After integration, the buildings were used for seventh graders.

History

In the 1940s, a

Mississippi State University Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Unive ...

study recommended changes to the educational facilities in Columbus to make the concept of "Separate but Equal" a reality. As a result, the city replaced both the white school and the black schools, Union Academy, which served over 1000 students at the time and Mitchell. In 1952, two schools designed by the same architect, Stephen D. Lee High School and R. E. Hunt High School were opened for the students of Columbus. Hunt was named for local African-American educator Dr. Robert E. Hunt, and was the school for black children. Lee was named after

confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

general

Stephen D. Lee Stephen Dill Lee (September 22, 1833 – May 28, 1908) was an American officer in the Confederate Army, politician and first president of Mississippi State University from 1880 to 1899. He served as lieutenant general of the Confederate ...

, and was for white children only. In 1971, US Courts mandated the integration of schools and Lee became Lee Middle School serving 7th and 8th grade while Hunt became Hunt Intermediate School, serving 6th grade. Both schools closed in January 2011. In 1966, three students from Hunt, Diane Hardy, Barbara Turner, and Laverne Greene, became the first black undergraduates in the 82 year history of the

Mississippi University for Women Mississippi University for Women (MUW or "The W") is a coeducational public university in Columbus, Mississippi. It was formerly named the Industrial Institute and College for the Education of White Girls and later the Mississippi State College ...

. At the same time, three teachers from Hunt, Jacqueline Edwards, Mary L. Flowers, and Eula M. Houser became the first black graduate students at the university. In 2012, part of the campus was re-opened as the R. E. Hunt Museum & Cultural Center. The museum is housed in the former Fine Arts Building. In 2018, the Mississippi Department of Archives and History created controversy by declaring Lee High School, the white school, a Historic Landmark, but not granting the same status to Hunt.

Notable alumni

* Elbert Drungo, professional football player * T Thomas, professional football player, coach

References

External links

{{authority control Public high schools in Mississippi Schools in Lowndes County, Mississippi Historically black schools Historically segregated African-American schools in Mississippi Education in Lowndes County, Mississippi Educational institutions established in 1952 1952 establishments in Mississippi Educational institutions disestablished in 2011 2011 disestablishments in Mississippi