The Lincoln School (1894–1970), also known as Lincoln High School, was a segregated public elementary and high school for African American students, located in
Paducah,
Kentucky
Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...
, United States. The buildings for the school complex were demolished, sometime after 1988.
It is listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
(NRHP) since June 23, 1988 for its contribution to educational history and ethnic heritage.
[ With ]
History
After the formation of
Central High School in Louisville in 1870, neighboring Kentucky cities established their own segregated public schools for African American students including the Lincoln School in Paducah;
Paris Colored High School in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
; the
Clinton Street High School (later known as
Mayo–Underwood School) in
Frankfort; the
William Grant High School in
Covington; the
Russell School in
Lexington; and Winchester High School in
Winchester
Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...
.
Garfield School (now destroyed) had been constructed in for African American students in a neighboring school district within Paducah.
Lincoln School was named in honor of former President
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...
.
Architecture and campus
The former campus is near other NRHP-listed or nominated locations for Black community history, including the
Paducah Downtown Commercial District,
Burks Chapel A.M.E. Church, the Black Masonic Lodge building, and
Artelia Anderson Hall (formerly West Kentucky Industrial College, and West Kentucky Vocational School for Negroes).
The school campus was a complex of three buildings in a U-shaped configuration, constructed in 1894, 1921, and 1938.
The earliest building was in a late-
Italianate
The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century It ...
architecture style; and the 1921 and 1938 buildings were in the Classical Revival architecture style.
Louisville's Nevin Henry Wischmeyer (or Hugh Nevin, Earl Henry, and Herman Wischmeyer) completed the design for the 1921 building.
The additional neighboring buildings were purchased as the enrollment in the school increased (one of which was the former site of the Second Baptist Church).
Principals
Former principals for Lincoln School included E. W. Benton from 1894 to 1906; G. W. Jackson from 1906 to 1915; J. G. G. Prather from 1915 to 1917; E. W. Whiteside from 1927 to 1965; and B. W. Browne in 1965.
E. W. Whiteside introduced the school motto, "Enter to Learn, Depart to Serve".
Closure
In 1965, the Lincoln School was consolidated into the
Paducah Tilghman High School, the formerly segregated high school for White students.
However the elementary school continued to operate until 1970.
From 1970 to 1980, the campus was used for the
Head Start Program
Head Start is a program of the United States Department of Health and Human Services that provides comprehensive early childhood education, health, nutrition, and parent involvement services to low-income children and families. It is the olde ...
.
See also
*
National Register of Historic Places listings in McCracken County, Kentucky
*
List of African-American historic places
References
{{Authority control
1894 establishments in Kentucky
1970 disestablishments in Kentucky
Public high schools in Kentucky
Historically segregated African-American schools in Kentucky
Schools in McCracken County, Kentucky
Educational institutions established in 1894
School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Kentucky
National Register of Historic Places in McCracken County, Kentucky
Demolished buildings and structures in Kentucky