Orange Park Normal & Industrial School
| Orange Park Normal and Industrial School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
2042 Park Avenue, Orange Park, Florida, U.S. | |
| Coordinates | 30°09′54″N 81°42′05″W / 30.164966°N 81.701485°W |
| Information | |
| Founded | October 7, 1891 |
| Closed | 1913 |
| Affiliation | American Missionary Association |
Orange Park Normal and Industrial School was a private boarding school founded in 1891 in Orange Park, Florida. It was Florida's only racially integrated school when it was in operation, founded by the American Missionary Association (AMA).[1][2] It closed in 1913 in the wake of a 1895 state law forbidding whites from teaching blacks.[2]
History
The school was founded by the American Missionary Association (AMA) and opened in October 7, 1891 south of Jacksonville in Clay County along the St. Johns River.[3][4] The campus included dormitories and workshops.[5][6] Former principals included Amos W. Farnham, and B.D. Rowlee.[4]
William N. Sheats, the Florida state superintendent of public education who was a staunch segregationist, passed a law in 1895 ("Sheats' Law") that prohibited any Florida school (public or private), from teaching black and white students together.[4][7] The school appealed and won against "Sheats' Law", but closed in 1913 after Sheats had returned to office.[4]
The former school site is home to Orange Park's town hall and police station.[2][8] A historical marker is at the site of the school, erected in 2017.[9][6]
References
- ^ Gibbons, Patrick R. (September 20, 2016). "One man's war on Florida's desegregated schools". NextSteps.
- ^ a b c DeVoe, Amanda (February 4, 2025). "Historic Orange Park Normal and Industrial School taught Black, white children under one roof in late 1800s". WJXT. Archived from the original on January 27, 2026.
- ^ Richardson, Joe M. (1986). ""The Nest of Vile Fanatics": William N. Sheats and the Orange Park School". The Florida Historical Quarterly. 64 (4): 393–406. ISSN 0015-4113.
- ^ a b c d Gibbons, Patrick R. (November 16, 2016). "William N. Sheats and pitfalls of democratic control of public education". redefinED.
- ^ "Historical Markers – Orange Park Normal and Industrial School". The Florida Channel (video).
- ^ a b "Orange Park Normal and Industrial School Site Historical Marker". Historical Marker Database (HMDB).
- ^ Stanley, Mark (October 2013), Review of Cassanello, Robert, To Render Invisible: Jim Crow and Public Life in New South Jacksonville, H-SHGAPE, H-Review, retrieved January 27, 2026
- ^ "Orange Park school known for desegregation to receive Historical Marker in February". First Coast News.
- ^ "School founded in 1891 to finally get proper recognition". Clay Today.
External links