A Proposed New Building For the Monroe Academy

Wouldn't this have been a gorgeous building? This was published in the Monroe News Star back in 1913. Professor Foster and the trustees of the Monroe Academy were looking to expand the school space and the following conceptual drawing was made. It never happened to my knowledge. Ten years later, Monroe Colored High School would … Continue reading A Proposed New Building For the Monroe Academy →

Students and Faculty of the North Louisiana Industrial Institute

The bulletin for Leland University I found these lists of students in, can be seen on the Internet Archives here : https://archive.org/details/bulletin189798191011lela/page/n121/mode/2up?q=%22Monroe%2C+LA%22 . I also found them digitized on the Hathi Trust page and on the Worldcat database. I transcribed from each brochure the list of students, which added up to around 2,300 names! What … Continue reading Students and Faculty of the North Louisiana Industrial Institute →

Monroe’s Ties to a Lost Black University

I am just recently hearing about a private school for African-Americans that was here in the 1890's and the early 1900's. To call out my own biases, I thought that Wisner Colored High School was the only school for African Americans during this time period. I knew of at least one small private school, but … Continue reading Monroe’s Ties to a Lost Black University →

African-American Education in Ouachita Parish Near the Turn of the Century

This is a tiny little key hole glimpse into the history of education in the African-American community of Monroe. It talks about a trade school that had been started by the local Baptist. The Times-Democrat, New Orleans, LA, May 26, 1902, Page 5 The seventh annual commencement of the North Louisiana Industrial High … Continue reading African-American Education in Ouachita Parish Near the Turn of the Century →