Nearest city Snow Hill, Alabama Designated ARLH July 14, 1981 Area 20 ha | NRHP Reference # 95000146 Address Pine Apple, AL 36768, USA Added to NRHP 24 February 1995 | |
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Architectural style Bungalow/Craftsman, Queen Anne Similar Wilcox County Tax Collector, Wilcox County Sheriff's, Great Southern Land Co I, Wilcox Circuit Clerk Office, Wilcox County Public Lib | ||
The Snow Hill Normal and Industrial Institute, also known as the Colored Industrial and Literary Institute of Snow Hill, was a historic African American school in Snow Hill, Alabama. It was founded in 1893 by Dr. William J. Edwards, a graduate of Tuskegee University, and began in a one-room log cabin. The school grew over time to include a campus of 27 buildings, a staff of 35, and over 400 students. The school was operated as a private school for African American children until Dr. Edward's retirement in 1924, when it became a public school operated by the State of Alabama. The school closed in 1973, after the desegregation of the Wilcox County school system. Out of the original 27 buildings, only eight survive today. They range in architectural style from Queen Anne to Craftsman and include the founder's home, five teachers' cottages, and the library. The National Snow Hill Alumni Association and the local Snow Hill Institute supporters determined to save the remaining structures in 1980. The school was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 24, 1995.