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A History of the Origins of Schools’ Names: Committee Members

Alma Dietz, HCS Social Studies K-12 Curriculum Leader: Committee Chair Luci Cochran, Executive Director, Hampton History Museum Beth Austin, Registrar & Historian, Hampton History Museum

Charles Baumgardner, Social Studies Elementary Teacher Specialist Beth Leatherwood, Secondary Teacher Specialist

Rodney Richardson, Phenix PreK-8 Assistant Principal EARLY CHILDHOOD Robert R. Moton (1867-1940)

● Opened in 1948 ● It was named after Robert Russa Moton, who was born in Amelia County,

Virginia. He is buried at Hampton University ● At the age of 18, Moton enrolled at Hampton Institute ● He graduated in 1890 and became the Commandant in charge of military

discipline (remained for 25 years) ● He was a close friend of Booker T. Washington, the founding principal of the

Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, and the two shared a conservative vision of race relations.

● Dr. Moton was named president of Tuskegee Institute following the death of Dr. Booker T. Washington

● Both the physical plant and academic programs were expanded during the Moton administration

● Moton was honored as one of the speakers for the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., May 30, 1922, and his contributions to humankind earned him honorary degrees from Oberlin and Williams College, Virginia Union, Wilberforce, Lincoln, Harvard, and Howard Universities. He was recipient of the Harmon Award in Race Relations (1930) and the Spingarn Medal (1932)

● Moton resigned from his presidency in 1935 because of declining health and died 5 years later.

● The school was named after Moton and opened in 1948 after the Phoebus branch of the NAACP was asked to negotiate with the town of Phoebus and Elizabeth City County

● In 2005, the school became home to preschool students as the Robert R. Moton Early Childhood Center participating in the Virginia Preschool Initiative

● Moton School Mascot: Falcon ● Sources:

○ “Robert Russa Moton,” Encyclopedia Virginia: Virginia Humanities, accessed August 10, 2020

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○ “Robert Russa Moton: Second President of Tuskegee Institute,” Tuskegee University, accessed August 10, 2020

○ “Moton School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS Aberdeen

● The original school was built in 1938 ● It was demolished and rebuilt in 1973 ● Named after Aberdeen Gardens, a New Deal planned community initiated by

Hampton Institute (now Hampton University), designed specifically for the resettlement of African-American workers in Newport News and Hampton

● In 1934, the Hampton Institute secured a $245,000 federal grant to create the housing development

● It was the only resettlement community for blacks in Virginia and only the second neighborhood in the nation for blacks financed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Subsistence Homestead Project

● It was added to the Virginia Landmark Register on March 10, 1994 and the National Register of Historical Places on May 26, 1994

● Aberdeen School Mascot: Lion ● School Plaque ● Sources:

○ “Aberdeen Elementary School: About Us,” Hampton City Schools, accessed June 29, 2020

○ “Aberdeen Gardens: Hampton VA, “ The Living New Deal, accessed June 29, 2020

○ St. John Erickson, 2018, "Hampton University at 150: Aberdeen Gardens built by blacks, for blacks", The Daily Press, March 31

Armstrong

● It was built in 1922 and is Hampton’s oldest continuous school ● The school was named in honor of the Armstrong family. The school stands

today on land donated by the children of William Nevins Armstrong, the brother of Hampton Institute founder Gen. Samuel Chapman Armstrong.

● General Samuel Chapman Armstrong was a Union General during the Civil War who led African American troops

● After the Civil War, Samuel Chapman Armstrong joined the Freedmen’s Bureau and with the help of the American Missionary Association would go on to establish Hampton Institute

● Armstrong School Mascot: Lion ● Sources:

○ “About Armstrong School for the Arts 2017,” Hampton City Schools, accessed June 29, 2020

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○ William Nevins Armstrong Papers (MS 39). Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library. https://archives.yale.edu/repositories/12/resources/3016 Accessed August 12, 2020.

○ “Samuel Chapman Armstrong,” Hampton University, accessed June 29, 2020

○ St. John Erickson, 2018, ‘Hampton University at 150: Visionary educator founded landmark school’, The Daily Press, March 24.

Francis Asbury

● School opened in 1916 with additions in 1937 and 1954. ● Fire damaged the school in 1963 but it was rebuilt in 1964 ● Named after Francis Asbury (1745-1816), a preacher in the Methodist Church

who was ordained by John Wesley ● Came from England in 1771 to preach in the British American Colonies and was

neutral during the American Revolution ● In 1784 he was ordained as a bishop of the Methodist Church in America and

served in that capacity until his death in 1816 ● Interesting side note: In 1780, Asbury met the freedman, Henry Hosier, a

meeting the minister believed to be "providentially arranged". Hosier served as Asbury’s driver and guide and, though illiterate, memorized long passages of the Bible as Asbury read them aloud during their travels. Hosier eventually became a famous preacher in his own right, the first African American to preach directly to a white congregation in the United States.

● Asbury School Mascot: Fox ● Sources:

○ “Francis Asbury 2020,” Wikipedia, accessed June 29, 2020 ○ “Francis Asbury: Methodist on Horseback,” Christianity Today, accessed

August 6, 2020 ○ “Harry Hosier: An American Who Gave a Beat to Methodist Preaching,”

Archives & History The United Methodist Church, accessed August 6, 2020

Barron ● Barron Elementary School opened in 1961 ● Barron Elementary was named to honor the Barron family, an old Hampton

family with origins that go back to the 17th century, of which several members in succeeding generations made significant contributions to the history of our city, state, and nation.

● Family members served from the early Virginia Navy serving in the American Revolution to the U.S. Navy up to the Civil War.

● Captain Samuel Barron came to Virginia from Bristol, England in the 17th century. He was placed in command of Fort George (now known as Fort Monroe). He died in 1750 leaving 3 sons.

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● The youngest son, James Barron (1740-1787), was appointed by Thomas Jefferson (Virginia’s governor) to command Virginia’s Navy in 1779.

● When James Barron died in 1787, he left 2 sons, Samuel and James. Both joined the Virginia Navy and would eventually join the United States Navy in 1798.

● Samuel Barron (1809-1888), a grandson of James Barron, was a U.S. Naval officer who resigned his commission to join the Confederate Navy in May, 1861. His rank in the Confederate Navy was first as a captain and then promoted to commodore. He, and his son, Samuel Barron, Jr. (1836-1892) both served in the Confederate Navy during the Civil War.

● Members of the Barron family were slave owners ● Barron School Mascot: Knight. (See photo of a knight holding a sword and

shield on school website) ● Sources:

○ Barron Elementary School 2017, Hampton City Schools, accessed 29 June 2020, <https://bar.hampton.k12.va.us/school-information>.

○ Spencer, W. F., & the Dictionary of Virginia Biography. Samuel Barron (1809–1888). (2020, January 9). In Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved from <http://www.EncyclopediaVirginia.org/Barron_Samuel_1809-1888>.

○ “Deposition of William Cooper and Anne Cooper describing a fugitive slave of James Barron,” Hampton Museum Archives, catalog number 2016.1.7 accessed August 12, 2020

○ “Samuel Barron (Jr.),” Find a Grave Memorial, accessed August 12, 2020 ○ “Inventory of the James Barron Papers (1) 1776-1899,” Swem Library,

College of William & Mary, <https://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaxtf/view?docId=wm/viw00021.xml>, accessed 13 August 2020.

○ “Inventory of the James Barron Hope Papers (II) 1820-1923,” Swem Library, College of William & Mary, <https://ead.lib.virginia.edu/vivaxtf/view?docId=wm/viw00094.xml>, accessed 13 August 2020.

○ “James Barron,” Naval History and Heritage Command, U.S. Navy, <https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/research-guides/z-files/zb-files/zb-files-b/barron-james.html>, accessed 13 August 2020.

○ Property tax lists, Elizabeth City County, 1782-1787, 1798, 1790. ○ Robert Armistead Stewart, The History of Virginia’s Navy in the

Revolution, (Richmond, Va.: Mitchell & Hotchkiss, 1934), 144-148. A.W.E. Bassette

● School opened in 1970 ● Named after Andrew Walter Ernest Bassette (1857-1942)

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● He rose from an impoverished background to become an educator, lawyer, businessman, civic and religious leader

● Born November 1857, possibly enslaved. ● He entered the teaching profession after graduating from Hampton Institute in

1876 ● In 1895, he founded one of the first schools for African-American children. ● Was a founder of the Peoples’ Building and Loan Association to aid African-

Americans in the community to secure loans for property. ● His granddaughter, Rachel Noel, was a politician and civil rights leader in

Colorado. ● Bassette School Mascot: Panda ● Sources:

○ “Andrew W. E. Bassette (1857–1942),” Encyclopedia Virginia, accessed August 6, 2020

○ “Rachel Noel (1918-2008),” Denver Public Library, accessed August 6, 2020

○ “Bassette Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

Booker

● The Hampton School Board decided in the early 1960s to build the school to accommodate the rapidly growing elementary school population in this area.

● The School Board wished to name the school after a Hampton family that had shown a great deal of interest in education and wanted to make their community a better place, especially for children. They selected the Booker family.

● Booker school opened in 1968 ● Named after the Booker family with origins that go back to 1621 ● The origin of the Booker family began when Captain Thomas Purifoy came over

on the ship “George” in 1621. In 1631, he purchased 500 acres of land on the northwest branch of the Back River in Elizabeth County, which later became part of Hampton.

● One of Captain Purifoy’s descendants married Captain Richard Booker (1723-1764) and from this marriage, George Booker (1747-1816) was born. This George Booker was very prominent in the educational affairs of the county. He was a trustee of the Syms-Eaton Charity School, the first public school in the English colonies. He also fought on the side of the patriots during the American Revolution.

● In 1781, George Booker acquired Sherwood Plantation and in 1782, he had twenty-seven slaves, four horses and mules, and eighty-one cattle. The number of enslaved people owned by the Bookers at Sherwood increased until the Civil War.

● From this descendant came George Booker (1805-1868) ● He was a trustee of the Hampton Academy in Hampton and in 1852, when it

became part of the public-school system. George Booker became Elizabeth City

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County’s first superintendent (Elizabeth City County would merge with the City of Hampton)

● In 1805, the Syms and Eaton schools were combined into Hampton Academy, which existed in a few different forms until 1902, when it became the Syms-Eaton Academy.

● George Booker would go on to volunteer with the Confederate Army in 1861 and serve as a quartermaster with the rank of major under the Confederate general, J. B. Magruder

● Three of George Booker’s sons, George S. Booker, (1844-1899), John Booker (1849-1900), and Richard Marshall Booker (1839-1898) also joined the Confederate Army.

● George S. Booker had a son, George S. Booker Jr. (1876-1915) who died at the age of 39. Not much is known about him but he was born after the Civil War. He along with ancestors of Major George Booker are buried in St. John’s Cemetery near the Ruppert Sargent building.

● Interesting side note: State Senator, Hunter Booker Andrews, was a descendant of the Booker family. He served as Chairman of the Hampton School Board from 1959 to 1962.

● Booker School Mascot: Bulldog ● Sources:

○ Booker Elementary School 2018, Hampton City Schools, accessed 29 June 2020, <https://boo.hampton.k12.va.us/school-information>.

○ “Major George Booker,” Hampton Museum Archives, accessed August 11, 2020

○ “Major George Booker,” Find A Grave Memorial, accessed August 11, 2020

○ “Sherwood Plantation,” NASA, accessed August 11, 2020 ○ “Richard Marshall Booker,” Hampton History Museum Archives, accessed

August 11, 2020 ○ “John Booker,” Hampton History Museum Archives, accessed August 11,

2020 ○ Jean von Schilling, Booker: Descendants of Captain Richard Booker of

Abingdon Parish, Gloucester County, Virginia (Richmond, Va.: 1996). ○ Property tax lists, Elizabeth City County, 1782-1787, 1798. ○ Elizabeth City County Slave Schedules, U.S. Federal Census, 1850 and

1860. Jane H. Bryan

● The school opened in 1955 ● Named after Jane H. Bryan (1864-1946), an educator in Phoebus, in honor of her

life-long contribution to public education ● She taught for 36 years and retired in 1938 ● She was also active in community activities and in Emmanuel Episcopal Church,

where she taught Sunday School for fifty-seven years.

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● Born in England, she immigrated to Phoebus with her parents and started teaching in the public schools in 1902

● Died in 1946 and the school was dedicated to her in 1955 ● Bryan School Mascot: Patriot ● Sources:

○ “Jane H. Bryan Elementary School,“ Hampton City Schools, accessed June 29, 2020

○ “Bryan Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

Paul Burbank

● School opened in 1966 ● Named after Dr. Paul Burbank (1896-1960), a dentist, civic leader, and Hampton

school board member ● He was born and raised in Hampton ● He served in the Army during World War I and returned to Hampton where he

practiced dentistry for 42 years. ● Was a member of local school boards from 1941 to 1956 ● He resided on Chesapeake Avenue in Hampton and died in 1960. His wife,

Fannie, survived him by 31 years. ● Burbank School Mascot: Bulldog ● Sources:

○ “Dr Paul Burbank,” Find a Grave Memorial, accessed June 29, 2020 ○ “Burbank Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future,

accessed August 14, 2020

John B. Cary ● The school opened in 1958 ● Named after John B. (Baytop) Cary (1819-1898) ● The School Board at the time, named it after him for Cary’s contribution to

education ● Graduated from William and Mary in 1839 with a Masters of Arts ● Teacher at Hampton Academy until the 1850s, when he formed a new Hampton

Academy (later Hampton Military Academy) and acted as principal until the Civil War.

● When the Civil War broke out, he was commissioned as a Confederate major and served as commander of the 32nd Virginia Infantry. He then served as Acting Provost Marshall at Yorktown in early 1862. Cary was dropped at the May 1862 re-organization and appointed as AAG & IG to General Magruder in August 1862. When Magruder was sent west, Cary served in the Quartermaster Department until the end of the Civil War.

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● Confederate Major Cary was the officer who went to Union General Benjamin Butler and requested the return of the 3 slaves that fled to Fort Monroe citing the Fugitive Slave Clause of the U.S. Constitution. That is when General Butler came up with the famous “Contraband Decision.”

● Was prominent in the effort to turn the White House of the Confederacy from a public school into the Confederate Memorial Literary Society (now the Museum of the Confederacy). He was on the Board of Trustees, Confederate Memorial Committee of Virginia; Board of Directors, Virginia State Penitentiary

● John B. Cary was a slave owner. ● After the war, he served as Storekeeper for the Virginia State Penitentiary, a

grocer, a Manager for the Life Association of America in 1871, and Agent for the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. in 1878.

● He also served as Member, Board of Aldermen, City of Richmond from 1890-1894 and as Superintendent of Richmond Public Schools.

● Cary School Mascot: Cardinal ● Sources:

○ “Hampton Has A School Named After a Confederate Officer,” Daily Press accessed August 11, 2020

○ “John Baytop Cary”, The American Civil War Museum accessed August 11, 2020

○ “John Baytop Cary,” Archives, accessed ○ “Contraband of War: Opening of the Flood Gates,” Civil War Emancipation

Word Press, accessed August 12, 2020 ○ “Guide to American Manuscripts (Cary Family Papers, page 39),” Virginia

History, accessed August 12, 2020 ○ “Cary, John Baytop,” The American Civil War Museum, accessed August

13, 2020 ○ Robert Francis Engs, Freedom’s First Generation: Black Hampton,

Virginia 1861-1890, 2nd ed. (New York: Fordham University Press, 2004). ○ Elizabeth City County Slave Schedules, U.S. Federal Census, 1860.

William Mason Cooper

● Cooper school opened in 1974 ● Named after Dr. William Mason Cooper (1892-1979), the first African-American

to serve on the Hampton School Board beginning in 1962, including a term as vice-chair

● He was born in Hampton and played a vital role in the integration of the Hampton City schools

● The Hampton school is one of three schools in Virginia, North Carolina and Nova Scotia dedicated to the educator.

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● He attended Hampton Institute and Columbia University ● Held a variety of educational jobs/positions in NC, including dean of instruction at

Elizabeth City Teachers College ● He was a specialist in adult education ● Dr. Cooper was the director of extension at Hampton Institute as well as director

of summer school, research and public relations, and professor of education and registrar from 1929–1950

● He was a faculty member of Virginia State College in Norfolk, and held leadership positions in many national organizations, including the Virginia Society for Research, the Virginia Interracial Commission, American Teachers Association and Conference on Adult Education

● Cooper School Mascot: Cougar ● Sources:

○ “William Mason Cooper,” page 4, 2020 Hampton Heroes, accessed August 11, 2020

○ “William Mason Cooper,” page 134, Who’s Who in Colored America, accessed August 12, 2020

○ “Cooper Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

Alfred S. Forrest

● Originally named Bethel Elementary when it opened during the 1956-57 school year. When Bethel High School opened in 1969, Bethel Elementary was renamed.

● It was renamed after Alfred Sylvester Forrest (1890-1970). ● He graduated from William & Mary and served as principal of Wythe Elementary

School beginning in 1923. ● Served as principal for both schools, when George Wythe junior high school was

built in grounds adjoining the elementary school ● He became principal of the new George Wythe Junior High when it opened for

the 1950-51 school year. Remained there until his retirement in the early 1960’s. ● Past president of the Hampton Rotary Club, as well as a WWI Navy veteran ● Forrest School Mascot: Ranger (Image shows bear wearing a forest ranger

uniform) ● Sources:

○ “Alfred S. Forrest, ”Find a Grave Memorial,” accessed 20 August 2020 ○ “Forrest Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed

August 14, 2020 Christopher Kraft

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● Opened in 1966 ● Named for Christopher Columbus Kraft, Jr. (1924-2019), who was born in

Phoebus ● Upon graduation from Virginia Tech, he was hired by NACA (located in Hampton,

VA), the predecessor to NASA ● After working for over a decade in aeronautical research, he joined the Space

Task Group, a small team entrusted with the responsibility of putting America's first man in space

● Assigned to the flight operations division, he became NASA's first flight director. ● Was on duty during such historic missions as America's first crewed spaceflight,

first crewed orbital flight, and first spacewalk ● Was very active in the Episcopal church and served as a lay reader ● Kraft School Mascot: Cubs ● Sources:

○ “Christopher Kraft Obituary”, The Guardian, accessed August 12, 2020 ○ “NASA Remembers Legendary Flight Director Chris Kraft," NASA,

accessed August 12, 2020 ○ “Kraft Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed

August 14, 2020 Samuel P. Langley

● Langley school was built in 1942 by the federal government to serve the families of the N.A.C.A., now known as N.A.S.A.

● Named after Samuel Pierpont Langley (1834-1906), an aviator and a physicist who was a pioneer in the development of the airplane

● Samuel Langley served as a professor of physics and astronomy and was also the secretary of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.

● Mr. Langley's accomplishments were honored in many ways. The first aircraft carrier was named after him in 1920. Langley Air Force Base also bears his name.

● Langley School Mascot: Leopard ● Sources:

○ “Samuel Pierpont Langley,” Wikipedia, accessed August 12, 2020 ○ “Samuel Pierpont Langley, Smithsonian Institution Archives, accessed

August 12, 2020 ○ “Langley Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future,

accessed August 14, 2020

Luther Machen ● Opened in 1969

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● Named after Luther W. Machen, Jr. (1902-1966) who was born in Norfolk, Virginia

● Graduated from Maury High School and Bliss Electrical School and undertook professional studies at the College of William & Mary, Virginia Tech, and UVA.

● Served on a subcommittee delegated to investigating setting up and organizing a Vocational Technical Adult Center for the Peninsula. The present Vocational Technical Institute in HCS is a result of this committee’s efforts

● In 1922, he began the duties of a shop teacher at the old Hampton High School, which became H. Wilson Thorpe Junior High School

● Most of his teaching career was spent teaching vocational electricity and he also taught and administered in the night school at Hampton

● Advocated for visual aids and assembled a vast collection of audiovisual aids and equipment that were owned by the school system and used in the classrooms of every school

● Active supporter for the creation of WHRO-TV ● Machen School Mascot: Mustang ● Sources:

○ “Luther Wesley Machen,” Find A Grave Memorial, accessed August 14, 2020

○ “Machen Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

Phillips

● Opened beginning in the 1962-63 school year. ● It was named after the Phillips family for their contribution to public education and

the general development of the community. ● The Phillips family originated with Benjamin Phillips and Ruth Boggs Phillips, who

moved from Accomack County to Elizabeth City County in 1803, settling in the Harris Creek Road area. Here, they raised 9 sons and 3 daughters.

● Of the 9 sons, Joseph and James were most interested in obtaining free education for children in the area in which they lived (Fox Hill and Harris Creek Road). To this end, Joseph deeded 1 acre of land in this area in 1839 to the Trustees of the Fox Hill Academy, then located in Elizabeth City County. It stipulated that if the acre was not used for the school, it would go back to the grantor, who was also one of the trustees

● When the Civil War began, one of the sons, Jefferson C. Phillips, entered the Confederate service as captain of the Old Dominion Dragoons cavalry. He was later made major of the Third Virginia and eventually advanced to colonel of the Thirteenth Virginia regiment.

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● In 1861 General Magruder detailed Colonel Jefferson Phillips to burn the city of Hampton rather than permit the federal troops to take the town.

● Colonel Jefferson Phillips, a trustee of the Syms-Eaton Academy at the time of the Civil War, and his wife, played a key role in preserving valuable papers and securities belonging to the academy. His wife tucked in the apron band the $10,000 in mortgage bonds originating from the 17th century bequests of Syms and Eaton, and took them to Richmond for safekeeping.

● Interest from these bonds served as the basis for rebuilding the Hampton public education system in 1872. It is still used for this same purpose today.

● The Phillips family owned slaves according to the Elizabeth City County (as Hampton was once named) slave schedules

● Phillips School Mascot: Falcon ● Sources:

○ “How I Destroyed the Town of Hampton (J.C. Phillips),” Hampton History Museum Archives, accessed August 11, 2020

○ “Death Claims Jefferson C. Phillips,” Phillips DNA Project, accessed August 10, 2020

○ Elizabeth City County Slave Schedules, U.S. Federal Census, 1850 and 1860.

○ Report of John B. Magruder, 9 August 1861, in Official Records of the War of the Rebellion, series 1, volume 4 (U.S. Government Printing Office), 570-573.

○ “Phillips Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

Captain John Smith

● Captain John Smith Elementary opened for the 1967-68 school year ● Named after Captain John Smith, an English soldier, explorer, colonial governor,

Admiral of New England, and author. ● Smith played an important role in the establishment of the colony at Jamestown,

Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in America in 1607 ● During a visit to the Kecoughtan Village (in what is now Hampton), Captain

Smith, was injured and cared for by the Kecoughtan Indians until he healed ● Smith School Mascot: Shark ● Sources:

○ “Smith Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

○ “Historic Jamestowne: John Smith,” National Park Service, accessed August, 14, 2020

○ “John Smith,” History, accessed August 14, 2020

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Tucker-Capps

● Tucker-Capps Elementary opened in 1963 ● Named after two men, Captain William Tucker and William Capps, who perhaps

had a great deal to do with the early colonial settlements on the lower peninsula ● The two were Englishmen who came to America in 1610 and settled in

Kecoughtan, now the present city of Hampton ● In 1619, Captain William Tucker and William Capps represented Kecoughtan

when America’s first representative assembly, the first General Assembly of the Colony of Virginia, convened in Jamestown.

● One of the petitions that was presented and granted read, “To change the savage name of Kiccowtan and give to incorporation a new name.” The new name given was Elizabeth City County, honoring the eldest daughter of King James I

● Captain Tucker was in command of Elizabeth City County from 1619-25 ● Between 1620 and 1625, William Capps moved from Elizabeth City County to

what later became Princess Anne County, and then eventually settling further west to what is now Prince George County

● Captain William Tucker was one of the first slave owners in Virginia. He purchased Anthony and Isabella, who later had a son named William, likely from the English privateer ships White Lion or Treasurer in 1619. He also appears to have enslaved a Virginia Indian named Chouponce. His descendants continued to be enslavers. Capt. William Tucker also made several attacks on Indian towns and was involved in the poisoning of approximately 200 Powhatan Indians at Jamestown in 1623.

● Tucker-Capps School Mascot: “Top cat” (Cat) Sources:

● “1619: Virginia’s First Africans,” (Hampton History Museum, 2019), <https://hampton.gov/DocumentCenter/View/24075/1619-Virginias-First-Africans?bidId=>, accessed 13 August 2020.

● “Lists of the Living and the Dead,” 1623/24; “General Musters of the Inhabitants of Virginia,” 1624/1625.

● “William Tucker,” in Martha W. McCartney, Virginia Immigrants and Adventurers 1607-1635: A Biographical Dictionary (Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2007), 703-704.

● Susan Myra Kingsbury, Records of the Virginia Company volume 3 (Library of Congress, 1933), 161, 276.

● Alfred Cave, Lethal Encounters: Englishmen and Indians in Colonial Virginia (University of Nebraska Press, 2013), 126.

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John Tyler ● John Tyler school opened in 1966 ● Named after John Tyler (1790-1862), our 10th U.S. president, whose term was

from 1841-1845 ● Tyler was also the 10th U.S. Vice President who became president when

President Harrison died after only a month in office. ● During his term as president, Tyler was a proponent of states’ rights and Manifest

Destiny. ● Tyler was born in Virginia and resided in Hampton for a short period in 1858 ● He inherited Sherwood Forest Plantation and was a slave owner who owned 70

slaves ● During his life, he served as governor of Virginia, Chancellor of the College of

William and Mary, member of both houses of Congress, U.S. Vice President and U.S. President

● When the American Civil War began in 1861, Tyler sided with the Confederacy and won election to the Confederate House of Representatives shortly before his death. He died before he was able to serve his term.

● President Abraham Lincoln and the U.S. government did not publicly acknowledge Tyler’s death, as the Virginian was seen as a traitor to the Union.

● Tyler School Mascot: Tiger ● Sources:

○ “Tyler Elementary School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

○ “John Tyler,” The White House, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “John Tyler,” Wikipedia, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “John Tyler,” History, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “John Tyler: Family Life,” History, accessed August 14, 2020

MIDDLE SCHOOLS Thomas Eaton

● The school opened in 1964 ● Named after Thomas Eaton (Deceased 1634) ● Graduated from the College of William and Mary and the University of Virginia ● Surgeon who left England and settled in Elizabeth City County (Hampton, VA) ● Bequeathed 500 acres of land, two enslaved African-Americans, and other

resources to support the children of Elizabeth City County. The enslaved people continued to be part of the Eaton School’s property, laboring to provide income for the schoolmaster and acting as his house servants. In 1696, one enslaved woman was still alive, and was so mistreated by the schoolmaster that he was ordered by the county court to improve her living conditions.

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● Helped to establish Eaton Charity School ● Thomas Eaton Junior High School opened for the 1964-1965 school year ● Transitioned into a Fundamental School to emphasize discipline, homework high

academic expectations, appropriate dress, staff and parent cooperation, and respect for authority

● Renamed Thomas Eaton Fundamental Middle School ● Eaton School Mascot: Eagle ● Sources:

○ “Will of Thomas Eaton, in Rosemary Corley Neal, Elizabeth City County Deeds, Wills, Court Orders, Etc. 1634, 1659, 1688-1702 (Hampton, Va.: Port Hampton Press, 2007), 298-299.

○ “Transcript of Thomas Eaton’s Will,” Hampton History Museum Archives, accessed August 14, 2020

○ Court Orders, Elizabeth City County Court, 19 December 1692 and 28 November 1696.

○ “Eaton Middle School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

Francis W. Jones Magnet School

● Francis W. Jones Junior High School was dedicated in 1977 in a celebration led by the then State Senator Hunter B. Andrews (namesake of Hunter B. Andrews PreK-8), who congratulated the Hampton School Board for "having the wisdom and good sense to name the city's newest school for the man who has influenced so many people."

● However, the need for the school was short-lived and the building eventually became home for the HCS administrative offices.

● In 1998, this building was rededicated as Francis W. Jones Middle School. ● Named after Francis Willard Jones (1917-2004), the first Clerk of Hampton

School Board and Administrative Assistant to the Superintendent, for his contribution to the development of Hampton City Schools over his 43-year long career that spanned from 1936-1979.

● Jones graduated from Hampton High School in 1934 and began employment with the school system in 1936. He served or assisted in nearly every capacity of responsibility in a school administrative staff.

● He served three boards at the time: Elizabeth City County, Phoebus, and Hampton. It wasn’t until 1952 that the three localities merged.

● When he first started, there were only two on the central administrative staff, he and the superintendent. The division had a total enrollment of only 5,319 students. When he retired, the enrollment had grown to over 25,000. Besides performing his administrative and clerk duties, one of his jobs was to fire up the

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coal burning stove in winter to keep him and the superintendent warm at the Syms-Eaton Academy building. For a time, it served as the site of the central administrative office after Hampton High was built.

● Coincidentally, as a child, he had attended the first four grades at the Syms-Eaton Academy. This building where he first began his education would be the same place, he would later spend twenty-five years of his life.

● Even with his many duties in the school system, he was highly active in community and civic affairs.

● Mr. Jones considered one of his greatest honor that of being selected "Employee of the Year" in 1976 by the Hampton Exchange Club and the City of Hampton.

● He was selected as Virginia Administrator of the Year in 1979 ● Mr. Jones was also a member of the Rotary Club for 50 years. ● Jones Magnet School Mascot: Jaguar ● Sources:

○ “Francis Jones Magnet School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

○ “JMMS History,” Hampton City Schools, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “Frances W. Jones: Hampton School’s Namesake Dies,” Daily Press,

accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “Obituary: Francis W. Jones,” Legacy, accessed August 15, 2020

C. Alton Lindsay

● Opened in 1968 ● Named after C. Alton Lindsay (1904-2002) for his contribution to education over

the span his 41-year career at Hampton. Twenty six of those years were spent as the division’s superintendent and fifteen of those years were spent as principal of Armstrong Elementary.

● He received his B.A. degree from the College of William and Mary and his MEd from the University of Virginia. In 1924, he became principal and teacher of Warsaw High School (Gloucester).

● In 1927, he came to Hampton and was selected as principal of Armstrong Elementary School.

● He remained in that position until 1942, when he became superintendent of Elizabeth City County, the City of Hampton, and the Town of Phoebus

● In 1952, he was appointed superintendent when the three localities merged into the City of Hampton. He is credited with helping to make the transition successful.

● Served as superintendent during World War II, segregation of school system, and ultimately the integration of schools

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● Cary Elementary (1954), Jefferson Davis Middle School (1960) and the former Lee Elementary (1965), Merrimack (1966) were among the schools constructed while he was superintendent

● Worked during his entire tenure as superintendent with Francis W. Jones as the Clerk of the Board.

● Credited along with Hunter B. Andrews and others for integrating the school division. He is honored at the Hampton Heroes Plaza.

● 1968, he retired as superintendent after having served 26 years in that position ● Served on the Hampton electoral board (1968-1994) ● Was a charter member and past president of the Hampton Lions civic club. ● Was a founding member and past president and the Hampton Retired Teacher

Association ● Lindsay School Mascot: Lion ● Sources:

○ “Lindsay Middle School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

○ “Obituary: Christopher Alton Lindsay,” Legacy, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “School Day Memories: C. Alton Lindsay,” Daily Press, accessed August

14, 2020 C. Vernon Spratley Gifted School

● The school opened in 1969 ● It was named after C. (Claude) Vernon Spratley (1882-1976) ● Born in Surry County, VA ● Attended the College of William and Mary and University of Virginia ● City Attorney for Hampton, VA (1912-1923) ● Judge of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court (1923-1936) ● Supreme Court of Appeals of Virginia (1936-1967) ● While a judge in Hampton, Spratley was a member of the white supremacist

“Anglo-Saxon Club” and issued pro-segregation and anti-equality rulings. For example, in 1929, he forced an interracial couple in Phoebus to leave the county. In 1931, he ruled that the county registrar of voters could deny registration to black citizens based on arbitrary knowledge tests, a decision struck down by the state supreme court.

● A newspaper article was located concerning a 1933 decision in which Spratley ruled that black voters could not be excluded from participating in Democratic party primaries. The article doesn't mention the earlier two cases, which the Hampton History Museum found in a history of white supremacy in early- and mid-20th century Virginia. The Virginia Supreme Court's overturning of Spratley's

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1931 anti-voting rights ruling may have influenced his ruling in this 1933 case, though it did deal with party primaries rather than voter registration.

● Spratley School Mascot: Seahawk ● Sources:

○ J. Douglas Smith, Managing White Supremacy: Race, Politics, and Citizenship in Jim Crow Virginia (Chapel Hill, N.C.: University of North Carolina Press, 2002), 221, 231.

○ Daily Press, 16 September 1984. ○ Heinemann, Enduring Dominion, 141; Speech by C. Vernon Spratley, 23

July 1935, Carter Glass Collection, Box 146 & 147, folder Hon. H.F. Byrd, Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville.

Benjamin Syms

● It opened in 1963 ● Named after Benjamin Syms, the first benefactor of free education ● Willed two hundred acres of land and cows "a free school to educate and teach

the children of the adjoining parishes of Elizabeth City and Poquoson from Marie's Mount downward to the Poquoson River"

● Contributions led to the establishment of Syms Free School ● Funds originating from Syms’ contributions fund Hampton’s schools today ● Syms School Mascot: Spartan

Source: ○ “Syms Middle School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed

August 14, 2020 Cesar Tarrant

● The original Caesar opened in 1970 and was located where the current Patriot Center is housed

● closed in 2015 ● Named for Cesar Tarrant, born into slavery around 1740 ● He was a river pilot ● Served the Patriots as a naval pilot during the Revolutionary War ● (It is unknown whether Tarrant served voluntarily or involuntarily, though he did

serve skillfully and bravely. Most enslaved men who served in the Virginia Navy were rented from enslavers by the State rather than joining voluntarily.)

● Forced back into slavery after the Revolutionary War ● The Virginia Assembly purchased Tarrant’s freedom ● Tarrant purchased land in Hampton, as well as the freedom of several family

members.

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● Tarrant School Mascot: Bulldog ● Sources:

○ “Tarrant Middle School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

○ William Waller Hening, Statutes at Large; Being a Collection of all the Laws of Virginia, vol. 13 (Philadelphia: 1823), p. 102.

HIGH SCHOOLS Bethel

● According to Wikipedia, “Bethel was named after the geographic area of Bethel and also after the Civil War battle of Big Bethel”. According to Hampton City Schools: How Our Past Defines Our Future, “Bethel was named according to geographical or historical significance in accordance with the school board policy in effect at the time”

● Bethel High School was built in 1968 to handle the overflow of Hampton High School and Kecoughtan High School

● The name “Bethel” is derived from an early church located in the area. The church was large enough that it could accommodate the entire community. The name can be attributed to biblical influences deemed very significant in the New World.

● Later another church was built and called Little Bethel to distinguish it from the larger church.

● The name “Big Bethel” may have been forgotten entirely had it not been for the Battle of Big Bethel fought during the Civil War. It resulted in a Confederate victory.

● Bethel School Mascot: Bruin (bear) ● Sources:

○ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bethel_High_School_(Virginia) ○ “Bethel High School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August

14, 2020

Hampton ● Traces its roots from Syms-Eaton Academy and later Hampton Academy ● In 1805, the Syms and Eaton schools were merged by an act of the General

Assembly and called Hampton Academy. The school existed in several forms and included the Hampton High School by the 1890s.

● First graduating class was in 1896 ● Current school opened in 1922 ● Hampton High School Mascot: Crabbers (crab) ● Source:

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○ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hampton_High_School_(Virginia) ○ “Hampton High School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed

August 14, 2020 Kecoughtan

● The school opened in 1963 to handle overflow from Hampton High School ● Named after the Kecoughtan Indian tribe ● In 1607, when the English colonists landed in what is known as Hampton, they

were treated as visitors and negotiating partners by the Kecoughtan Indians. The relationship between the English and Kecoughtans was more peaceful than with most other Powhatan Indian chiefdoms.

● In 1610, the English made an unprovoked attack on the Kecoughtans, claiming they were avenging the death of an Englishman (not killed by the Kecoughtans) but in reality, seizing their land because of its strategic significance and to take their crops. On July 9, 1610, English soldiers used a musician to draw the Kecoughtan Indians from their home and attacked, killing 15 right away and seriously or fatally wounding many others. The survivors were driven from their land, and the English began using their crops and houses and built a new fortification around the seized town.

● Kecoughtan School Mascot: Warrior (See image on marquee on school website)

● Sources: ○ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hampton_High_School_(Virginia) ○ William Strachey, “A True Repertory of the Wreck and Redemption of Sir

Thomas Gates, Knight, Upon and from the Islands of the Bermudas; His Coming to Virginia, and the Estate of That Colony Then, and after under the Government of Lord La Warre, July 15, 1610.”

○ George Percy, “A True Relation of the Proceedings and Occurrents of Moment which have Happened in Virginia from the Time Sir Thomas Gates was shipwrecked upon the Bermudas, anno 1609, until my Departure out of the Country, which was Anno Domini 1612.”

○ “A Brief Declaration of the Plantation of Virginia during the First Twelve Years, when Sir Thomas Smith was Governor of the Company, and down to this Present Time, by the Ancient Planters now Remaining Alive in Virginia.”

○ J. Frederick Fausz, Ph.D., The Day Kicotan Became Hampton: England’s First Indian War, 1609-1614 (Hampton: Port Hampton Press, 2010).

○ Jeanne Eller McDougall, Ph.D., “Meeting, Merriment, and Massacre: Musical Encounters between Kikotans and English, 1607-1610,”

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Commonplace: The Journal of Early American Life, volume 13, no. 2 (Winter 2013).

○ Helen C. Rountree, Pocahontas’ People: The Powhatan Indians of Virginia Through Four Centuries (Norman, Ok.: University of Oklahoma Press, 1990), 54.

Phoebus ● Phoebus High School opened during the 1975-76 school year ● Named after the geographic area of Phoebus which is named after Harrison

Phoebus (1840-1886) ● Served in the Union Army ● Was an American 19th century entrepreneur and hotelier who became the

leading citizen of Phoebus ● Became the community’s railroad agent and acquired the Hygeia Hotel, formerly

located at Fort Monroe. ● The success of the luxury hotel enriched the surrounding town and as a result,

the town was renamed to Phoebus ● Phoebus School Mascot: Phantom ● Sources:

○ "Harrison Phoebus", Hampton History Museum Archives accessed August 6, 2020

○ “Phoebus High School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

PRE-K-8 SCHOOLS Hunter B. Andrews

● Opened in 2010 ● Named after Hunter B. Andrews (1921-2005) ● Born in Hampton VA ● Graduated from the College of William and Mary and the University of Virginia

Law School ● Served as an Ensign in the United States Navy during World War II in the Pacific

theater ● Served as Chair of the Hampton School Board during Integration (opposed

massive resistance) ● State Senator from Hampton Virginia (1972-1996) (longest serving senator in

state's history) ● Senate Majority Leader 1980-1995 ● Served on the Board of Visitors of the College of William & Mary

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● Referred to as the champion for education (channeled billions of dollars into public education

● Helped to establish WHRO-TV ● Interesting side note: State Senator, Hunter Booker Andrews, was a descendant

of the Booker family. He served as Chairman of the Hampton School Board from 1959 to 1962.

● Andrews School Mascot: Alligator (gator) ● Sources:

○ “Hunter B. Andrews: About Us, History,” Hampton City Schools, accessed August 14, 2020

○ “Hunter B. Andrews,” Wikipedia, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “Andrews PreK-8 School,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed

August 14, 2020 George P. Phenix

● George P. Phenix PreK-8 school opened in 2010 ● The origins of the current PreK-8 school can be traced back to three

previous schools: 1) George P. Phenix Training School (Hampton Institute campus), 2) George P. Phenix High School (LaSalle Avenue), built in 1962, and 3) an elementary school (formerly the old George Wythe Junior High) which was renamed to George P. Phenix Elementary School.

● All of these schools in addition to the new PreK-8 school were named after George P. (Perly) Phenix (1864-1930) for his devotion to providing better educational opportunities for African- Americans

● Dr. Phenix was a principal of the State Normal School in Willimantic, Connecticut ● Moved to Hampton, VA to teach at Hampton Institute (University) in 1904 ● Became vice president of Hampton Institute (1908) ● Became president of Hampton Institute (1928-1930) ● Campaigned before the State Board of Education to build a new school ● As a result, in 1930, construction began on a new school. Funding for the school

project came from a Virginia State Board of Education grant and financial support from Hampton Institute.

● Dr. Phenix died in a drowning accident six months before the school opened in 1931 and the school was named in his honor.

● Phenix Training school was a three-story building owned by Hampton Institute and located on their campus. It housed grammar and high school students who were transferred from Whittier Elementary and Union High School

● It was a “teaching laboratory” for Hampton Institute college students who were required to teach as student teachers at the school in order to earn their degree.

● In 1940, Hampton Institute leased the Phenix building to the Elizabeth City County School system (now Hampton City Schools). It served as a public high

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school for African- American students living in the area. It continued to serve as a teaching ground and the grammar school also remained.

● In 1954 when the U. S. Supreme Court ruling struck down the separate but equal segregation laws with Brown v. Board of Education, black citizens urged the city to build a new high school for black children.

● The city of Hampton was slow to act. Hampton Institute brought the issue to the forefront when it refused to allow the Hampton School Board to renew the lease to use the Phenix School building.

● An agreement was reached to build a new high school on LaSalle Avenue to be named the George P. Phenix High School. It was opened in 1962 at a cost of $1.5 million.

● Despite the Brown v. the Board of Education ruling, the new Phenix High School was still predominantly black

● In 1967 the Hampton School Board decided to fully integrate all public schools. A resolution was approved that no high school could be named after a person and that all high schools would be named after the district that it was located in.

● Some George Phenix Alumni believe that it was the school board’s way of saying that Phenix would have to change its name for the sake of integration.

● But many believed the decision was based on an opinion that bussing white students to Phenix (a predominantly black school) would cause civil unrest. Although George Perley Phenix was white, many stigmatized the school as a black school.

● During the summer of 1968 the school's name was changed to Pembroke High School. The school would eventually close in 1980 and is currently utilized as the Social Services and YMCA building

● As a concession, in 1968, the school board re-named and repurposed the old George Wythe Junior High into George P. Phenix Elementary School. It closed during the 1978-79 school year, and was demolished in 1984. It was located on the intersection of Catalpa and Shell Road in the Wythe area of the city.

● NOTE from Beth Austin, Hampton History Museum registrar and historian: “I wanted to add a note on the history of school renaming in Hampton with regards to racial justice. The main reason the School System adopted its school naming policy in 1967 was to eliminate the name of George P. Phenix High School when the school integrated. Originally, the all-black school was operated by Hampton Institute, where Phenix had been principal. Eventually, the City assumed administration of the school and leased the building from Hampton Institute. After the Supreme Court's Brown v. Board decision, Hampton Institute refused to renew the lease unless Hampton integrated its schools. Instead of choosing to fully integrate and renew the lease, Hampton City Schools built a new Phenix High School. It remained a Black school until 1968, when it was integrated.

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However, rather than sending white students to a formerly Black school, the school system developed its new naming policy and the name was changed to Pembroke. Today, Phenix alumni regard the renaming (and the disposal by the City of its Phenix history) as deeply unjust and discriminatory. The new 1967 school naming policy also caused other schools to be renamed beginning in the 1968-69 school year, and the name Phenix was given to a new elementary school. The history of the school system's expenditures to maintain segregation in constructing a new Phenix High School, and to develop a new policy and undertake renaming in order to eliminate the formerly Black high school, is a sharp contrast to the current discussion about removing names that honor Confederates, enslavers, or white supremacists.

● Phenix School Mascot: Panther ● Sources:

○ Daily Press: 6 May 1959, 12 May 1959, 4 May 1960, 14 August 1960, 31 March 1966, 26 October 1967, 26 September 1968.

○ Norfolk Journal & Guide: 8 October 1960, 22 April 1961, 23 December 1967, 15 June 1968.

○ “The Phenix High School Story,” Phenix Alumni Association, accessed 13 August 2020

○ “Site of George Wythe Junior High School (Hampton, Virginia),” Wikimapia, accessed 14 August 2020

○ “ The Forgotten Phenix School,” Phenix Legacy Reception Program Book page 20, accessed 14 August 2020

○ “The George P. Phenix Timeline,” Phenix Alumni Association, accessed 14 August 2020

OTHER Bridgeport Academy

● No information is available about the reason for its name ● Bridgeport Academy School Mascot: Bronco ● Source:

○ “Bridgeport Academy,” How Our Past Defines Our Future, accessed August 14, 2020

Patriot Center

● Formerly named Cesar Tarrant which then became the new name conferred to the former Jefferson Davis middle school Hampton City Schools Adult and Alternative Learning Center

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● It was formerly named the Campus at Lee (Robert E. Lee) and before that was Robert E. Lee Elementary school

● In December 2017, the Hampton school board voted to remove its name and change it to this name.

● Sources: ○ Hampton Removes Robert E. Lee’s Name from Campus.” Daily Press,

accessed August 14, 2020 RECENTLY CLOSED SCHOOLS Merrimack

● Merrimack opened in 1966 and closed in 2012 as a cost saving measure ● Named for the ship which became the Confederate ironclad warship C.S.S.

Virginia ● After sustaining damage, the Merrimack was repaired and on March 8, 1862,

rechristened C.S.S. Virginia ● During the Civil War, the C.S.S. Virginia destroyed the Cumberland and

Congress, two powerful Union naval vessels ● Overnight, the new Union ironclad, Monitor, appeared in Hampton Roads. The

two ironclads battled to a draw. ● There is currently a historical marker located at the end of the intersection of East

Avenue and Chesapeake Avenue denoting the approximate location where this battle occurred.

● Sources: ○ “Hampton School Board Votes to Close Merrimack Elementary School,”

Daily Press, accessed August 6, 2020. ○ “Battle of Hampton Roads,” History, accessed August 6, 2020

Francis Mallory

● Opened in 1959 and closed in 2010 as a cost saving measure and was rented out to the Head Start program

● Named after Francis Mallory (1807-1860) ● He was born in Elizabeth County, VA (now Hampton) and attended Hampton

Academy ● Served in the U.S. Navy from 1822-1828 beginning as a midshipman ● Dr. Mallory graduated from University of Pennsylvania medical school in

Philadelphia in 1831 and practiced in Norfolk, Virginia. ● Elected as a U.S. Congressman. Elected to represent Virginia's 1st, 10th and

11th Districts in the U.S. House of Representatives for the Whig party.

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● Also served as State Court Judge and a member of the Virginia State Legislature.

● He successfully lobbied before the State Legislature for a railroad line to Norfolk ● His son, Colonel Francis Mallory, Jr., fought on the Confederate side and was

killed at the Battle of Chancellorsville. ● Source:

○ “Francis Mallory,” Wikipedia, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “Francis Mallory,” Find A Grave Memorial, accessed August 14, 2020

Mary Peake

● Mary Peake opened in 1961and was closed in 2010 ● Was named after Hampton educator and humanitarian, Mary Peake (1823-1862) ● Mary S. Peake was born in Norfolk, the daughter of a free black woman and a

prominent Englishman. ● In 1847, she moved with her family to Hampton. While supporting herself as a

seamstress, she secretly began teaching from her home, instructing African Americans of all ages.

● She also founded the Daughters of Zion to provide aid to the poor and the sick. ● In 1851 she married Thomas Peake, a former slave. ● The Peake family home was destroyed when Confederate forces burned

Hampton. Many of the displaced African American families from Hampton were forced to seek refuge at nearby Fort Monroe.

● In 1861, Peake started a school near the fortress to teach the freed enslaved people. It was within the present grounds of Hampton University and she is believed to have conducted classes under Emancipation Oak.

● Her enrollment grew from six to more than fifty students in a matter of days. ● Peake was a dedicated educator, creating a school for adults in the evenings and

continuing to teach despite failing health. ● She died of tuberculosis in February 1862. ● Her school was one of the first of its kind and served as a model for a number of

other schools that taught African-Americans throughout the South in Union-occupied territory.

● Sources: ○ “Meet Mrs. Peake,” Virginia is for Learners, August 6, 2020 ○ “Mary Peake,” Wikipedia, accessed August 6, 2020 ○ “Mary Peake,” Virginia Changemakers, accessed August 6, 2020,

https://edu.lva.virginia.gov/changemakers/items/show/3. ○ “Emancipation Oak,” Hampton University, accessed August 6, 2020

George Wythe

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● The original George Wythe Elementary School was built in 1909 and was demolished.

● The current building constructed in the Art Deco style was opened in 1936 as the George Wythe Junior High School.

● In 1950, the new George Wythe Junior High opened on Gloucester Street and the old building became the George Wythe Elementary School.

● It closed in 2010 as a cost saving measure and was eventually sold to a private company. It repurposed the shuttered school into apartments while preserving the historical integrity of the space.

● It was named after George Wythe (1726-1806) ● George Wythe was born in Elizabeth County (now Hampton) at Chesterville

plantation (located in the area where Langley NASA now sits) ● He later inherited the plantation from his brother, Thomas Wythe III. ● He also inherited the slaves on the plantation and was a slave owner ● George Wythe was the first American law professor, a noted classics scholar,

and a Virginia judge. ● He was the first of the seven Virginia signers of the United States Declaration of

Independence, Wythe served as one of Virginia's representatives to the Continental Congress and the Philadelphia Convention.

● In his later life, Wythe’s views on slavery began to change, and after his wife died in 1787, he began to free his slaves and to provide for their support. In Richmond, Wythe lived with two of his former slaves: his cook Lydia Broadnax, 66, and a 16-year-old boy named Michael Brown.

● Wythe was convinced that blacks were as intelligent as whites and, given the same opportunities, would be just as successful.

● It is believed he was poisoned by his nephew after he learned George Wythe willed part of the family property to his former slaves.

● Sources: ○ “George Wythe,” New World Encyclopedia, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “George Wythe,” Wikipedia, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “Chesterville Plantation Site,” NASA, “accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “Historic School,” The Eyes of Silver Blue, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “The Mysterious Death of George Wythe,” HistoryNet, accessed August

14, 2020

Renamed Schools Jefferson Davis

● Opened in 1960, renamed to Caesar Tarrant Middle School in 2018 ● Named after Jefferson Davis (1808-1889)

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● He was a U.S. senator from Mississippi, U.S. secretary of war and president of the Confederate States of America during the Civil War

● After the war, he was charged with treason and was imprisoned in Fort Monroe where he remained for two years.

● He refused to take the oath of allegiance to regain his citizenship, which was restored only posthumously by the U.S. Congress in 1978.

● Sources: ○ “Jefferson Davis,” History, accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “Public Discussion Limited Before Jefferson Davis School Renamed,”

Daily Press, accessed August 14, 2020 Robert E. Lee

● Opened in 1965 and was closed in 2010 as a cost saving measure ● The school was repurposed from an elementary school to an adult and

alternative learning facility known as the Campus at Lee ● In 2017, it was renamed by an HCS central office committee to the Hampton City

Schools Adult and Alternative Learning Center ● It was named after Confederate general Robert E. Lee (1807-1870) who was

born in Stratford, Virginia. ● He is best known as a commander of the Confederate States Army during the

American Civil War. ● He commanded the Army of Northern Virginia from 1862 until its surrender in

1865. ● Sources:

○ Lee, ”Wikipedia accessed August 14, 2020 ○ “The Myth of the Kindly General Lee,” The Atlantic, accessed August, 14,

2020 ○ Hampton Removes Robert E. Lee’s Name from Campus.” Daily Press,

accessed August 14, 2020 COMMITTEE SUGGESTIONS: It is the suggestion of the committee that should a decision be made by the board to rename a school that consideration be given to Mary Peake. Mary Peake was the name of the former gifted school that was closed and is now housed at Spratley Gifted Center. (See her biographical information on the previous page). Other suggested names are Mary T. Christian, Mary Jackson, Catherine Johnson, and Dorothy Vaughan. Currently, Jane Bryan is the only school named after a woman, and there are none named after a woman of color. These distinguished women all made significant contributions to Hampton.

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Dr. Mary T. Christian (1924-2019) ● She was born in Hampton, Virginia ● Christian attended Union School and graduated from Phenix High School in 1941 ● While working in the Hampton Institute laundry, she began taking typing courses

and eventually landed a secretarial position there. ● Encouraged by a mentor, who recognized her limitless potential, she set out to

further her education. ● In 1955, she earned her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from

Hampton Institute ● For the next five years, she worked as a teacher at Aberdeen Elementary in

Hampton City Schools, attending Columbia University in the summers to earn her master’s degree.

● In 1968 she earned her Ph.D. from Michigan State University. ● In 1973, Christian was the first African-American woman elected to serve on the

Hampton City School Board. ● In 1980, she was selected as the Dean of Hampton’s school of education. ● In 1986, she was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates and became the first

African-American since Reconstruction to represent the 92nd District. She served nine consecutive terms and championed legislation on education, healthcare and prescription drugs.

● Christian retired as professor emeritus at Hampton University after serving as a professor and dean of the School of Liberal Arts and Education.

● She was the recipient of numerous awards for community and humanitarian service awards and recognized for her work in integrating public schools.

● Sources: ○ “The Honorable Mary T. Christian,” The History Makers, accessed August

14, 2020 ○ “Former Del. Mary T. Christian Dies,” Daily Press, accessed August 14,

2020 Mary W. (Winston) Jackson (1921-2005)

● Jackson was a scientist, aerospace engineer, humanitarian, and trailblazer who paved the way for thousands of others to succeed not only at NASA, but throughout the nation as well.

● She was born in Hampton, Virginia ● Jackson graduated from the all-black Phenix Training School with highest

honors. ● In 1942, she graduated from Hampton Institute where she earned her bachelor’s

degrees in mathematics and physical science. ● Following graduation, Jackson taught in Maryland prior to joining NACA.

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● In 1951, she began working at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, the predecessor to NASA. She worked as a research mathematician, or computer, in the-then segregated West Area Computing Unit of what is now the Langley Research Center in Hampton.

● She accepted an offer to worked with NASA’s 4X4 pressure tunnel ● In 1958, she became NASA’s first African-American female engineer. ● She successfully petitioned the city of Hampton to allow her to take UVA night

classes alongside white students (held at Hampton High) in order to complete additional training and courses for her new role.

● By 1979, Jackson having achieved the most senior title within the engineering department, decided to take a demotion in order to serve as an administrator in the Equal Opportunity Specialist field.

● After undergoing training at NASA headquarters, she returned to Langley to make changes and highlight women and other minorities who were accomplished in the field.

● She served as both the Federal Women's Program Manager in the Office of Equal Opportunity Programs and as the Affirmative Action Program Manager, and worked to influence the career paths of women in science, engineering, and mathematics positions at NASA.

● Jackson retired from NASA in 1985, having worked for 34 years as an aeronautical engineer.

● Her contributions along with the work of NASA mathematicians Katherine Johnson and Dorothy Vaughan played a pivotal role in helping U.S. astronauts reach space. Their accomplishments were highlighted in the 2016 film, Hidden Figures.

● In 2019, Jackson was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. ● In 2020, the Washington, D.C. headquarters of NASA was renamed the Mary W.

Jackson NASA Headquarters. ● Sources:

○ “Hidden Figure No More,” Daily Press. June 26, 2020, accessed August 19, 2020

○ “Mary Jackson (Engineer),” Wikipedia, accessed August 19, 2020 ○ “Mary Winston Jackson,” Legacy. Daily Press. February 13, 2015,

accessed August 16, 2020 ○ “Spotlight on a Hampton Figure Who Is Hidden No More”, Daily Press.

June 28, 2017, accessed August 19, 2020 ○ “NASA Names Headquarters after Hidden Figure, Mary W. Jackson,”

NASA News. June 24, 2020, accessed August 16, 2020 Katherine Johnson (1918-2020)

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● Johnson was an African-American mathematician who calculated and analyzed the flight paths of many spacecraft during her thirty-three year tenure with the NASA space program. Her work helped send astronauts to the moon.

● Johnson was born in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia ● When she started school, Johnson’s fascination and brilliance with numbers

resulted in her being skipped several grades ahead of her peers. ● By age 13, she was attending high school at the campus of the historically

African- American West Virginia State College. By age 18, she had enrolled in the college itself.

● In 1937, she earned a B.S., Mathematics and French from West Virginia State College, graduating with highest honors.

● Upon graduation, she took a teaching job at a black public school in Marion, Virginia.

● In 1953, Johnson began working in Hampton, Virginia, at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA’s) West Area Computing unit. Here she worked as one of West Computers, a group of African American women who manually performed complex mathematical calculations for the program’s engineers.

● She analyzed test data and provided mathematical computations that were essential to the success of the early U.S. space program at a time when NACA was segregated.

● It wasn’t until 1958 that segregation was banned as a result of NACA being incorporated into NASA. At NASA Johnson was a member of the Space Task Group.

● In 1960, she co-authored a paper with one of the group’s engineers about calculations for placing a spacecraft into orbit. It was the first time a woman in her division received credit as an author of a research report. Johnson authored or coauthored 26 research reports during her career.

● In 1961, she calculated the path for Freedom 7, the spacecraft that put Alan Shepard, the first U.S astronaut in space.

● In 1962, astronaut, John Glenn, specifically requested that Johnson personally verify the electronic computer had planned his flight correctly. As a result, Glenn made history aboard Friendship 7, becoming the first U.S. astronaut to orbit Earth.

● In 1969, Johnson was also part of the team that calculated where and when to launch the Apollo 11 rocket that sent the first three men to the Moon.

● Johnson later worked on the space shuttle program. ● She retired from NASA in 1986. ● In 2015, at age 97, Johnson added another extraordinary achievement to her

long list: President Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of

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Freedom, America’s highest civilian honor. She was cited as a pioneering example of an African-American woman in STEM.

● President Obama said at the time, "Katherine G. Johnson refused to be limited by society's expectations of her gender and race while expanding the boundaries of humanity's reach."

● In 2016 NASA named a building, the Katherine G. Johnson Computational Research Facility, after her.

● Sources: ○ “Katherine Johnson: American Mathematician,” Britannica, accessed

August 19, 2020 ○ “Katherine Johnson Biography,” NASA, accessed August 19, 2020 ○ “Katherine Johnson,” Wikipedia, accessed August 19, 2020 ○ “Katherine Johnson, Mathematician Dies,” NPR, accessed August 19,

2020 Dorothy J. Vaughan (1910-2008)

● Dorothy J. (Johnson) Vaughan was an American mathematician and human computer who worked for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, and NASA, at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.

● She was born in Kansas City, Missouri but her family soon moved to Morgantown, West Virginia

● In 1925, Vaughan graduated from Beechurst High School as valedictorian of her class. She received a full tuition scholarship to attend Wilberforce University, a historically black college in Ohio.

● In 1929, she graduated cum laude with a B.A. in mathematics.

from Wilberforce.

● Her professors encouraged her to do graduate work at Howard University, but due to the Great Depression, she took a teaching job in Farmville, Virginia in order to help her family make ends meet

● Vaughan spent the next 14 years teaching mathematics at Robert Russa Moton High School in Farmville.

● In 1943, she started what would be a 28-year long career at NACA, the predecessor to NASA. She worked as a mathematician and programmer and specialized in calculations for space flight paths, the Scout Project, and FORTRAN computer programming. She along with Katherine Johnson and Mary Jackson worked in the West Area Computing, a segregated unit, which consisted of only African Americans.

● Vaughan foresaw that machine computers were going to be the way of the future and would eventually replace “human computers.” In preparation, she taught

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herself and the women she supervised programming languages and digital concepts.

● In 1961, she moved into the area of electronic computing and contributed to the success of the space program as a result of her work on the Scout Launch Vehicle Program.

● She worked at NASA for 28 years and retired in 1971. ● In 2019, Vaughan received the Congressional Gold Medal post-humously ● Sources:

○ “Dorothy J. Vaughan,” Wikipedia, accessed August 19, 2020 ○ “Dorothy Vaughan Biography,” NASA, accessed August, 19, 2020

OTHER RESOURCES:

● Newport News School Board Set to Vote On Renaming Schools: https://www.dailypress.com/news/education/dp-nw-newport-news-school-renaming-preview-20200914-v63vdrfh7nhobes5lelquygw3i-story.html#nws=true

● Portsmouth Could Rename 3 Schools” https://www.pilotonline.com/news/education/vp-nw-portsmouth-considers-renaming-schools-20200815-ny5xrj7iszhgvo6byy2mh4tr74-story.html#nt=interstitial-manual

● Newport News Accepts Name Nominations for Schools to be Renamed: http://sbo.nn.k12.va.us/news/archive/2021-03-10_NNPS-seeks-input-on-renaming-of-schools.html#:~:text=Newport%20News%20Public%20Schools'%20Diversity,close%20on%20Wednesday%2C%20March%2024.