Booker T. Washington School

In 1880, two years before the City of Gainesville created a public school system for all its children, Island Sparks, a young mulatto, taught the Black children of the city. In 1886, the city built a frame school building on this site for the community's Black youth. Originally known as the Gainesville Colored School, the school adopted the name Booker T. Washington sometime before 1927. The original two-story facility was replaced in 1939 with a red brick, WPA project structure. Desegregation in 1965-66 resulted in the closing of Booker T. Washington as a Black institution. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986

Booker T. Washington School is a historical marker in Gainesville, Cooke County, dedicated in 1986. It is one of 44 historical markers documented in Cooke County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 56 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 33.6297, -97.1510 near Gainesville. The nearest cataloged historic site is Gainesville Community Circus (historical marker), about 0.4 miles away. Others within a short drive include Cooke County, Cooke County C.S.A. (2nd Frontier Regiment), and Moffett Park.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5097000453. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.