ATLANTA — The Georgia Historical Society unveiled a new historical marker in Atlanta about Booker T. Washington High School on Tuesday.
The marker is the newest addition to the society's Georgia Civil Rights Trail and was dedicated in partnership with The Rich's Foundation and Atlanta Alumni Association of Booker T. Washington High School, Inc. The Georgia Civil Rights Trail was created 10 years ago to highlight significant stories about the struggle for civil and human rights from Reconstruction through the late twentieth century.
According to a release, the marker shares the school's legacy and how it was founded through community efforts 100 years ago.
Booker T. Washington High School was Atlanta's first school for Black students. Back in the early 1900s, there were several segregated public primary schools and two public secondary schools for White students only. So, Atlanta's Black community began to get together to address the disproportionate educational opportunities. This created political pressure that helped increase funds for existing Black schools, resulting in the opening of Booker T. Washington.
Valerie Williams, who graduated from the school in 1982, said the opening marked the first opportunity for Black students in Atlanta to attend a public high school and that the alumni association was proud to partner with GHS to commemorate the school's enduring legacy.
"This legendary institution deserves a place in history, not just in the history of Atlanta or Georgia, but of our country," Williams said. "Throughout its one hundred years, Booker T. Washington High School has produced a distinguished roster of alumni who have gone on to make profound contributions in the United States."
The Rich's Foundation Chair, John Montag, said they were honored to support the dedication of the historical marker.
"Booker T. Washington High School stands as a beacon of resilience and progress as the first public high school for African Americans in Atlanta," Montag said. "Its legacy of empowering students during segregation and producing leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. highlights its pivotal role in shaping both the history of education and the fight for civil rights."
Dr. Elaine B. Andrews Distinguished Historian for the Georgia Historical Society, Dr. Stan Deaton, said the school treated a generation of leaders who were critically important in the Civil Rights Movement as well as American political, economic and cultural life. The hope is that the historical marker will bring the school's story and legacy to a larger audience.
On a plague standing strong in front of the historical institution, the marker text reads:
Opening in 1924, Booker T. Washington High School was Atlanta’s first public secondary school for Black students. As with other Southern school systems at the time, the Atlanta Board of Education disproportionately allocated funds toward White schools.
The Atlanta Neighborhood Union, a Black-women-led social activism organization, surveyed existing Black schools in 1913, proving them overcrowded, unsanitary, and lacking materials. Led by the local NAACP chapter and Neighborhood Union, the Black community mobilized, registering and voting against education bonds in 1918 and 1919 that did not support Black schools.
The pressure produced a referendum that included a Black high school and increased funds for Black schools. Washington was the only secondary school for Black students until 1947 and has produced prominent alumni and educators, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Lena Horne, and Dr. Louis Sullivan.
Erected by the Georgia Historical Society,
The Rich’s Foundation,
and Atlanta Alumni Association
of Booker T. Washington High School, Inc.
To learn more about the Georgia Civil Rights Trail, click here.