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Amelia Court House in Amelia County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
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Russell Grove Presbyterian Church and School

Amelia Court House, Virginia

— Civil Rights in Education Heritage Trail® —

 
 
Russell Grove Presbyterian Church and School CRIEHT Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, March 18, 2010
1. Russell Grove Presbyterian Church and School CRIEHT Marker
Inscription. Russell Grove Presbyterian Church and the Russell Grove School were established as a result of the efforts of Mrs. Samantha Jane Neil, a Presbyterian missionary and teacher of African-American children after the Civil War. At first the school was primitive, with rough walls, boards painted black to act as chalkboards and no desks. Parents joined to pay the teachers and a man to cut wood for the woodstove, the school's only source of heat. The curriculum for the school from 1865 to well into the 20th century consisted of reading, writing, arithmetic, spelling, rhetoric, history, and physiology. As the school grew, a new building was constructed in 1892 in nearby Burkville. Renamed the Ingleside Seminary, it provided education for young African-American women of both Amelia and Nottoway counties. In 1933 Russell Grove High School for African Americans was built and opened on land purchased by the student's parents. Until then, Ingleside Seminary was the only place African Americans in Amelia County to receive a secondary education. By 1950 the Russell Grove High School's curriculum had grown to include vocational and college preparatory classes, with drama, athletics, and a variety of student clubs. It had 14 faculty members and 227 students. In 1956 a consolidated elementary school for African Americans, also named Russell Grove,
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was built across the road from the high school, marking the end of the one- and two-room schools in Amelia County. When desegregation arrived in Amelia in 1969, the Russell Grove Elementary School became Amelia County Elementary School, with 1150 children in its integrated classes.
 
Erected by Civil Rights in Education Heritage Trail®. (Marker Number 9.)
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African AmericansCivil RightsEducation. In addition, it is included in the Civil Rights in Education Heritage Trail series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1865.
 
Location. This marker has been replaced by another marker nearby. It was located near 37° 20.056′ N, 77° 59.326′ W. Marker was in Amelia Court House, Virginia, in Amelia County. Marker was on Otterburn Road (Virginia Route 614) 0.1 miles south of Leidig Street (Virginia Route 634), on the left when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker was at or near this postal address: 8701 Otterburn Rd, Amelia Court House VA 23002, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this location. A different marker also named Russell Grove Presbyterian Church and School (here, next to this marker); Lee's Retreat (approx. half a mile away); Mrs. Samantha Jane Neil
Civil Rights in Education Heritage Trail® Map. image. Click for full size.
2. Civil Rights in Education Heritage Trail® Map.
Appomattox County
1. Winonah Camp/Mozella Price Home
2. Carver-Price School
3. Education in 1800's Rural Virginia

Buckingham County
4. One-Room Schoolhouse
5. Carter G. Woodson Birthplace

Cumberland County
6. Hamilton High School
7. Rosenwald School at Cartersville
8. Jackson Davis

Amelia County
9. Russell Grove Presbyterian Church and School

10. Mrs. Samantha Jane Neil

Chesterfield County
11. Virginia State University

Petersburg
12. Earliest Known Public High School for African Americans in Virginia
13. McKenney Library
14. The Peabody-Williams School

Dinwiddie County
15. Southside Virginia Training Center
16. Rocky Branch School
17. Early Education in Dinwiddie County

Nottoway County
18. Blackstone Female Institute
19. Mt. Nebo Church
20. Ingleside Training Institute

Lunenburg County
21. The People's Community Center
22. St. Matthew's Lutheran Church Christian Day School

Prince Edward County
23. Prince Edward County Public Schools
24. R. R. Moton High School
25. Farmville Female Seminary Association
26. First Baptist Church
27. Beulah AME Church
28. Hampden-Sydney College

Charlotte County
29. Southside Virginia Community College - John H. Daniel Campus
30. Charlotte County Library
31. Salem School

Halifax County
32. Meadville Community Center
33. Mary M. Bethune High School
34. Washington-Coleman Elementary School
35. Mizpah Church

Mecklenburg County
36. Thyne Institute
37. Boydton Academic and Bible Institute

Brunswick County
38. Southside Virginia Community College - Christanna Campus
39. Saint Paul's College
40. Hospital and School of the Good Shepherd
41. Fort Christanna
(approx. 0.6 miles away); William Branch Giles (approx. 0.6 miles away); Marion Harland (approx. 0.6 miles away); Veterans Memorial (approx. 0.7 miles away); Philip F. Boepple Building (approx. 0.7 miles away); Amelia Court House (approx. 0.7 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Amelia Court House.
 
More about this marker. On the upper left is a photo with the caption, "(Above) The original Russell Grove Church."

On the lower left is a photo with the caption, "(Left) A typical Amelia County School, 1940."

On the upper right is a photo with the caption "(Above Right) Russell Grove High School, completed in 1935."
 
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. New Marker At This Location also titled "Russell Grove Presbyterian Church and School".
 
Also see . . .  Civil Rights in Education Heritage Trail. Virginia's Retreat (Submitted on March 21, 2010, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.) 
 
Old Russell Grove High School image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, March 18, 2010
3. Old Russell Grove High School
The original Russell Grove Church image. Click for full size.
4. The original Russell Grove Church
A typical Amelia County Shcool, 1940 image. Click for full size.
5. A typical Amelia County Shcool, 1940
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on August 14, 2022. It was originally submitted on March 21, 2010, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,961 times since then and 39 times this year. Photos:   1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on March 21, 2010, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.

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Mar. 18, 2024