Briarfield in Hampton, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Aberdeen Elementary School
"Education was not an option"
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A part of the original Aberdeen Gardens, Aberdeen Elementary School was opened in 1938. It quickly filled not only the role of educating students but also that of a community center, being used as a meeting place and social hall. There were Tuesday night movies, Friday night socials, and Sunday School too. Grades ranged from first to seventh grade in the single-story brick building with a colonial revival entrance and large rooms and windows. The first class graduated in 1942.
Children were bused into Aberdeen Elementary from nearby locales, such as Fowler's Heights, Park Place, Back River and Semple Farm Road. Education, as one former student put it, was not an option. Teachers did not have a problem with stopping on the way home to talk with a parent. Some were their friends or neighbors and, not infrequently, they would depart with a pie someone's grandmother had baked. Besides traditional academic subjects, black history was thoroughly taught. It was not just Booker T. Washington — about whom most white students learned — but many black entrepreneurs and inventors. Renovated a number of times, it was finally demolished in 1973, and a new school was built on the site.
Erected 2010
this page online
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Education. A significant historical year for this entry is 1938.
Location. 37° 1.963′ N, 76° 24.51′ W. Marker is in Hampton, Virginia. It is in Briarfield. It can be reached from North Mary Peake Boulevard 0.3 miles south of West Walker Road, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 57 N Mary Peake Blvd, Hampton VA 23666, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is on Virginias Peninsula and in Coastal Virginia. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, and in the Tidewater. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as
Credits. This page was last revised on February 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on February 7, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 641 times since then and 25 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on February 7, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
