Drayden in St. Mary's County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Drayden Schoolhouse
Separate But Unequal
Photographed By Sean C Bath, November 28, 2021
1. Drayden Schoolhouse - Separate But Unequal Marker
"In later years, I realized how bad it was. At the time, it wasn't no big thing, because you really didn't have nothing else to compare it to. And we did learn how to read and write and add and subtract and so that's better than the old folks had it. My grand- father, he couldn't read or write either one, and to see the kids at least learning to read and write, I mean, it was something that they were happy about."
Clarence Smith, Drayden School student
During the hundred years of segregated schools in St. Mary's County, the social values of the Confederacy lingered in Southern Maryland, including racial terrorism against African Americans as they sought to gain an education in post-Civil War America. Unequal distribution of state funding for white and "colored” schools continued for several generations after the war. For example, in 1892, "colored” teachers were paid $252, compared to $321 for white teachers for an equal length school year, and had a ratio of 1:55 students in comparison to 1:28 for white teachers. "Colored" students in 1892 received a funding allocation per student of $4.42 compared to the $10.90 allocated per white student.
"The slavery was over, but it was hard for colored people to get jobs because they didn't want you unless you could work onthe farm. And, this is the truth, the white kids had school open early and the colored kids didn't go to school 'til later 'cause they wanted us to have a chance to work on the farm. Of course we didn't want it, but that was the way it went. I was born at the edge of slavery. Slavery wasn't here when I got here. It was all over with, but I could still feel what was left of it. Oh, yeah, you could feel it!"
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Pearl Furey, Teacher in St. Mary's and Charles counties
Erected by Commissioners of St. Mary's County; St. Mary's County Museum Division; Friends of the St. Clement's Island and Piney Point Museums; Unified Committee for Afro-American Contributions; Destination Southern Maryland; Maryland Heritage Area Authority.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Education. A significant historical year for this entry is 1892.
Location. 38° 10.215′ N, 76° 28.951′ W. Marker is in Drayden, Maryland, in St. Mary's County. Marker is on Cherryfield Road, 0.6 miles north of Boothe Road, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 18287 Cherryfield Rd, Drayden MD 20630, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. A different marker also named Drayden Schoolhouse (here, next to this marker); a different
Photographed By Sean C Bath, November 28, 2021
2. Drayden Schoolhouse
Credits. This page was last revised on January 17, 2022. It was originally submitted on December 4, 2021, by Sean C Bath of Silver Spring, Maryland. This page has been viewed 80 times since then and 11 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on December 4, 2021, by Sean C Bath of Silver Spring, Maryland. 2. submitted on December 19, 2021, by Sean C Bath of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
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