Booker T. Washington's Historic Visit to Howe Institute, also, Howe Institute. April 14, 1915, also, 1888-1933. , Booker T. Washington's Historic Visit to Howe Institute April 14, 1915. National attention was drawn to New Iberia when celebrated orator, educator and presidential adviser, Booker T. Washington, visited Howe on April 14, 1915, as part of his historic tour of Black schools in Louisiana. Newspaper accounts of the day report that thousands turned out to hear the famed leader speak at Howe. The mesmerized faces of Iberians are recorded forever in the pictures A.P. Bedou took that day, as Washington's official photographer., Howe Institute 1888-1933. Founded by St. Paul Congregational Church of New Iberia with the assistance of the American Missionary Association and an endowment from philanthropist Peter Howe of Illinois, Howe Institute was established to educate Blacks of Iberia Parish and surrounding communities. The school was located at the site of the current Iberia Parish courthouse between Madison (renamed Pershing) and Washington Streets. Later, the school came under the control of the Union 6th District Missionary Baptist Association. Howe was also the site of a refugee camp for Blacks fleeing the waters of the Great Flood of 1927. Howe alumni include prominent early professionals, who went on to serve communities throughout Louisiana and across the United States with distinction. Another school for Blacks, Wakefield Institute located on Bank Street, preceded Howe but was destroyed by a tornado in 1874. Howe's longest serving principal was Prof. Jonas H. Henderson (1896-1933).