Blackstone in Nottoway County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Blackstone College
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, May 10, 2009
1. Blackstone College Marker
Inscription.
Blackstone College. . Three blocks south is the campus of the former Blackstone Female Institute, after 1915 Blackstone College for Girls, a teacher-training school that opened in 1894 with some 75 students including 29 boarders. James Cannon Jr., a controversial Methodist bishop and prohibitionist, twice served as chief administrator (1894-1911, 1914-1918). In 1906, U.S. Steel magnate Andrew Carnegie donated money to expand the main building. The Beaux-Arts president's home, called The Gables, was built in 1915. Enrollment neared 500 before fires in 1920 and 1922 destroyed the classroom and dormitory buildings. Rebuilt on a smaller scale, the college operated until 1950. It became the Virginia Methodist Assembly Center in 1955.
Three blocks south is the campus of the former Blackstone Female Institute, after 1915 Blackstone College for Girls, a teacher-training school that opened in 1894 with some 75 students including 29 boarders. James Cannon Jr., a controversial Methodist bishop and prohibitionist, twice served as chief administrator (1894-1911, 1914-1918). In 1906, U.S. Steel magnate Andrew Carnegie donated money to expand the main building. The Beaux-Arts president's home, called The Gables, was built in 1915. Enrollment neared 500 before fires in 1920 and 1922 destroyed the classroom and dormitory buildings. Rebuilt on a smaller scale, the college operated until 1950. It became the Virginia Methodist Assembly Center in 1955.
Erected 1996 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number K-174.)
Location. 37° 4.65′ N, 78° 0.479′ W. Marker is in Blackstone, Virginia, in Nottoway County. Marker is at the intersection of Church Street (Business U.S. 460) and College
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Avenue, on the right when traveling east on Church Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Blackstone VA 23824, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on July 8, 2021. It was originally submitted on May 15, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,337 times since then and 98 times this year. Photos:1. submitted on May 15, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. 2. submitted on October 21, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.
