Madison in Morgan County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)

Freedmen's Schooling

Photographed by David Seibert, June 6, 2009

1. Freedmen's Schooling Marker

Inscription. In 1865, the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands began assistance to former slaves. While efforts at educating freed slaves were strongest in Georgia's larger cities and towns, State Superintendent of Freedmen's Schools G.L. Eberhardt recognized the need to expand to rural areas.

Two years later, Eberhardt rented for a school the Madison Baptist congregation's former church on Academy Street (which was also rented to their black brethren who had formed Calvary Baptist Church led by Rev. Allen Clark). By June 1867, the Bureau acquired a one-acre tract on Hill Street and purchased the rented building for relocation to the site.

Northern aid societies – the most significant among these for Central Georgia being the American Missionary Association – supplied financial support and teachers, mostly Northern white women. As President of the local education association, Rev. Clark worked to employ African-American teachers for Madison Freedmen's School, which operated here until the 1870s when Georgia's dual system of education began.

Erected 2009 by City of Madison Bicentennial Commission.

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Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Charity & Public Work • Education. A significant historical month for this entry is June 1867.

Location. 33° 35.638′ N, 83° 28.546′ W. Marker is in Madison, Georgia, in Morgan County. It is on Hill Street 0 miles north of Fourth Street, on the right when traveling north. The marker is opposite Clark's Chapel at the end of Hill Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 745 Hill Street, Madison GA 30650, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Georgia’s Antebellum Trail

and in the Piedmont.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Deep South.

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 walking distance of this marker: Formal Southern Landscapes

Photographed by David Seibert, June 6, 2009

2. Freedmen's Schooling Marker

Looking southeast on Hill Street, toward Fourth Street (and US 441 several blocks away)

(approx. 0.2 miles away); Early Religious Life (approx. 0.2 miles away); Madison Historic Cemeteries (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Town Commons (approx. ¼ mile away); Segregated Burial Grounds (approx. ¼ mile away); Early Academies (approx. ¼ mile away); Confederate Dead (approx. ¼ mile away); Joshua Hill Home (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Madison.

Clark's Chapel image. Click for full size.

Photographed by David Seibert, June 6, 2009

3. Clark's Chapel

Clark's Chapel, originally built for Madison's (white) Baptists, has been an African-American church since 1867, when it was moved to this site.

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on July 3, 2009, by David Seibert of Sandy Springs, Georgia. This page has been viewed 2,005 times since then and 48 times this year. Last updated on December 15, 2009, by Ken Kocher of Madison, Georgia. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on July 3, 2009, by David Seibert of Sandy Springs, Georgia. • Kevin W. was the editor who published this page.