Oak Ridge in Anderson County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)

First Integrated Public Schools in the Southeast

Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, December 29, 2024

1. First Integrated Public Schools in the Southeast marker

Inscription.
Following the American Civil War the 13th Amendment was ratified in 1865, abolishing slavery in the United States. During the post-Reconstruction era, leaders of southern states created a separate and second-class status for Black Americans, which included separate schools for Whites and Blacks in Tennessee. In the 1940s, the Manhattan Project and subsequently the Atomic Energy Commission operated the Oak Ridge Schools.

The Atomic Energy Commission directed Oak Ridge Schools to desegregate. On September 6, 1955, a total of 85 Black American students peacefully enrolled in Oak Ridge High School and Robertsville Junior High School. These were the first desegregated public schools in the Southeast. The names of the brave individuals who first broke the practice of racial school segregation are listed on plaques inside each of the schools.

Erected 2024 by Tennessee Historical Commission. (Marker Number 1D 45.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Education. A significant historical date for this entry is September 6, 1955.

Location. 36° 0.946′ N, 84° 15.667′ W. Marker is in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, in Anderson County. It can be reached from Oak Ridge Turnpike west of N Tulane

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Ave. Marker can be see on on the school campus in front of the school. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1450 Oak Ridge Turnpike, Oak Ridge TN 37830, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in East Tennessee

and in Greater Knoxville.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

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: Middletown Trailer Park (approx. 0.2 miles away); Oak Ridge Municipal Outdoor Swimming Pool (approx. 0.2 miles away); Y-12 – The Calutron Plant (approx. ¼ mile away); 1948 (approx. ¼ mile away); Manhattan Engineer District – USAEC (approx. ¼ mile away); Oak Ridge Schools (approx. ¼ mile away); 1946 (approx. ¼ mile away); Oak Ridge and the Manhattan Project (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Oak Ridge.

Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, December 29, 2024

2. First Integrated Public Schools in the Southeast Marker

Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, December 29, 2024

3. First Integrated Public Schools in the Southeast marker

Credits. This page was last revised on July 20, 2025. It was originally submitted on January 6, 2025, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. This page has been viewed 437 times since then and 86 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 6, 2025, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.