Near Charlotte in Dickson County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)
Promise Land School
Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, May 17, 2025
1. Promise Land School Marker
Charlotte TN
The National Register
of Historic Places
Tennessee
Historical Commission
Erected by Tennessee Historical Commission.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Education. In addition, it is included in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1899.
Location. 36° 12.617′ N, 87° 19.891′ W. Marker is near Charlotte, Tennessee, in Dickson County. It is on Promise Land Road 0.1 miles north of Reddon Crossing Road, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 707 Promise Land Rd, Charlotte TN 37036, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Middle Tennessee, in the Highland Rim, and in Greater Nashville. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in 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
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Fighting for Freedom (here, next to this marker); Promise Land (within shouting distance of this marker); Theodore Edmondson / Lizzie Vanleer Edmondson (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Civil War In Charlotte (approx. 2.3 miles away); To All Who Served (approx. 2.3 miles away); Robert Nesbit (approx. 2.3 miles away); Hand House (approx. 4.1 miles away); Thompson House (approx. 4.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Charlotte.
Regarding Promise Land School. Excerpts from the National Register nomination:
Members of the Promise Land Community erected the first school in the 1880s. It was about 300 yards north of the present school building. When fire destroyed the original building in the 1890s, the community worked together to rebuild it. That structure, erected in 1899, is the earliest portion of the one still standing today.
Although the highest enrollment of the school occurred about a decade earlier, an extensionto the building was added c. 1915 to provide more space to the crowded classroom. This addition was placed on the rear of the original portion of the building and extended toward the west, creating a long rectangular footprint.Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, May 18, 20252. Promise Land School MarkerPlaque is on the original c. 1899 portion of the building.
A major improvement to school services came c. 1935, when the Works Progress Administration (WPA) worked with the local board of education and the African American community to build a cafeteria and kitchen wing to the school.
Children in grades one through eight attended Promise Land School until 1956 when grades seven and eight moved to Hampton High School in Dickson. Students in grades one through six remained at Promise Land for one additional year until the Dickson County school system was integrated in 1957. In addition to the basic courses of English, math, reading, and writing, students at Promise Land received instruction in conservation, Tennessee history, and etiquette.
Also see . . . Promise Land School (PDF). National Register nomination for the school, which was listed in 2007. (Prepared by Carroll Van West, Rachel Martin and Elizabeth Moore, of Middle Tennessee State University Center for Historic Preservation; via National Park Service)
Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, May 18, 2025
3. Promise Land School
The building now is a community center.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 7, 2025. It was originally submitted on June 5, 2025, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 187 times since then and 22 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on June 5, 2025, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
