Sumter in Sumter County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Kendall Institute
Photographed by Mike Stroud, 2010
1. Kendall Institute Marker
Kendall Institute, founded on this site in 1891, was one of the first black schools in Sumter. It was funded by the Board of Missions for Freedmen of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. The institute was named for Mrs. Julia B. Kendall, late wife of Rev. Henry Kendall, secretary of the Board of Missions 1870-1892. It emphasized academics for primary and secondary grades; some students boarded here in a girls dormitory or a boys cottage.
(Reverse text)
The pastors of the Second Presbyterian Church of Sumter were also principals of Kendall Institute: Revs. J.C. Watkins (1891-1903); A.U. Frierson (1903-1916); J.P. Foster (1916-1928); and J.P. Pogue (1928-1932). Under Fosters tenure the institute boasted 272 students in 1918 and added agricultural and industrial classes and athletics. It closed in 1932 after the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. stopped funding its Southern parochial schools during the Depression.
Erected 2006 by The Sumter County Historical Commission. (Marker Number 43-38.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Education. A significant historical year for this entry is 1891.
Location. 33° 54.751′ N, 80° 20.382′ W. Marker is in Sumter, South
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Regionally, this marker is in South Carolina’s Pee Dee. 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: First Baptist Church (approx. 0.3 miles away); Jehovah Baptist Church (approx. half a mile away); Clara Louise Kellogg (approx. half a mile away); Mount Pisgah African Methodist Episcopal Church (approx. half a mile away); Sumter Dry Goods Co. (approx. half a mile away); a different marker also named First Baptist Church (approx. half a mile away); St. Anne Catholic Church (approx. 0.6 miles away); 2 N. Main (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Sumter.
Photographed by Mike Stroud, February 10, 2010
2. Kendall Institute Marker, reverse side
Photographed by Mike Stroud, February 10, 2010
3. Kendall Institute Marker, looking west along Watkins Street
Photographed by Mike Stroud, February 10, 2010
4. Kendall Institute Marker, looking east on Watkins Street
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on April 1, 2010, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 1,903 times since then and 27 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on April 1, 2010, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
