Berea in Madison County, Kentucky — The American South (East South Central)

Middletown Consolidated School

Photographed by Jimmy Emerson, 2023

1. Middletown Consolidated School Marker

Inscription.
Students in grades 1-8 received a quality education and showcased their talents and achievements by participating in 4-H fairs, plays & Farm Day activities. Professor Robert H. Blythe was Middletown's only principal until its closure. A building restoration in 2007 retained many original features including an accordion door, flooring, and a vintage outhouse.

Reverse Side
It was a "red letter day” in 1927 when Black schools at Middletown, Berea, and Farristown merged. The school was financed by donations from Black and White Bereans and the Julius Rosenwald Foundation. Berea College gave four acres, water, electricity & an iron bell reportedly rung at Camp Nelson. Integration of county schools in 1963 forced the school to close.

Erected 2018 by Kentucky Historical Society and Kentucky Department of Highways. (Marker Number 2565.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Education. A significant historical year for this entry is 1927.

Location. 37° 35.167′ N, 84° 17.907′ W. Marker is in Berea, Kentucky, in Madison County. It is on Walnut Meadow Road (State Highway 595) south of Glades Road, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 443 Walnut Meadow Rd, Berea KY 40403, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is 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 territory of the Mississippian Culture

and also the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers.

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At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Site of Boyhood Home of Red Foley / Clyde Julian "Red" Foley (approx. ¼ mile away); Kentucky's Earliest Artforms (approx. one mile away); Berea – A Birthplace of the Handicraft Revival (approx. one mile away); Church of Christ, Union (approx. 1.1 miles away); The Battle of Richmond Knocked at Berea's Door (approx. 1.3 miles away); Daniel Boone's Trail (approx. 4.1 miles away); Encampment at Bobtown / Engagment at Bobtown / Advance to Kingston (approx. 4.4 miles away); Site of Starns' Defeat (approx. 4.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Berea.

Another marker is no longer nearby. For Mountain Youth (was approx. 1.1 miles away but has been replaced with another marker now near it).

Middletown Consolidated School Marker - Reverse Side image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Jimmy Emerson, 2023

2. Middletown Consolidated School Marker - Reverse Side

Middletown Consolidated School image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Jimmy Emerson, 2023

3. Middletown Consolidated School

Credits. This page was last revised on June 4, 2026. It was originally submitted on May 30, 2026, by Jimmy Emerson of Dalton, Georgia. This page has been viewed 8 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 30, 2026, by Jimmy Emerson of Dalton, Georgia. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.