Cleveland in Bolivar County, Mississippi — The American South (East South Central)

The Cleveland Chinese Mission School

Photographed by Mark Hilton, October 17, 2015

1. The Cleveland Chinese Mission School Marker

Inscription. Founded in 1937 by parents, Cleveland First Baptist Church, and community leaders to provide an education for children of Chinese descent who were excluded from area schools by the 1927 US Supreme Court decision, Gong Lum v. Rice. Students in grades 1-12 were instructed in English and Chinese. Enrollment declined by WWII, as Chinese began to be admitted to area schools. The school closed in 1951. The building continued as the Chinese Baptist Church, and was demolished in 2003.

Erected 2012 by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Education • Religion & Religious Structures. In addition, it is included in the Mississippi State Historical Marker Program series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1937.

Location. 33° 44.838′ N, 90° 42.737′ W. Marker is in Cleveland, Mississippi, in Bolivar County. It is on East Sunflower Road (State Highway 8) 0.2 miles east of North Davis Avenue (U.S. 278), on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: East Sunflower Road, Cleveland MS 38732, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American South,

specifically in the Deep South,

in the Mississippi Delta,

and in the Great River Road Region.

Globally, it is in North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

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: Chrisman Street (approx. half a mile away); Cleveland (approx. half

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a mile away); David R. Bowen (approx. 0.6 miles away); The Cleveland Depot (approx. 0.6 miles away); Amzie Moore Home (approx. 0.7 miles away); Amzie Moore (approx. 0.7 miles away); Gospel Music and the Blues (approx. 0.7 miles away); The Enlightenment of W.C. Handy (approx. 0.7 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Cleveland.

Also see . . .
1. Dedication of marker. (Submitted on October 29, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.)
2. Chinese Mission School Marker Dedication (You tube Video). (Submitted on October 29, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.)

Former location of school and church. image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, October 17, 2015

2. Former location of school and church.

View from marker looking east on Sunflower Road image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, October 17, 2015

3. View from marker looking east on Sunflower Road

The view west towards the MS-8, U.S. Highway 61/278 intersection. image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, October 17, 2015

4. The view west towards the MS-8, U.S. Highway 61/278 intersection.

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on October 29, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,404 times since then and 98 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on October 29, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.