Midway in Bullock County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)

Old Merritt School Midway Community Center

By David J Gaines, October 20, 2012

1. Old Merritt School Midway Community Center Marker

Inscription. Margaret Elizabeth Merritt of Midway sold two acres for $5 to the state of Alabama in 1921 as a site for an elementary school for African-American children. Built in 1922 with matching Rosenwald funds, the Midway Colored Public School featured oak and pine construction and two classrooms divided by a partition. The building is one of the few surviving of the more than 5,000 rural black schools built with contributions from the Julius Rosenwald Fund. Enlarged twice, then renovated in 1978, it is now used for community activities. Added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage, November 2, 1990 and to the National Register of Historic Places, February 20, 1998.

Erected 1998 by The Bullock County Historical Society and the Alabama Historical Association.

Marker series. This marker is included in the Rosenwald Schools marker series.

Location. 32° 4.526′ N, 85° 31.786′ W. Marker is in Midway, Alabama, in Bullock County. Marker is on Old Troy Road, on the left when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Midway AL 36053, United States of America.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 10 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. First Baptist Missionary Church 1875 (within shouting distance

By David J Gaines, October 20, 2012

2. Old Merritt School Midway Community Center Marker

of this marker); Town of Midway (approx. half a mile away); St. James C.M.E. Church (approx. 0.6 miles away); Confederate Memorial (approx. 0.6 miles away); Midway Baptist Church (approx. ¾ mile away); Jefferson Davis Highway (approx. ¾ mile away); Three Notch Road (approx. 3.6 miles away); Election Riot of 1874 (approx. 9.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Midway.

Categories. • African Americans • Civil Rights • Education •

Old Merritt School Midway Community Center image. Click for full size.

By David J Gaines, October 20, 2012

3. Old Merritt School Midway Community Center

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. This page originally submitted on November 6, 2012, by David J Gaines of Pinson, Alabama. This page has been viewed 803 times since then and 47 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on November 6, 2012, by David J Gaines of Pinson, Alabama. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.