Boydton Academic and Bible Institute

Boydton Academic and Bible Institute. Boydton, Virginia. , Boydton Academic and Bible Institute was opened in 1879 in what had been the main building of Randolph-Macon College, before the college abandoned it and relocated to Ashland in 1868. Dr. Charles Cullis, a humanitarian from Boston, purchased the property in 1878 and opened the school partly to train African American preachers and teachers., Dr. Cullis sent the Rev. and Mrs. C.W. Sharpe to Boydton to operate the school. Rev. Sharpe, who was in poor health at the time, died not long after their arrival, and his wife, Mrs. Helen Bradford Sharpe, took over and became the guiding hand of the Institute for more than 30 years., The school consisted of the former main college, a large four-story brick building; the two-story Steward's Hall, which served as a dining and social events center; and a two-story frame house occupied by the school headmistress., In 1910 the school was purchased by the Christian and Missionary Alliance of New York City. It was operated by the Alliance until 1916, when the school was forced due to lack of support. Shortly afterward, the property was transferred to an alumni board of trustees, who reopened it using tuition fees and private contributions. The new school added four years of high school courses to the curriculum, and in 1927 the first high school class graduated. After 1929, high school subject were dropped. The school continued to operate as an elementary school until 1935, when it was permanently closed. As a result of the efforts of Dr. Cullis, Mrs. Sharpe, and others, Boydton Institute produced many of the finest teachers and ministers of the past century in Mecklenburg County and the surrounding region.