Name/Title
125 Bull Street (Avery Normal Institute/Avery Research Center)Entry/Object ID
BULL.125.01Scope and Content
Constructed ca. 1867. The Avery Normal Institute was established during the period of Reconstruction as the first free secondary school for African Americans in the area. Born out of the Saxton School, founded in 1865 by the Rev. Francis L. Cardoza, it was organized with the assistance of the American Missionary Association of New York, which also staffed the school. Ten thousand dollars was obtained from the estate of the Northern philanthropist Charles Avery, and further financial aid was given by the Freedmen's Bureau and local merchants. The school was constructed by 1868 and by 1880 had an enrollment of nearly 500 students. Although the institute was originally private and served Charleston's most prominent free African American families, by 1947 it became public and developed a reputation as one of the best schools in the region. This Italianate structure with its arched entry and cupola is now under the aegis of the College of Charleston and functions as the Avery Research Center for African-American History and Culture, a research library and museum for the 19th and early 20th century Charleston black experience. (Poston, Buildings of Charleston.)
File contains building histories from a variety of sources including Avery publications, Information for Guides of Historic Charleston, chapter from a book (title not indicated); booklet entitled "A History of Avery Normal Institute from 1865 to 1954" by Edmund L. Drago and Eugene C. Hunt; copy of an engraving, 1882; research notes together with pages about Cardoza from the book "Initiative, Paternalism, and Race Relations, Charleston's Avery Normal Institute"; newspaper articles correspondence (1984-85) relating to the acquisition of the Avery Normal Institute to be used as a research center.Collection
Historic Charleston Foundation Property RecordsAcquisition
Accession
BULL.125.Source or Donor
125 Bull Street (Avery Normal Institute/Avery Research Center)Acquisition Method
Collected by StaffLexicon
Search Terms
Bull Street, Harleston Village, Historic buildings--South Carolina--Charleston, Avery Center (Charleston, S.C.), Avery Normal Institute, African American schools, College of Charleston--BuildingsArchive Details
Archive Size/Extent
1 File FolderArchive Notes
Finding Aids: Index to Property Files.
Level of Description: FolderLocation
Location
Shelf
Property File ShelvesRoom
Margaretta P. Childs ArchivesBuilding
Missroon HouseCategory
PermanentDate
February 7, 2023Location
Container
PF Box 17Shelf
Prop File Shelves, Property File ShelvesRoom
Margaretta P. Childs ArchivesBuilding
Missroon HouseCategory
PermanentRelationships
Related Entries
Notes
2009.002.028, BULL.125.02, BULL.125.03, BULL.125.04Related Publications
Notes
Buildings of Charleston (see Abstract), pg. 505Created By
admin@catalogit.appCreate Date
February 22, 2006Updated By
admin@catalogit.appUpdate Date
February 17, 2023