Butler College (Texas)

Butler College (1905–1972) was an American co-educational black school in Tyler, Texas. It started as a combined elementary and high school, it became a junior college by 1924, and by 1951 it was a senior college before reverting back to a junior college in 1960. Butler College closed in 1972, after an enrollment decline. A historical plaque for Butler College (marker 15480) was erected near 1900 Bellwood Road by Texas Historical Commission in 2008.[1]

Butler College
Butler College (c. 1910)
Location
Bellwood Road, Tyler, Smith County, Texas, U.S.
Coordinates32.339988°N 95.321961°W / 32.339988; -95.321961
Information
Former namesEast Texas Normal and Industrial Academy, East Texas Baptist Academy
Religious affiliation(s)Baptist
Established1905
FounderCornelius Moses Butler
Closed1972
AffiliationEast Texas Baptist Association
Texas Baptist Conference

History
Cornelius Moses Butler (1844–1924)
Cornelius Moses Butler (1844–1924)

Established in 1905 by the East Texas Baptist Association,[2][3] the school was originally called the East Texas Normal and Industrial Academy,[4] and was initially a combined elementary and high school. However some sources state it was originally named the East Texas Baptist Academy.[5] Rev. C. M. Butler (or Cornelius Moses Butler; 1844–1924) served as the first president of the school, and he was the moderator of the East Texas Baptist Association.[5] T. C. Bledsoe was the school's first principal.[5]

By 1910, the school had 129 enrolled students and 6 teachers.[6] The school introduced junior college-level courses in 1924, and the name was changed to Butler College following the death of its first president, Rev. C. M. Butler.[4] In 1934 during the Great Depression, the Texas Baptist Conference became a co-sponsor of the college (gaining them financial support), with the East Texas Baptist Association owning and operating Butler College.[5]

A few years after World War II, in 1951 Butler became a four-year senior college.[4] As a four-year senior college it was never able to achieve accreditation, and by 1960 it reverted back to a junior college.[7] Enrollment declined during the 1960s, and the college closed in 1972.[7][8]

Presidents
  • Cornelius Moses Butler (1905–1924)[5]
  • J. V. Mc Clellan (1924–1932)[5]
  • Isaiah Jackson Jr. (1932–1945)[5]
  • William M. Butler (interim, 1945), son of Cornelius Moses Butler,[5]
  • Milton K. Curry Jr. (1946–)[5][9]

See also

References
  1. "Butler College Historical Marker". hmdb.org. Retrieved 2023-06-16.
  2. "Mark in Texas History: Butler College". KLTV. 2022-02-19. Retrieved 2023-06-15.
  3. Heintze, Michael R. (1985). Private Black Colleges in Texas, 1865-1954. Texas A&M University Press. p. 39. ISBN 978-0-89096-223-7.
  4. "Butler College". Texas Historical Commission.
  5. The Negro College Quarterly. Vol. 5. Wilberforce University. 1947. pp. 206–208.
  6. Hartshorn, W. N. (William Newton) (1910). An Era of Progress and Promise, 1863–1910: the religious, moral, and educational development of the American Negro since his emancipation. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Library. Boston, MA: Priscilla Pub. Co. p. 274.
  7. Behnkw, Martin (12 June 2010). "Butler College". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association (TSHA).
  8. Murphy, Larry G.; Melton, J. Gordon; Ward, Gary L., eds. (2013). "Butler College". Encyclopedia of African American Religions. Routledge. p. 136. ISBN 978-1-135-51338-2.
  9. Balz, Dan (June 30, 1980). "A Black Dream Goes Awry". Washington Post.
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