Colored School No. 3
Location | Brooklyn, New York City, New York, United States |
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Coordinates | 40°42′31″N 73°57′02″W / 40.70851°N 73.95061°W |
Dimensions | 46 feet (14 m) by 75 feet (23 m) |
Established | 1881 |
Colored School No. 3 (Former) (Public School 69) is an historic
History
The institutional history of the school goes back to the founding, prior to 1841, of the
Soon after the school's construction, the practice of school segregation in Brooklyn began to change. In 1882, Seth Low, the new mayor of Brooklyn and a reformer, appointed Phillip A. White as the first African-American member of Brooklyn's Board of Education. White, who became the chairman of a committee in charge of the city's "colored" schools, opposed forced segregation and disliked the term "colored school." During White's tenure, African-American students were given the option to attend integrated schools, and Colored School #3 was renamed P.S. 69, making its name consistent with those of integrated schools though it continued to serve an exclusively African-American student body (the other two colored schools were similarly renamed). By 1890, most African-American students chose to enroll in the integrated schools, and the enrollments of the colored schools had begun to decline. In 1898 Brooklyn was consolidated into New York City and the school came under the jurisdiction of the city's Board of Education. In 1901, P.S. 69 ceased to exist as an independent entity due to the declining African-American population of the neighborhood. Its building was used as an annex to other local public schools and as a school named P.S. 191 before being relinquished by the Board of Education in 1934.[1]
It was then used by other city agencies before becoming vacant for a period of time. In 1982 the city sold the property, and in 1983 it was purchased by a sculptor, James O. Clark, for use as a private family residence and studio.[2] Clark continues to occupy the building in 2014.[3] It was designated a landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1997.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d Presa, Donald G. "(Former) Colored School #3, later Public School 69" (PDF). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
- ^ Whitaker, Barbara (3 March 1998). "Habitats/270 Union Avenue, Williamsburg, Brooklyn; Former 'Colored School' Houses Artist and Studio". New York Times. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
- ^ "Artist's website". James O. Clark.