THE FIRST SCHOOLS FOR BLACK CHILDREN

As Metro High School graduates Julianna Roman and Jahsean Young write for A Black, Indigenous, and Latinx People’s History of New Haven:

“In 1811, the very first black school in New Haven was built, and it was called The Artisan Street Colored School. Sally Willson was a black teacher who began the first school for black children in her own home on Artisan Street near the corner of Court Street. A lot of children in her neighborhood had little to no education due to the fact there wasn't any schools for them to go to, unlike white children who had the opportunity to have an education and go to nice schools, but would not allow black students to attend. So Sally Wilson took children in her home on weekdays to learn. The school would survive on donations from churches and parents who wanted the school and children to thrive.”

“The second “colored school” that came next was the Spireworth or Mt. Pleasant School which was established in 1825. Finally, the Goffe Street school was the third, formed in 1864. Each of those schools was made in different neighborhoods around New Haven.”

A Black, Indigenous, and Latinx People’s History of New Haven