The desire to provide education opportunities for their children has always been a concern of parents. In the early days of settling and forming communities in Alabama, efforts to create schools were forefront in the minds of civic leaders as well. An example of this was a lengthy letter written to the editor of the Eutaw Whig and Public Advertiser ( December 16, 1843) citing the need for a female institute and gave six reasons why Eutaw was "a most desirable place" for one. As history shows, Eutaw became the birthplace of several schools.
In January, 1845, not long after Eutaw became the county seat of Greene County, an act was passed by the General Assembly of the State of Alabama to incorporate the Mesopotamia Female Seminary for the purpose of education young women. Sponsors of that act were Joseph Pickins, Willam A. Glover, John C. Johnson, Nicholas R. Morgan, Amasa T. Park, and John Womack. The original site of the school, according to the New Orleans Christian Advocat, was a mile and a quarter "from the business part of town. " The first principal was Mrs. Priscilla Maxwell Upson, a 30 year old teacher and principal, coming from the Marion Female Seminary where she had been for seven years.
During her tenure, she built up the enrollment, brought two teachers with her, including her sister from Massachusetts, and, according to the advertisement in the Eutaw Whig of January 22, 1847, "other instructors will be procured as the Institute may demand." It is interesting to note that an advertisement for the Eutaw Female Academy also appeared. However, the Mesopotamia Female Seminary offered an "advanced Department" indicating a collegiate level of instruction.
Unfortunately, due to health issues, Mrs. Upson had to relinquish her career at the Seminary. After a period of recovery, she moved in 1850 to Camden, Alabama, where she became the founding principal of the Wilcox Female Seminary.
The next president of the Seminary was Alexander Winchell, who came in 1851 from being the president of the Newbern Female Seminary. Seemingly, according to the local newspaper clippings from the Winchell scrapbook, now at the University of Michigan Library archives, the Seminary "had been suspended a long time and the public attention has ceased to be attracted to it." However, Prof. Winchell took charge and worked diligently to build up the school. Being educated in horticulture, he procured scientific apparatus, erected a herbarium composing specimens of about one thousand species of plants, and kept a daily record, between 1851 and 1853, of the climatology of Eutaw for the Smithsonian Institute.
His tenure at the Seminary was met with rivalry from supporters of the Eutaw Female Academy. In 1853 he left Eutaw to become president of the Masonic University in Selma.
Following the departure of Mr. Winchell, Henry P. Hatfield became president, coming from being president of the Marion Female Seminary. His tenure lasted until 1860, when he accepted the position of president at the Wilcox Female Seminary in Camden.
A notable graduate of the Mesopotamia Seminary was Martha Foster from Fosters near Tuscaloosa. She was trained as a teacher and graduated in 1849 at the age of nineteen. The next year she married the Rev. Tarleton Perry Crawford and was appointed in 1851 to China as the first woman foreign missionary from Alabama by the Southern Baptist Convention. During her 58 years as missionary she wrote numerous articles on her work that were published in the Alabama Baptist. In 1998 Mrs. Crawford was inducted into the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame.
Due to the scarcity of records, it is not known how much longer the Mesopotamia Female Seminary survived. It is interesting to note that the rival Eutaw Female Institute became co-educational in 1870, and in December of 1888, the General Assembly of the State of Alabama approved the incorporation of the Eutaw Female College.
In 1889, the main building of the Mesopotamia Female Seminary was moved to its present location on the corner of Main Street and Wilson Avenue in downtown Eutaw.
-Dr. Paul G. Reitzer
Perry County Historical & Preservation Society
Thursday, January 25, 2018
Priscilla Maxwell: A Pioneer in American Female Education
Having gained the designation as "the College City" due to being the birthplace of six colleges, Marion had benefited from the presences of a number of outstanding educators who came to the various schools and added to the rich heritage of the community and influence the lives of many students. One such educator served also to become a pioneer in America female higher education: Priscilla Maxwell.
Born in Charlemont, Massachusetts, in 1815, Priscilla attended Ipswich Female Seminary for her college education. Upon graduation in 1838, and upon the urging of her mentor, Zilpha Banister, to teach in Alabama, she joined the faculty of the Marion Female Seminary. She gained the respect of her students, peers, and superiors and was elected to take over the leadership of the Seminary in 1841, making her one of the first female college presidents in the country. In the same year, the Seminary received the authority to grant diplomas by the Alabama State Legislature, and it awarded the first diploma in 1842, Her leadership was well appreciated by the Board of Trustees and the Editor of the local newspaper, W. A. Townes, who also served as Chairman of the Board and wrote a history of Marion in 1845.
In 1844, Miss Maxwell married a local gentleman, Edward Upson, and subsequently they moved to Eutaw, Alabama, where she helped organize the Mesopotamia Female Seminary. Her sister, Kate, came from Massachusetts to help teach. Two of Priscilla's children, Edwin and Florence, were born in Eutaw. While she was able to build a flourishing female academy, her health began to fail and she was compelled to relinquish her position after four years. Fortunately, after a short period, her health improved and she took charge of starting another female academy in Camden, Alabama.
Priscilla became the "founder and president" of the Wilcox Female Seminary in the fall of 1850. She was able to bring her sister with her to teach, and to hire her former student from the Marion Female Seminary, Mrs. Sarah McReynolds. According to the Camden Phenix, March 25, 1851, "the success of this school can be accounted for...one hundred and twenty young ladies have entered as students since the 16th day of September last." The newspaper also referred to the school as "Mrs. Upton's School." Her third child, Kate, was born on February 22, 1851.
Unfortunately, heath issues arose again and she soon had to give up her "favorite pursuit." She moved with her husband to Mobile. In 1855, while visiting her parents in Massachusetts, Priscilla died at her childhood home at the age of 40. The most prominent traits of her character were, as stated in Fagan's History of Marion (1907), "an iron will, energy, firmness and decision." Her legacy continued through her daughter, Kate, who became a noted writer, editor, teacher, and a trustee of Wheaton College.
-Dr. Paul G. Reitzer
Perry County Historical & Preservation Society
Born in Charlemont, Massachusetts, in 1815, Priscilla attended Ipswich Female Seminary for her college education. Upon graduation in 1838, and upon the urging of her mentor, Zilpha Banister, to teach in Alabama, she joined the faculty of the Marion Female Seminary. She gained the respect of her students, peers, and superiors and was elected to take over the leadership of the Seminary in 1841, making her one of the first female college presidents in the country. In the same year, the Seminary received the authority to grant diplomas by the Alabama State Legislature, and it awarded the first diploma in 1842, Her leadership was well appreciated by the Board of Trustees and the Editor of the local newspaper, W. A. Townes, who also served as Chairman of the Board and wrote a history of Marion in 1845.
In 1844, Miss Maxwell married a local gentleman, Edward Upson, and subsequently they moved to Eutaw, Alabama, where she helped organize the Mesopotamia Female Seminary. Her sister, Kate, came from Massachusetts to help teach. Two of Priscilla's children, Edwin and Florence, were born in Eutaw. While she was able to build a flourishing female academy, her health began to fail and she was compelled to relinquish her position after four years. Fortunately, after a short period, her health improved and she took charge of starting another female academy in Camden, Alabama.
Priscilla became the "founder and president" of the Wilcox Female Seminary in the fall of 1850. She was able to bring her sister with her to teach, and to hire her former student from the Marion Female Seminary, Mrs. Sarah McReynolds. According to the Camden Phenix, March 25, 1851, "the success of this school can be accounted for...one hundred and twenty young ladies have entered as students since the 16th day of September last." The newspaper also referred to the school as "Mrs. Upton's School." Her third child, Kate, was born on February 22, 1851.
Unfortunately, heath issues arose again and she soon had to give up her "favorite pursuit." She moved with her husband to Mobile. In 1855, while visiting her parents in Massachusetts, Priscilla died at her childhood home at the age of 40. The most prominent traits of her character were, as stated in Fagan's History of Marion (1907), "an iron will, energy, firmness and decision." Her legacy continued through her daughter, Kate, who became a noted writer, editor, teacher, and a trustee of Wheaton College.
-Dr. Paul G. Reitzer
Perry County Historical & Preservation Society
Thursday, January 12, 2017
Alabama Institute of Literature and Industry ( A Baptist College in Greensboro, Alabama)
Education and missions have always been an integral part of Baptist tradition and emphasis. This was brought out in the initial forming of the Alabama Baptist State Convention in October of 1823 near Greensboro. During that first convention, a constitution was drawn up and adopted. Article 4 of the Constitution stated that "the Convention shall be to promote missions, and religious instruction throughout the state...and in improving the Education of the Gospel ministers."
In additional actions the Convention voted to donate to the endowment of an Alabama scholarship and for a professor of Columbia College and Washington City Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C. Money was also received and designated by the Convention for missions, Bibles, tracts, and education.
In the September 1833 meeting of the Convention, the desire for an educational institution of higher learning in Alabama was forwarded with a resolution, "That we will use our exertions to promote the education of pious young men called to the ministry, and that we earnestly recommend to the churches of our union, to take the subject under their consideration."
A committee was appointed and assigned "the duty of devising and adopting some arrangements for the establishment of learning in the state of Alabama, on the Manual Labor Plan, for the education of indigent young men to the ministry. That in their opinion, the cause of science and religion imperiously demand such Instruction."
There upon, an act was passed by the Alabama Legislature, on January 17, 1834, to incorporate the school under the name of the Alabama Institute of Literature and Industry. While this was the official name, it was also referred to as the Manual Labor Institute, Manual Labor Seminary, Baptist Institute of Greensborough, and Green County Institute of Literature and Industry in subsequent reports and newspaper articles.
It is interesting to note that, at the same time, there was an effort to create a college in nearby Marion on the manual labor concept, also combining classical education with work, whereby students could earn tuition and board money and also provide a source of income for the school. On December 16, 1833, the Alabama Legislature passed an act incorporating the Manual Labor Institute of South Alabama. This Institute was located three miles west of Marion.
In 1834, a 355 acre farm was purchased one mile east of Greensboro for the new Baptist institution. Work started on buildings to accommodate students and faculty. The first faculty members were W. J. Williford as Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy and D. P. Bestor as Professor of Theology. James Parker was chosen as "Steward and Farmer." And so the Institute went into operation.
According to the 1836 Report to the Convention, it reported " a flourishing condition, and flattering prospects of future usefulness to the community." The report goes on to say that "in the present session it has increased from thirty to fifty students," and " they have raised on the farm this year about seven hundred bushels of corn and about one hundred and fifty bushels of potatoes."
The Alabama Sentinel ( Greensboro newspaper) of April 9, 1836, reported that the labor performed by students amounted to eleven hours per week and that the money would be applied to tuition and board. On the other hand, "the course of instruction is similar to that of other universities." An Examination of students was scheduled for July and the "friends of learning are invited to attend."
Unfortunately, financial difficulties seemed to exist and 1837 seems to seal the fate of the Institute. The national economy declined and efforts to raise funds across the state had limited success. Then, according to the 1837 Convention Report, "that this Convention notice with much regard that a number of our brethren who subscribed to the Manual Labor Institute, have removed from the State and have not paid their subscription." This was followed by a resolution to consider "removing the Manual Labor Institute, now located in Greensborough, to some place in the northern part of the State."
A special session was held on December 20 in Marion to sell the property as creditors had started lawsuits. The land was sold and the library collection was given to the Convention and stored in Greensboro until it later was transferred to Howard College in Marion. Thus ended the Alabama Institute of Literature and Industry.
While the concept of a manual labor institute was a noble one, it not only failed in Greensboro but also with the Institute in Marion, which ceased operation in 1841. However, the idea of having an institution of higher learning did not die with the Greensboro Institute. Baptists rallied to create the Judson Female Institute in 1838 for young women and to create Howard College in 1842 for the education and ministerial training of young men.
--Paul G. Reitzer
In additional actions the Convention voted to donate to the endowment of an Alabama scholarship and for a professor of Columbia College and Washington City Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C. Money was also received and designated by the Convention for missions, Bibles, tracts, and education.
In the September 1833 meeting of the Convention, the desire for an educational institution of higher learning in Alabama was forwarded with a resolution, "That we will use our exertions to promote the education of pious young men called to the ministry, and that we earnestly recommend to the churches of our union, to take the subject under their consideration."
A committee was appointed and assigned "the duty of devising and adopting some arrangements for the establishment of learning in the state of Alabama, on the Manual Labor Plan, for the education of indigent young men to the ministry. That in their opinion, the cause of science and religion imperiously demand such Instruction."
There upon, an act was passed by the Alabama Legislature, on January 17, 1834, to incorporate the school under the name of the Alabama Institute of Literature and Industry. While this was the official name, it was also referred to as the Manual Labor Institute, Manual Labor Seminary, Baptist Institute of Greensborough, and Green County Institute of Literature and Industry in subsequent reports and newspaper articles.
It is interesting to note that, at the same time, there was an effort to create a college in nearby Marion on the manual labor concept, also combining classical education with work, whereby students could earn tuition and board money and also provide a source of income for the school. On December 16, 1833, the Alabama Legislature passed an act incorporating the Manual Labor Institute of South Alabama. This Institute was located three miles west of Marion.
In 1834, a 355 acre farm was purchased one mile east of Greensboro for the new Baptist institution. Work started on buildings to accommodate students and faculty. The first faculty members were W. J. Williford as Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy and D. P. Bestor as Professor of Theology. James Parker was chosen as "Steward and Farmer." And so the Institute went into operation.
According to the 1836 Report to the Convention, it reported " a flourishing condition, and flattering prospects of future usefulness to the community." The report goes on to say that "in the present session it has increased from thirty to fifty students," and " they have raised on the farm this year about seven hundred bushels of corn and about one hundred and fifty bushels of potatoes."
The Alabama Sentinel ( Greensboro newspaper) of April 9, 1836, reported that the labor performed by students amounted to eleven hours per week and that the money would be applied to tuition and board. On the other hand, "the course of instruction is similar to that of other universities." An Examination of students was scheduled for July and the "friends of learning are invited to attend."
Unfortunately, financial difficulties seemed to exist and 1837 seems to seal the fate of the Institute. The national economy declined and efforts to raise funds across the state had limited success. Then, according to the 1837 Convention Report, "that this Convention notice with much regard that a number of our brethren who subscribed to the Manual Labor Institute, have removed from the State and have not paid their subscription." This was followed by a resolution to consider "removing the Manual Labor Institute, now located in Greensborough, to some place in the northern part of the State."
A special session was held on December 20 in Marion to sell the property as creditors had started lawsuits. The land was sold and the library collection was given to the Convention and stored in Greensboro until it later was transferred to Howard College in Marion. Thus ended the Alabama Institute of Literature and Industry.
While the concept of a manual labor institute was a noble one, it not only failed in Greensboro but also with the Institute in Marion, which ceased operation in 1841. However, the idea of having an institution of higher learning did not die with the Greensboro Institute. Baptists rallied to create the Judson Female Institute in 1838 for young women and to create Howard College in 1842 for the education and ministerial training of young men.
--Paul G. Reitzer
Marion Female Seminary at Marion, Alabama
Marion has distinguished itself as a cultural landmark city by having influenced the founding of six institutions of higher learning, namely, The Manual Labor Institute of South Alabama ( later named Madison College), Marion Female Seminary, Judson College, Lincoln Normal School, Howard College, and Marion Military Institute. Consequently, Marion has earned the title of "The College City."
Of these colleges, The Marion Female Seminary was established in the spring of 1836 as a non-sectarian school "where denominational connections should neither qualify or disqualify an individual for the situation of Principal, or teacher in its Faculty of Instruction," and provide young ladies with the basic elements of ancient history, classical and modern languages, the Bible, literature, natural science, creative arts, mathematics, music, etc. To accommodate these young ladies, a four story brick building was erected with classrooms and private rooms housing four to six students each.
Among the various presidents elected was the appointment in 1841 of Miss Priscilla Maxwell, one of the teachers, making her (according to recent research) one of the first female college presidents in the United States. In 1844, after marrying Edwin Upson, a local gentleman, she moved to Eutaw, Alabama, to start an academy, and a few years later started an academy in Camden, Alabama.
In 1850, the four-story structure was deemed no longer to be safe, and was replaced with a new three-story brick building. During the interim, the Trustees rented a 17-room building in town that had served as the "Planters' Hotel."
Throughout the later half of the 1800's the school had an unbroken and fairly prosperous career, and though its annual enrollment was never large, the names of hundreds of women who "have been useful and honored citizens are enrolled among its alumnae."
One of the most notable professors during the antebellum years was Nicola Marschall. Born in St. Wendel, Prussia, in 1829, this professional artist came to the United States in 1849 and taught art, music, and languages at the Seminary during the 1850's and 1860's. While in Marion, he married a local girl, and supplemented his income by painting portraits. Many of these portraits are prized possessions and several have won national awards.
Perhaps one of the most notable accomplishments of Nicola Marschall was his original design for a Confederate flag which was selected as the first official flag of the the Confederacy. This design is not the one that was later adopted as the "Battle Flag" of the Confederacy. In addition, Marschall designed what would become the official uniform of the Confederacy.
The Marion Female Seminary continued to operate as it had from its beginning until 1908, at which time it was turned over to the Presbyterian Synod of Alabama. Unfortunately, in time it struggled, and in 1915 the Presbyterian Synod voted to consolidate its Alabama schools. This resulted in the closing of the Marion Female Seminary. The next year, the Seminary officially closed and the property was turned over to the Perry County Board of Education.
Beginning in 1917, the building housed an elementary school and in 1919 the structure was reworked into a two-story building and has remained such since that time. In 1928, the building became a junior high, and with the demolition of the Perry County High School building in 1930, the Seminary building became Perry County High School and functioned as such until 1965 when the new Francis Marion High School was built some blocks away.
In 1987 the vacant Seminary building was purchased by the Perry County Historical and Preservation Society, at which time efforts were made to preserve and restore it. About the same time, the Historical Society agreed to lease the building to the Perry County High School Alumni Association with the purpose of working jointly to restore and maintain the Seminary property.
Upon restoring the various classrooms and the auditorium, the Historical Society saw it fitting to create an historical museum with the focus on Perry County heritage. The museum is open for tour groups and at association events.
The Seminary building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. The building and the museum are maintained through private tax-deductible donations.
--Perry County Historical & Preservation Society
Wednesday, September 7, 2016
Lincoln Normal University
One of the six colleges that had its beginnings in Marion as the Lincoln Normal University, also sometimes called the State Normal University and State Colored University.
The University had its beginnings on July 18, 1867, when it was incorporated as the "Lincoln School of Marion" for colored children by the following trustees: James Childs, Alexander H. Curtis, Nicholas Dale, John Freeman, Davis Harris, Thomas Lee, Nathan Levern, Ivey Pharish, and Thomas Speed.
In a letter to the Editor of the Marion Standard, January 12, 1887, Mr. Stephen Childs, "the only endorsed member of the Board of Trustees, and also, to some extent, a representative of my people," gave a brief history of the school. He wrote that, in the beginning, an acre of land was purchased from "Hon. Porter King for $400, of which he kindly donated $50." Thereupon, the American Missionary Association furnished the material and the local men furnished the labor for a building valued at $3,000.
The School was operated by the American Missionary Society until 1873, when the State of Alabama offered to establish a normal school and university permanently. Mr. Childs wrote, "At length, after weeks of anxious deliberation and trusting the assurance of friendship pledged by some of the best white citizens of Marion, consent was given, and the Lincoln Normal University was established." It was then that the school was "entirely under the control of the State Board of Trustees and stands alone in the State, and probably in the South in this respect." At that time, the State Board of Education established a teacher training program at the school.
The University prospered on both the upper and lower levels of education. According to advertisements placed in the Marion Standard during July and August, 1886, the following appeared:
State Normal University
A State University for Colored Students
It has Collegiate, Normal and Industrial Departments
It offers superior advantages for education, in a beautiful location and healthful climate.
Its Industrial, which includes Printing, Carpentry, Sewing and Dressmaking is not excelled anywhere.
Next term opens October 1, 1886.
-- William B. Patterson, President
In a visit by a group from the State Press, as described in a letter to the Editor of the Marion Standard, June 1, 1886, the visitors reported that there were 430 students, 20 graduates and over 200 boarding students that year. They went on to say that the "Institute prints two monthly papers, has practical workshops and a sewing school."
However, in 1887, there was a move to relocate the university part of the School. The Alabama Senate passed a bill to "establish the Alabama university for colored people wherever the commissioners, to be appointed by the Governor for that purpose, shall decide." Funds were appropriated for a building and eventually Montgomery was selected as the site. It is interesting to note this was about the same time that the decision was made to move Howard College from Marion to Birmingham.
The University name was changed several times over the years and in 1969 it became officially known as Alabama State University. The non-college part of Lincoln Normal School continued in Marion until 1970, at which time it was consolidated with Francis Marion High School. A more detailed history of the Lincoln Normal School, written by Mrs. Idella Childs, with pictures, can be found in The Perry County Heritage, Vol. I, available through the Perry County Historical and Preservation Society.
-Dr. Paul G. Reitzer
Perry County Historical and Preservation Society
The University had its beginnings on July 18, 1867, when it was incorporated as the "Lincoln School of Marion" for colored children by the following trustees: James Childs, Alexander H. Curtis, Nicholas Dale, John Freeman, Davis Harris, Thomas Lee, Nathan Levern, Ivey Pharish, and Thomas Speed.
In a letter to the Editor of the Marion Standard, January 12, 1887, Mr. Stephen Childs, "the only endorsed member of the Board of Trustees, and also, to some extent, a representative of my people," gave a brief history of the school. He wrote that, in the beginning, an acre of land was purchased from "Hon. Porter King for $400, of which he kindly donated $50." Thereupon, the American Missionary Association furnished the material and the local men furnished the labor for a building valued at $3,000.
The School was operated by the American Missionary Society until 1873, when the State of Alabama offered to establish a normal school and university permanently. Mr. Childs wrote, "At length, after weeks of anxious deliberation and trusting the assurance of friendship pledged by some of the best white citizens of Marion, consent was given, and the Lincoln Normal University was established." It was then that the school was "entirely under the control of the State Board of Trustees and stands alone in the State, and probably in the South in this respect." At that time, the State Board of Education established a teacher training program at the school.
The University prospered on both the upper and lower levels of education. According to advertisements placed in the Marion Standard during July and August, 1886, the following appeared:
State Normal University
A State University for Colored Students
It has Collegiate, Normal and Industrial Departments
It offers superior advantages for education, in a beautiful location and healthful climate.
Its Industrial, which includes Printing, Carpentry, Sewing and Dressmaking is not excelled anywhere.
Next term opens October 1, 1886.
-- William B. Patterson, President
In a visit by a group from the State Press, as described in a letter to the Editor of the Marion Standard, June 1, 1886, the visitors reported that there were 430 students, 20 graduates and over 200 boarding students that year. They went on to say that the "Institute prints two monthly papers, has practical workshops and a sewing school."
However, in 1887, there was a move to relocate the university part of the School. The Alabama Senate passed a bill to "establish the Alabama university for colored people wherever the commissioners, to be appointed by the Governor for that purpose, shall decide." Funds were appropriated for a building and eventually Montgomery was selected as the site. It is interesting to note this was about the same time that the decision was made to move Howard College from Marion to Birmingham.
The University name was changed several times over the years and in 1969 it became officially known as Alabama State University. The non-college part of Lincoln Normal School continued in Marion until 1970, at which time it was consolidated with Francis Marion High School. A more detailed history of the Lincoln Normal School, written by Mrs. Idella Childs, with pictures, can be found in The Perry County Heritage, Vol. I, available through the Perry County Historical and Preservation Society.
-Dr. Paul G. Reitzer
Perry County Historical and Preservation Society
Manual labor Institute of South Alabama
Marion has distinguished itself as being a center for the advancement of education by giving birth to six colleges. Consequently, and rightly so, it has earned the title of "The College City." The first of these colleges was The Manual Labor Institute of South Alabama.
The concept of a manual labor program combined with a classical education for young men resulted in the founding of two area colleges during the early 1830's. The Manual Labor Institute of South Alabama and the Alabama Institute of Literature and Industry, the later being a Baptist School for the training of ministers in nearby Greensboro. Both were incorporated within a month of each other.
The Institute in Marion was established in response to a committee report of the South Alabama Presbytery on December 16, 1833. According to the Presbytery minutes, the report called for a board of sixteen trustees, only one third of which would be clergymen, and the purchase of a plantation where students would work a maximum of five hours a day. The initial trustees were Martin A. Lea, David McCullough, Levi Langdon, Robert Nall ( pastor of the Marion Presbyterian Church), Patrick May, James Hillhouse, Isaac Hadden, John Miller, Thomas Alexander, Francis Porter, William Blassingame, Robert W. B. Kennedy, Richard Walthall, John H. Gray, Edwin D. King, William Stringfellow, Sidney Goode, and Robert Garvan.
The site of the Institute was three miles west of Marion on some 150 acres known as the McKinney Plantation. The objective of the Institute was, according to the Alabama Legislative Act, "to grant such degree or degrees in the arts and sciences, to any of the students of said institution thought worthy." The first president was Prof. B. Crawford.
The school opened in 1834. By 1836 the Institute reported having over sixty students and a well-established program. According to an article in the July 9, 1836, Selma Free Press, an examination of students was reported which included examination of students in history, mathematics, classical literature, English grammar, and geography. The examination committee felt "it to be their duty to speak on the highest terms of commendation of the good moral deportment observed." As for the manual labor component, "three hours are devoted each day, performing the work of a full grown laborer."
On the other hand, the 1836 report also stated that "this institution has labored under many disadvantages from the want of Apparatus, Library, &c." However, the trustees "sent to Europe for a Philosophical and Chemical Apparatus...which will be equal, if not superior to Apparatus in the Southern or Western country. Also, they expected to increase greatly the library holdings from the present "several hundred volumes."
The report went on to say that the Institute could accommodate seventy to eighty students and that the tuition, room rent and fire wood "per session of five months is $18." Board in cost per session was $55, and "students are required to furnish their own beds, beddings, &c."
In January 1839, the Board of Trustees petitioned the General Assembly of Alabama to officially change the name of the Institute to Madison College. While an advertisement in the Marion Herald of October 7, 1841, stated that "the institution is still in operation under the direction of approved and good teachers," and that "all branches of collegiate education are thoroughly taught," no mention was made of the manual labor part of the program.
Unfortunately, financial difficulties brought an end to the Institute in 1842. Much of it was due to the national financial crisis of 1837 which affected potential financial donors. According to Reports of Cases Argued and Determined by the Supreme Court of Alabama, the College was insolvent. However, the significance of the Manual Labor Institute of South Alabama was the early interest shown by Christian denominations in establishing institutions of higher learning and creating a work-study program for young men to obtain an education.
-Dr. Paul G. Reitzer
Perry County Historical & Preservation Society
The concept of a manual labor program combined with a classical education for young men resulted in the founding of two area colleges during the early 1830's. The Manual Labor Institute of South Alabama and the Alabama Institute of Literature and Industry, the later being a Baptist School for the training of ministers in nearby Greensboro. Both were incorporated within a month of each other.
The Institute in Marion was established in response to a committee report of the South Alabama Presbytery on December 16, 1833. According to the Presbytery minutes, the report called for a board of sixteen trustees, only one third of which would be clergymen, and the purchase of a plantation where students would work a maximum of five hours a day. The initial trustees were Martin A. Lea, David McCullough, Levi Langdon, Robert Nall ( pastor of the Marion Presbyterian Church), Patrick May, James Hillhouse, Isaac Hadden, John Miller, Thomas Alexander, Francis Porter, William Blassingame, Robert W. B. Kennedy, Richard Walthall, John H. Gray, Edwin D. King, William Stringfellow, Sidney Goode, and Robert Garvan.
The site of the Institute was three miles west of Marion on some 150 acres known as the McKinney Plantation. The objective of the Institute was, according to the Alabama Legislative Act, "to grant such degree or degrees in the arts and sciences, to any of the students of said institution thought worthy." The first president was Prof. B. Crawford.
The school opened in 1834. By 1836 the Institute reported having over sixty students and a well-established program. According to an article in the July 9, 1836, Selma Free Press, an examination of students was reported which included examination of students in history, mathematics, classical literature, English grammar, and geography. The examination committee felt "it to be their duty to speak on the highest terms of commendation of the good moral deportment observed." As for the manual labor component, "three hours are devoted each day, performing the work of a full grown laborer."
On the other hand, the 1836 report also stated that "this institution has labored under many disadvantages from the want of Apparatus, Library, &c." However, the trustees "sent to Europe for a Philosophical and Chemical Apparatus...which will be equal, if not superior to Apparatus in the Southern or Western country. Also, they expected to increase greatly the library holdings from the present "several hundred volumes."
The report went on to say that the Institute could accommodate seventy to eighty students and that the tuition, room rent and fire wood "per session of five months is $18." Board in cost per session was $55, and "students are required to furnish their own beds, beddings, &c."
In January 1839, the Board of Trustees petitioned the General Assembly of Alabama to officially change the name of the Institute to Madison College. While an advertisement in the Marion Herald of October 7, 1841, stated that "the institution is still in operation under the direction of approved and good teachers," and that "all branches of collegiate education are thoroughly taught," no mention was made of the manual labor part of the program.
Unfortunately, financial difficulties brought an end to the Institute in 1842. Much of it was due to the national financial crisis of 1837 which affected potential financial donors. According to Reports of Cases Argued and Determined by the Supreme Court of Alabama, the College was insolvent. However, the significance of the Manual Labor Institute of South Alabama was the early interest shown by Christian denominations in establishing institutions of higher learning and creating a work-study program for young men to obtain an education.
-Dr. Paul G. Reitzer
Perry County Historical & Preservation Society
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
Bonita and Neely Theaters
Bonita and Neely Theaters
Marion, Alabama
By Dr. Paul G. Reitzer
Perry County Historical Society
On February 12, 1912, Berlin Moon and H. L. Swain printed an announcement in The Marion Standard that "a first class moving picture show" has been opened in the building "formerly occupied by the Ladies' Exchange on the east side of Court House Square" with admission fees of 10 cents for adults and 5 cents for children. While the notice did not name the theater, an April article mentioned a two story building on the Marion Central Bank property giving it the name of Bonita Theatre.
About the same time, the Canebrake Herald of Uniontown contained an announcement that Mr. Moon was opening a movie theater "in the building of the Fretwell Barber Shop" and that the movie will "begin in the evening when the lights are first turned on and will run until about ten at night." However, on April 26, 1912, the Canebrake Herald reported the theater had been purchased by Messrs. R. P. Greer and Walter Woodruff. This theater was called "Theatorium."
Both the Marion and Uniontown theaters, according to newspaper ads, featured a nightly program of three reels, making the show last one hour, and two shows running two hours, one at seven o'clock and the other at eight. The first film featured in these two theaters were Biblical themes.
The first films were black and white and without sound. In theaters during the silent film days, pianists or other sound machines provided musical background so as to highlight the written narratives portrayed throughout the movies. A noteworthy fact from the Marion Military Archives is that Hal Kemp, born in Marion, and who later became famous as a band leader of the "Big Band Era" played piano at the Bonita Theatre as a teenager.
On August 18 ,1919, the Bonita Theatre ownership changed when a corporation was formed by Mr. and Mrs. J. D. Dennis and W. L. Hogue. While the name remained, the corporation, according to the Perry County Corporation Records, was dissolved on June 10, 1922. The new owner began placing ads in the Marion newspaper on March 23, 1923.
In the December 24, 1931 Marion Times Standard, it was announced that a Western Electric Sound System had been installed in the Bonita Theatre, paving the way for movies with sound. An interesting ad appeared in the January 26, 1933 Marion Times Standard for a children's matinee every Saturday at 4 P. M.: "Children admitted - 1 egg each ( egg must be fresh), children 12-15, 10 cents. "
The Bonita Theatre closed for a short period of time. In the August 14, 1933 Marion Times Standard a notice appeared from the manager, L. M. Neely, stating that the " Bonita Theatre will reopen on September 1." Beginning in late 1935, ads appeared in the Marion Times Standard featuring movies in the same ad for both the Bonita and the Grande Theatre ( in Uniontown). Evidently, Mr. Neely was manager of both theaters.
The ads in the Marion Times Standard stopped appearing under the name Bonita Theatre and the name Neely Theatre began to appear for both the theaters in Marion and Uniontown. Both theaters remained active until the 1960's. The last ad in the Marion Times Standard for the Marion theater was February 4, 1965.
(c) Dr. Paul G. Reitzer
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