Published Wednesday, February 03, 2010 9:13 AM
Updated Wednesday, February 03, 2010 9:14 AM

 

A piece of history

Goose Creek Mayor Michael Heitzler and Howe Hall Elementary Principal Marty French show off a new historical marker erected by the city at the school. According to the marker, emancipated African Americans purchased sections of Howe Hall Plantation after the Civil War. They established local institutions such as churches and schools through which they organized the community. They remained sequestered in the rural neighborhood until the second half of the 20th century when the barriers of racial segregation began to dissolve. In anticipation of the effects of the United States Supreme Court Brown  vs. Board of Education decision, the minority schools were improved to create the appearance of equity, and Howe Hall School was built to consolidate the small substandard African American schools nearby. The school was racially integrated in 1967.