Milam County Historical Commission
Milam County, Texas
Milam County, Texas
Requests for Info
Received via Website
Received via Website
2015-07-27
Joyce Moore
jmoore1302(AT)yahoo(DOT)com
Garland, TX
A few years ago a school in the Friendship, Buckholts, Davilla area was being restored. Was it finished?
If so, are there photos online?
*****
2015-07-27
Email forwarded to MCHC members.
*****
2015-07-28
Hello Ms. Moore,
The only school renovation that comes to mind in those three communities is the Rosenwald School.
From the four-way intersection in downtown Davilla, proceed west on FM 487 toward Bartlett for less than 0.4
mile. There will be a dirt road to your right that leads to the Davilla-Black Cemetery. The Rosenwald School
will be on your right about 500 feet down that road (see attachment #1).
The attached photo's (attachment #2,3, and 4) were taken 06/24/2015.
Unfortunately, all renovation stopped approximately Nov. 2013. Funding issues caused the cease of all work.
Hopefully this may be resolved so that work may proceed again. Concerned parties are working toward that goal.
The Milam County Historical Commission has supported this project and would like to see its completion. Since
the structure has a badly damaged roof, it is subject to rapid degradation in its current condition.
The following three links will give you an overview of the community and the interesting history of the
Rosenwald Schools.
There are numerous other related sites available on the web.
Should you care for additional photo's and views of the school, please let me know and I would be happy to
forward some of my extensive collection to you.
Davilla’s school for black children was one of 464 educational buildings built in Texas from 1920 to 1930 by the
Julius Rosenwald Fund, a charity established by the Chicago philanthropist who was the president of Sears and
Roebuck Co.
Respectfully,
Jack Brooks
Photos by Jack Brooks
.
*****
2015-07-30
TO: John Brooks
I apologize for being such a pest. I do believe Friendship is the school I'm thinking about as my grandmother is buried in that cemetery. Please do forward my name to Joy.
Thank you ever so much for your kind efforts.
Joyce Moore
*****
Ms. Moore,
Please, you are certainly not a pest. We, the members of the Milam County Historical Commission, along with Mr. Jerry Caywood our outstanding website administrator are here to serve you. This Information Sought forum is designed to assist our guests with questions just like yours. In this case, I missed the target the first time for you. I'll assure you that Joy will hit a "bulls-eye" since she was intimately involved with the Friendship School renovation project. I only have second hand knowledge. I did forward your email to her earlier.
May I ask the name of your grandmother that is interred in the Friendship Cemetery?. My wife, Beth, has ancestors interred there as well. They are the Guillote's, Pope's, Rice's, Strickland's and Walker's. W.T. Walker was the first person interred in 1885.
Regards,
Jack Brooks
*****
2015-07-30
Ms. Moore,
I'm sorry. That was the only recent school improvement project that came to mind of which I had some knowledge and within that geographic area. An older MCHC project was limited to putting a new roof on the old Friendship School since using it for a community center was put on hold.
It is located approximately four and one half miles east of Davilla on FM 1915 and just slightly west of the Friendship Methodist Church of which I'm a member.
http://www.milamcountyhistoricalcommission.org/markers_friendship_school.php
You are quite correct, Ms. Joy Graham has been very active in historical preservation projects in Milam County as well as a noted Milam County historian. I will forward your inquiry to her and maybe she'll recall your name and tie it to a particular school. I'll share your email address with her so that I won't have to relay and take the chance of losing some information in the process.
Regards, Jack Brooks
.
Rosenwald School
Rosenwald School
Rosenwald School