A historical marker has been approved by The Virginia Board of Historic Resources for the Antioch (Rosenwald) School in the Susan area of Mathews. The board approved seven additional markers across the state, as well.
Antioch (Rosenwald) School was built to serve Black students during the period of segregation in Virginia’s public schools, said a press release from DHR. The story of the school began around 1869, the year black men in the Susan community built a log school at the urging of black women. Antioch Baptist Church met in the school during the church’s early years.
Between 1926 and 1927, a new school building was completed for children in grades one through seven. Funding for the new school mainly came from the black community, which contributed $3,700 for the building’s construction, said the release. Mathews County contributed $500, while the Julius Rosenwald Fund contributed $700. The Julius Rosenwald Fund was a school building program established in 1917 by the president o...