The National Trust has announced a fifth round of grants for Rosenwald schools, courtesy of a partnership with the Lowe’s Foundation. According to the NT website:

For the fifth consecutive year, Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation has partnered with the National Trust for Historic Preservation to provide grants to save important historic buildings. In 2010, the LCEF will again provide grants for the restoration of Rosenwald Schools. Grant applications are available now with a postmark deadline of March 22. Grants will be made in amounts up to $40,000. Please contact your regional office to discuss eligibility after you have read the guidelines. Southern Office 843-722-8552.

Walthall County Training School (Ginntown Rosenwald), Tylertown vicinity (1920), designated Aug 13, 2009

Applications can be downloaded from the National Trust website.

As you may recall from previous posts here, two Mississippi Rosenwalds have received grants from the Lowe’s fund in the past, Drew Rosenwald (Lil’ Red Schoolhouse) up in Sunflower County, and Randolph School in Pass Christian. If I recall correctly, both these grants were made in the first couple of years the grant was offered. I don’t believe Mississippi received any grant last year. This year, I hope that the Walthall County Training School, which was designated as a Mississippi Landmark last year, applies and gets a grant to finish its project and bring it back to life in the Ginntown community outside Tylertown.

Speaking of Rosenwalds, head over to Mississippi History Now and check out the February article on “Rosenwald schools in Mississippi” by Jennifer Baughn, architectural historian at MDAH. This makes three architecture-related articles in a row on MHN, which is exciting and hopefully indicates a new openness to architectural history amongst Mississippi educators.

Possibly the most helpful piece of the above article is the list of Rosenwald buildings known to survive in the state. It’s a short list: out of the original 557 school buildings, only 15 (plus three teachers’ houses) are known to still be standing, and at least one of those, if the picture is any indication, is on its very last leg. Here’s a shortened version of the list from the article, sans annotations:

• Bynum School, Panola County (1926)
• Drew School, Sunflower County (1929)
• Pass Christian (Randolph) School, Pass Christian, Harrison County (1928)
• Brushy Creek School, Copiah County (c.1930)
• Prentiss Institute, Prentiss, Jefferson Davis County (1926)
• Sherman Line School, Amite County (1928)
• Hollandale School, Washington County (1924)
• Nichols Elementary School, Canton, Madison County (1927)
• Bay Springs School, Forrest County (1925)
• Rose Hill School, Sharkey County (1922)
• Pantherburn School, Sharkey County (1927)
• Walthall County Training (Ginntown) School, Walthall County (1920)
• Marks School, Quitman County (1922)
• Swiftown School, Leflore County (1921)
• Oak Park Principal’s Home and Girls Dormitory, Laurel, Jones County (1928)
• John White School Teacher’s House, Forrest County (1925)
• Coahoma Agricultural High School (now Community College) (c.1930)
• Moorhead School Teacher’s House, Sunflower County (1932)

Categories: African American History, Architectural Research, Grants, Schools