DUNBAR SCHOOL

It all Started With A Tornado, by Wilbur A. Zink
pages 108, 120

Appleton City had its own black school of eight grades called Dunbar School. It was named after a famous black gentleman named Paul Lawrence Dunbar, who succeeded in the literary field. Many black schools in the nation were named after him. The teacher and other school expenses were taken care of by the tax money that went to the local school district.

It was a one-room school, painted white and sat on the corner of First and Beech St. It was torn down in the spring of 1997.

One of the later teachers of the Dunbar School was Professor Griswell and he was permitted to teach the ninth grade by the local school board. All teachers were black and included Harley Leroy Davis and Berniece Washington. Black students began attending the local public school in 1960’s.

Submitted by: Mary Zeiler