As Black History Month comes to a close, one of the best ways to preserve and honor local history is by supporting the restoration of Banneker School as a living history museum for future generations.
Recognizing the school’s potential as a site for unique hands-on history education for schoolchildren, efforts continue by former students and local residents to work toward that goal.
During the post-Civil War era, the U.S. was still a very divided nation. Legal segregation made it impossible for students of color to be educated alongside white students. For African American students in the Parkville area that meant being educated in a hotel basement.
That changed on July 13, 1885, when the Parkville School District purchased the property on which the first Banneker school was built for $15.
The Parkville Independent reported on Sept. 10, 1885, that “the new school building for the education of our colored students is well underway and will soon be completed. It will be a one-story brick building 18 x (34) feet.”
Park College (now Park University) students created the brick used to construct the building in the college kilns.
When completed, enrollment through grade 10 got as high as 69 students, with the first graduating class in 1898. By the early 1900s it was evident that a larger facility was needed to house students, and the second Banneker School was completed around 1905. It is now an elementary school called Banneker Elementary in the Kansas City, Kansas School District.
The first Banneker School was sold as a private residence.
When the residence was sold to developers in the 1980s it narrowly escaped being demolished thanks to the efforts of Lucille Douglass, a former teacher at Banneker School, who purchased the property and deeded it to Platte County Historical Society.
The Banneker School Foundation of Parkville, Missouri now holds the deed to the nearly 130 year-old building.
A high point occurred in 1995, when the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. But sadly, in 2008, it was listed on Missouri’s Most Endangered Historic Places. But in that same year, a separate non-profit was created to carry on the task of restoring the school, the Banneker School Foundation and Historic Site, Parkville, Missouri.
“We have been on this journey of restoration for some time,” Adrian Singletary said. “We have been committed to this work for well over a decade.” Singletary is the principal at Plaza Middle School in the Park Hill School District. Prior to that he was an assistant principal and athletic director at Park Hill High School and administrator and history teacher at Park Hill South High School. As a former history teacher he wanted to be involved in the community in which he serves. He is a board member of the Banneker School Foundation and Historic Site, which has been on the journey of restoration for some time. “We have been committed to this work for well over a decade,” Singletary said.
For Singletary, living history museums are more important than ever. “We must preserve history and understand the experiences of the past even if they are painful to experience. This pain allows us to understand where we were and where we need to go.”
Park University has been one of the Legacy partners in this journey of restoration and has been a great partner and supporter of the Banneker School Foundation and Historic Site’s efforts, since the school had an important role in the literal building of Banneker School.
The school is nestled just beyond the top of a Main Street hill, and access is only from West Street. This was the path taken by Black children from southern Platte County to the school.
The school was named for Benjamin Banneker, who was born in 1731 in Maryland to a free African-American mother and a father who had been formerly enslaved. He had no formal education and was mostly self-taught. He was a landowner who also worked as a surveyor and farmer. He also became a mathematician, astronomer, clockmaker and almanac author. Banneker had a correspondence with former President Thomas Jefferson on topics that ranged from slavery to racial equality. Schools across the U.S. have been named for Banneker.
For Singletary, Banneker was indeed a man before his time and an influential person.
“I believe there are a myriad of individuals that deserve our exploration/time and not just during the month of February,” Singletary said. “Black history is American history, and we would do well to remember that. The Black experience in America, much like that of others, helps paint a rich tapestry of America. To deny, suppress, or silence it is to deny our future generations essential knowledge and tools to continue such a beautiful tapestry.”
Many former students, family and community members have given countless hours and support for the restoration project and fundraisers have been hosted for many years by local churches, schools and universities. Private donors have also greatly helped the cause.
Fundraising included the successful 1999-2002 ‘One Million Pennies’ drive, a community service project of students at Union Chapel Elementary School.
In 2008, to more actively pursue the goal of restoration and to raise the necessary funds, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization was formed.
The distinction of being listed on the National Register of Historic Places allowed for a grant to be received to stabilize the building and return it to its original configuration.
While there has been some restoration of the roof, foundation and flooring, this will be an ongoing project. Historic buildings have standards which must be adhered to in order to be restored properly. When necessary funds are raised, the project will be completed.
“The reward is knowing you are contributing to preserving history in a community and keeping the legacy of this building going for others to experience,” Singletary said. “Banneker is a local piece of the collective history in Parkville and it should be supported and preserved. I would encourage others to contribute their talent, time, and treasure to this worthwhile endeavor. This history is real and should be protected. There are many ways to get involved in the community and this is a project that is well worth our collective attention.”