Butler College

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to give it its due. Back in 1905, a man named Reverend Cornelius Moses Butler, together with the trustees of the East Texas Baptist Association, founded something called East Texas Baptist Academy right there in Tyler, Texas. Now that alone is worth noting, because the purpose was clear and it was serious: to improve educational opportunities for African American youth in and around the city of Tyler.

This wasn't a casual undertaking. These were people who looked at what existed and decided it wasn't enough. So they built something.

Reverend Butler himself served as the academy's first president, and he held that post until his death in 1924. That's a long stretch of leadership, and when he was gone, the institution did something that speaks to what he meant to it. They changed the name.

East Texas Baptist Academy became Butler College. The man became the building, so to speak, and the building became the mission. The school kept evolving, too.

It transitioned to a junior college, then grew into a four-year liberal arts college, which is no small thing. Then, in 1960, it reverted back to a junior college. The association voted to close the college in 1971, citing rising costs, and just like that, a chapter that had begun with such intention came to an end.

But the site didn't disappear entirely. In 1992, a heritage building was built right there on the Butler College grounds. Some stories close, but they don't vanish.

Reverend Butler started something in 1905 that outlasted him, outlasted its own name changes, and still marks the earth today.

What the marker says

Rev. Cornelius Moses Butler and trustees of the East Texas Baptist Association founded East Texas Baptist Academy in 1905. The academy was created to improve educational opportunities for African American youth in and around the city of Tyler. Rev. Butler served as the academy's first president until his death in 1924, at which time the institution's name was changed to Butler College. The school transitioned to a junior college and then a four year liberal arts college, before reverting back to a junior college in 1960. The association voted to close the college in 1971 because of rising costs. A heritage building was built on the Butler College site in 1992. (2008)