George Washington Carver School

Duane's take

The official marker's the source here, and I'm just the voice bringin' it to you down the road. Now, every good story starts somewhere, and this one starts in 1881, when the town of Groveton took shape near the Trinity and Sabine Railway and Timber Company. Work was available, and word travels fast when work is available.

Settlers came. The population climbed. And pretty soon, a growing town needed the things growing towns need.

Schools, for one. By 1886, the Groveton Colored Community School was operating within the school district. Operating, yes.

But underfunded. That's the word the marker uses, and it's worth sitting with for a moment, because it tells you something about what the community was up against from the very beginning. Still, the population kept growing, and the need for better educational facilities for the African American community kept pressing.

Then, in 1900, something shifted. The Trinity County Lumber Company sold land to the Groveton School Cooperation for a new school, situated right in the African American neighborhood. A wood-frame building went up on that land, and it stood and served for decades, all the way until 1955.

In 1952, the school board purchased adjacent acreage and built a gymnasium, one that got pressed into service as classroom space when the need arose. And then, by 1956, the school had a name that meant something. George Washington Carver School, named in honor of the prominent botanist and inventor.

That name carried weight, and the people inside those walls intended to carry it well. Several years after additional acreage was purchased in 1955, the contract to build the new G.W. Carver School was awarded.

The community had fought for better, pushed for better, and piece by piece, better arrived. At the center of that era stood Mr. T.L.

Mathis. He served as principal from 1956 to 1965, and the marker does not mince words about him. It says he worked tirelessly to improve and advocate for the school and its students.

That's the kind of sentence that holds a whole career inside it. And the community around him matched that energy. Sporting events, the marching band, the whole fabric of school life, largely funded and organized by the community itself, or by the students.

Not because outside support was generous. Because the people believed in what they were building. After integration in 1965, the Carver School was repurposed as the Groveton Junior High.

The name changed. The mission shifted. But what had been built there, by teachers and staff the marker calls outstanding, by a principal who advocated without ceasing, by a community that funded its own dreams when nobody else would, that doesn't get repurposed.

That endures. Groveton, Trinity County. You're riding past ground that was earned.

What the marker says

In 1881, the town of Groveton was established near the Trinity and Sabine Railway and Timber Company. With the availability for work, the area attracted settlers seeking employment. With the rapid increase in population, the need for services such as schools became apparent. By 1886, the Groveton Colored Community School operated within the school district but was underfunded. Steady population growth increased the need for better educational facilities for the African American community. In 1900, the Trinity County Lumber Company sold land to the Groveton School Cooperation for a new school located in the African American neighborhood. A wood-frame building was erected and used until 1955. In 1952, the school board purchased adjacent acreage and built a gymnasium, occasionally used for classrooms. By 1956, the school was known as George Washington Carver School in honor of the prominent botanist and inventor. Several years after purchasing additional acreage in 1955, the contract to build the new G.W. Carver School was awarded. After integration in 1965, the Carver School was repurposed as the Groveton Junior High. Throughout the years, many outstanding African American men and women served as teachers and staff, dedicated to education, integrity and compassion. Most notably, Mr. T.L. Mathis who was principal from 1956 to 1965. Mr. Mathis worked tirelessly to improve and advocate for the school and its students. Activities were typically funded and/or organized by the community or students such as sporting events and the marching band, a testament to the community’s dedication to education and civic duty. (2016)