Site of Old Grammar School

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now, public education in Cameron County goes back to 1854, but Brownsville, she took her time getting her own house in order. It wasn't until 1875 that the city finally set up its own public school system, and even then, classes were scattered around, held in various buildings throughout the city.

No single home to call their own. That went on for a good while. Then came 1887, and a man named Captain William Kelly, chairman of the board of trustees, decided enough was enough.

He started a reorganization of the whole school system, and he called in J. Frank Cummings to be superintendent of the Brownsville Schools. Now here's a detail worth savoring.

Cummings was a native of Brownsville. This was his town. And he led the board of trustees to do something that had never quite happened before: erect a centrally located school building on property donated by the city council.

The city itself gave the land. October 1889. The Brownsville Public School opened right here at this site.

Two floors. Twelve rooms. And up top, a cupola, because when you're building something meant to last, you put a crown on it.

That building housed the Grammar, Junior, and Senior High classes all under one roof. Superintendent Cummings himself stood at the front of the room alongside twelve teachers, and together they taught nine grades. In 1890, the school sent out its very first graduates.

Two young women: Aggie Willman and Annie Russell, diplomas in hand. The building grew as Brownsville grew, expanded as enrollment increased, earning its place as a fixture of this city's life. But 1929 came, and the original building was razed.

Gone. Except, not entirely. When the present school went up, the builders used some of the bricks from the old one.

The old walls didn't disappear. They just became part of what came next. This site has been in continuous use as a place of education since 1889.

The names change, the buildings change, but the ground beneath it all has never stopped being a schoolyard.

What the marker says

Although public education in Cameron County had begun in 1854, the city of Brownsville was able to set up its own public school system in 1875, with classes held in various buildings throughout the city. In 1887 Captain William Kelly, chairman of the board of trustees, began a reorganization of the school system and called J. Frank Cummings to be superintendent of the Brownsville Schools. Cummings, a native of Brownsville, led the board of trustees to erect a centrally located school building on property that was donated by the city council. In October 1889 the Brownsville Public School, which housed the Grammar, Junior, and Senior High classes, opened at this site. The building originally had 12 rooms on two floors, crowned by a cupola, and was expanded as enrollment increased. Supt. Cummings and 12 teachers taught the 9 grades. The first graduates, Aggie Willman and Annie Russell, received their diplomas in 1890. Although the original building was razed in 1929, the present school was constructed with some of the bricks from the old school. In continuous use as a location for education since 1889, this site maintains an important link to the city's early history.