Established in January 1862 through the leadership of Robert W. Simmons, Sumner School was the first free school south of the Mason-Dixon Line and was later named for abolitionist senator Charles Sumner. Its first high school class graduated in 1887, a gymnasium was erected in 1926, and the school closed in 1955 as the state began integration of public schools. It was renovated in 1990 as an African-American museum and center. Simmons, a prominent member of Parkersburg's free African American community, was instrumental in establishing Sumner School and the state's first Sabbath School for black students. A Republican, he attended the first state party convention and was a delegate to the national convention in 1872 and 1876. This newspaper columnist, barber, and civic and political leader was further honored when a local postal station was named for him in 1999.