Storer College 1867-1955

Thousands of blacks seeking refuge from slavery and protection behind Union lines fled to Harpers Ferry during the Civil War. Recognizing the importance of education for former slaves, the government’s Freedmen’s Bureau began a school here in 1864, and by 1867—bolstered by a $10,000 donation by Maine philanthropist John Storer—the missionary Freewill Baptists had transformed four abandoned government mansions on Camp Hill into an integrated normal school. With the development of Jim Crow laws and legal segregation during the last quarter of the 19th century, however, Storer gradually evolved into an all-black school that—at its peak—featured a campus of 20 buildings and an enrollment of 100 students. Due to its symbolic association with John Brown, Storer College on occasion existed as a mecca for those who advocated equality and social justice for American blacks, Storer trustee Frederick Douglass praised John Brown in a famous oration delivered here in 1881, and 25 years later in 1906, W.E.B. Dubois and the Second Niagara Movement convened at Storer in a meeting that eventually resulted in the formation of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). With the end of legal segregation in 1954, and burdened by financial and enrollment problems—Storer closed its doors in 1955.

Lovettsville, Maryland · United States