Chartered in 1834 by Samuel Noyes and other Canaan citizens, Noyes Academy was the first-known upper-level co-ed school in the US open to African Americans. The school opened in 1835, but months later, outraged opponents used a team of oxen to drag the Academy building down Canaan Street and forced the Black pupils out of town. This brief experiment in educational equality helped launch the public careers of Black leaders Henry Highland Garnet, Alexander Crummell, and Thomas Sipkins Sidney. Garnet was the first African American to preach in Congress in 1865.

Photo: Col. James F. Jamison, USMC (Ret)

Photo: Col. James F. Jamison, USMC (Ret)

Canaan, New Hampshire · USA