Historic African-American school honored with marker

Beaufort County's 50th historical marker was dedicated in Burton to mark the location of the Port Royal Agricultural School.

Later called the Beaufort County Training School, it was founded in 1901 by a group of Beaufort citizens led by abolitionist Abbie Holmes Christensen at the suggestion of African-American minister Paul Watson of Beaufort, according to the marker.

The Beaufort County Historical Society and county officials dedicated the marker Thursday on Shanklin Road.

The school was opened to provide education that was not publicly available for black students at the time, with a mission similar to the Mather School in Beaufort and the Penn School on St. Helena Island. The school was modeled on Booker T. Washington's Tuskegee Institute. Washington toured it in 1908 and called it "a model school of its kind," according to the marker.

It was known locally as the Shanklin School, in honor of Joseph S. Shanklin, principal from 1903 to 1946, according to the marker. Shanklin came to Beaufort from the Tuskegee Institute.

At one point, the school had 150 students, 900 acres, two barns, two dormitories, a power plant, a library, a store, and buildings for lessons in trades, including carpentry, bricklaying and printing.

In 1920, it became a public school. It closed in 1955.

The nearby Joseph S. Shanklin Elementary School, which opened in 1994, was named in honor of the historic school's principal.

This story was originally published September 19, 2014 at 8:20 PM with the headline "Historic African-American school honored with marker."