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Location: Fort Scott, KS 66701 Bourbon County
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Country: United States of America
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N 37° 50.568', W 94° 42.234'

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Inscription
If you had been an African-American student standing here around 1950, you would have been facing your school, the Hawkins School (above). This school was part of a continuum of African-American education that began with the Civil War and ended with school integration in 1955.

Along with freedom the Civil War brought the need - and the previously denied opportunity - for education. Schools like the Hawkins School met that need and provided that opportunity.

Prominent Americans who attended Fort Scott's African-American schools included George Washington Carver and Gordon Alexander Parks. Born a slave, Carver gained renown as an artist, educator, chemist, agronomist, and botanist. Parks, an author, composer, photographer, and poet, was acclaimed Kansan of the Year in 1985 and received the National Medal of Arts in 1988. Carver attended the Fort Scott Colored School in 1878-79; Parks attended 2nd Plaza School in the 1920s.

[Photo captions read]
Between 1865 and 1955, four African-American schools (map, above) were located on or adjacent to land which now comprises Fort Scott National Historic Site. The last of the four, called the 2nd Plaza School (left), stood directly in front of you. To honor Professor Ernest Hawkins, who served here for many years, the school was renamed the Hawkins School in 1946.

"Look Sharp, Be Sharp, Be Somebody"
Professor Ernest Hawkins

Born in Fort Scott in 1875, Ernest Hawkins devoted his life to African-American education. He was a part of Fort Scott's African-American schools for 65 years, first as a student, then a teacher, then principal. Professor Hawkins encouraged his students to "look sharp, be sharp, be somebody."
Details
HM NumberHMO8C
Tags
Year Placed1998
Placed ByNational Park Service
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Monday, September 15th, 2014 at 11:28am PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)15S E 350077 N 4189741
Decimal Degrees37.84280000, -94.70390000
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 37° 50.568', W 94° 42.234'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds37° 50' 34.08" N, 94° 42' 14.04" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)620, 913
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 2935 Hendricks, Fort Scott KS 66701, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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