by Kelly Erby, Assistant Professor of History, Washburn University; PhD, Emory University
School Charter in the
Minute Book of the Institution for the
Education of Colored Youths
in the District of Columbia
(Click for Detail)
Recently, MARBL acquired the minute book of the Institution for the Education of Colored Youths in the District of Columbia. Located in our African American Miscellany collection, this extraordinary piece of history begins with a hand-written copy of the congressional charter that incorporated the school in 1863 with the purpose “to educate and improve the moral and intellectual condition of such of the colored youths of the nation, as may be placed under its care and influence.” At 197 pages and bound in contemporary marbleboard, this addition to MARBL’s collections promises significance for scholars from a variety of fields, including education and African American and women’s history.
