By Eric Curl / Savannah Agenda
Nov. 13, 2024 – The city of Savannah’s efforts to preserve its history beyond downtown are continuing to take shape.
The city recently issued a request for proposals for design services for the historic Springfield Terrace School west of downtown near the Enmarket Arena.
Located at 707 Hastings St., the 1926 one-story building was built to educate the children of African American families in the surrounding neighborhoods such as Brickyard, Carver Village, Springfield Terrace and Water Works. At that time, African Americans were excluded from most buildings and resources of the public education system.
The now-vacant school was renamed in 1958 in honor of African American educator, activist and community leader Pearl Lee Smith and used to house Oglethorpe Charter School from 1999 to 2012. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2022.
In the early-20th century, Chatham County failed to prioritize the education of Black youth even though African Americans made up nearly half of the population, as described in National Register of Historic Places’ registration form. It was due to the persistent efforts of Smith and the local community that in 1925 the Chatham County Board of Education authorized funding to build the school for the African American children.
In addition to developing architectural plans to restore and preserve the building, the design firm will assist in developing the project’s budget.
The RFP comes after the National Park Service awarded in 2023 a $50,000 grant in support of the project, as part of the Historic Preservation Fund’s African American Civil Rights grant program. In March, the city hosted an informational public meeting to discuss the rehabilitation and gather feedback on its possible future uses.
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Once restored, the programming for the building, which has four classrooms, is expected to include museum exhibits, local art, artist incubator space, and flexible office space, according to a document included with the RFP.
“The programming was determined through the public engagement process earlier this year, including public meetings and a public survey,” City of Savannah Press Secretary Joshua Peacock said Wednesday.
The project’s design is expected to take six months to complete, and construction is anticipated to take 10 months.
About Pearl Lee Smith
The push for a new school to serve the Springfield Terrace community began with Pearl Lee Smith, an African American activist and leader. After consulting with parents in the Springfield Terrace community about the need for a school, Smith organized the first Parent Teacher Association (PTA) in Chatham County. The PTA presented the idea for the new school to the Chatham County Board of Education, but the Board was not in favor of pursuing it until Smith enlisted the help of Mrs. A. R. Lawton of Atlanta and attended the State Interracial Meeting in Atlanta to again present the idea (Dedication 1959, 2). Lawton appears to be Ella Stanley Beckwith Lawton (1860-1949), wife of Alexander Rudolph Lawton (1858-1936). The Commission on Interracial Cooperation was established in 1919 and was based in Atlanta. Active until 1944, the commission had committees scattered throughout the state. A journal article from The Georgia Historical Quarterly described the commission as being comprised of “white southerners who questioned, disagreed with, and spoke out against traditional southern mores” and sought to “humanize and soften the southern system of segregation by rallying the better element of white southern society to forward-looking social programs for blacks.” The commission formed an “alliance of southern whites, northern philanthropists and foundations, and conservative blacks of the Tuskegee school” Source: National Register of Historic Places registration form.
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