CONTENT WARNING
Materials in the Library of Virginia’s collections contain historical terms, phrases, and images that are offensive to modern readers. These include demeaning and dehumanizing references to race, ethnicity, and nationality; enslaved or free status; physical and mental ability; and gender and sexual orientation.
Context
The legislation authorizing Virginia’s first statewide public school system in 1870 required that schools be racially segregated. The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) upheld southern segregation laws as long as facilities were “separate but equal.” Public education throughout Virginia and other southern states was certainly separate, but it was far from equal.
Rural schools often revealed the most stark disparities. Hampered by a general lack of state funding, white local officials were reluctant to adequately support educational facilities for Black students. Amelia County was typical of rural school districts in the Commonwealth. The annual reports published by the Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction illustrate the inequalities. These documents are excerpts from the published tables documenting the number of public school teachers and their salaries in 1930–1931.
According to the annual report, the school-age population (ages 7 to 19) in Amelia County was 59% Black. However, the schools for Black students were funded at a significantly smaller amount. White students could attend Amelia County High School (built in 1911), but African American students had no similar facility until 1933, which is reflected in the annual report's census of teachers that records no high school teachers in Amelia.
Teacher salaries also reflected the race and gender hierarchy in Virginia. Black teachers were paid less than white teachers, even when they had more experience and education. The average salary in Amelia County for white elementary teachers was $620, while Black teachers—all women in Amelia—averaged only $412. In the 1930s and 1940s, Black teachers in some Virginia localities filed lawsuits to equalize salaries that gradually led to improvements in teachers' pay.
Citation: Tables excerpted from the Annual Report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction of the Commonwealth of Virginia with Accompanying Documents, School Year 1930–1931 (1932).
Related Document Bank entry:
Segregation in Amelia County Schools, Newspaper articles
For information on teacher salary equalization, see Aline Black fought for Equal Pay for African American Teachers, 1938 in Shaping the Constitution.
Rural schools often revealed the most stark disparities. Hampered by a general lack of state funding, white local officials were reluctant to adequately support educational facilities for Black students. Amelia County was typical of rural school districts in the Commonwealth. The annual reports published by the Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction illustrate the inequalities. These documents are excerpts from the published tables documenting the number of public school teachers and their salaries in 1930–1931.
According to the annual report, the school-age population (ages 7 to 19) in Amelia County was 59% Black. However, the schools for Black students were funded at a significantly smaller amount. White students could attend Amelia County High School (built in 1911), but African American students had no similar facility until 1933, which is reflected in the annual report's census of teachers that records no high school teachers in Amelia.
Teacher salaries also reflected the race and gender hierarchy in Virginia. Black teachers were paid less than white teachers, even when they had more experience and education. The average salary in Amelia County for white elementary teachers was $620, while Black teachers—all women in Amelia—averaged only $412. In the 1930s and 1940s, Black teachers in some Virginia localities filed lawsuits to equalize salaries that gradually led to improvements in teachers' pay.
Citation: Tables excerpted from the Annual Report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction of the Commonwealth of Virginia with Accompanying Documents, School Year 1930–1931 (1932).
Related Document Bank entry:
Segregation in Amelia County Schools, Newspaper articles
For information on teacher salary equalization, see Aline Black fought for Equal Pay for African American Teachers, 1938 in Shaping the Constitution.
Standards
VS.8, VS.10, VS.11, USII.2, USII.5, USII.8, VUS.8. VUS.16
Suggested Questions
Preview Activity
Scan It: Choose a county on the Teacher Census page. What stands out to you about the numbers?
Post-Activities
Map It: Print out the Geographic Regions with Counties Map from the Department of Education website. Find your city/county and surrounding counties. Using the data from the Teacher Census in the 1930 State Superintendent’s Annual Report (find all localities on pp. 160-163 in the report online at HathiTrust), shade the counties green that offered high school classes to African American students in 1930. On the map, shade the counties red that did not offer high school classes to African American students. What stands out to you?
Dig Deeper: Find Virginia population data in the 1930 census (data by county/city begins on p. 1161 of the linked document). Look at the numbers of white and Black inhabitants in your county/city. Compare these numbers to the Census of Teachers in the Superintendent of Public Instruction's annual report for 1930. What does this suggest about the equality of educational opportunities in your county/city or the entire state at that time?
Scan It: Choose a county on the Teacher Census page. What stands out to you about the numbers?
Post-Activities
Map It: Print out the Geographic Regions with Counties Map from the Department of Education website. Find your city/county and surrounding counties. Using the data from the Teacher Census in the 1930 State Superintendent’s Annual Report (find all localities on pp. 160-163 in the report online at HathiTrust), shade the counties green that offered high school classes to African American students in 1930. On the map, shade the counties red that did not offer high school classes to African American students. What stands out to you?
Dig Deeper: Find Virginia population data in the 1930 census (data by county/city begins on p. 1161 of the linked document). Look at the numbers of white and Black inhabitants in your county/city. Compare these numbers to the Census of Teachers in the Superintendent of Public Instruction's annual report for 1930. What does this suggest about the equality of educational opportunities in your county/city or the entire state at that time?