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There were two schools in St. Albans named the Carter G. Woodson School. The first school for Black students had its beginnings in 1912 and was located on Pennsylvania Avenue in St. Albans in what is now the American Legion Hall building. The 2nd school is now called McKinley Middle School. There were also two other schools for African Americans in St. Albans, the Roland Hayes School in Amandaville, and Roseville School on Rosedale Drive west of town.The first schools for African American students closed in the spring of 1933 when the county school system was established and the American Legion purchased this building around 1938. After 1933, local Black students were transported to the new school in eastern St. Albans called Stop 16 School- a name that referenced a trolley stop and was later changed to honor Carter G. Woodson in 1940. That building then became the home of McKinley Jr. High in 1955. The current American Legion Hall is masonry and has been painted over the years and its front windows are bricked-in. The existing copula is still present.   Carter G. Woodson, known as the "Father of Black History," had ties to this area and holds an outstanding position in early 20th century American history. Woodson authored numerous scholarly books and founded Negro History Week in 1926 (a precursor to Black History Month). Born in Virginia in 1895, Woodson came to West Virginia in search of a job in the mines. He later attended and graduated from Douglass High School in Huntington, WV before going on to secure a Ph.D. in history from Harvard University. He served as dean of Howard University and WV State College.

Carter G. Woodson School. / American Legion Hall today

This building served as a school for African American students in St. Albans during the era of segregation. The school dates back to 1912, and this building which was constructed years later was named in honor of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, a former West Virginia miner who graduated with a Ph.D. from Harvard and started Black History Month and the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. The building is now home to the American Legion. The second school for Black students in St. Albans was also named after Woodson in 1940 and that building is now hoe to McKinley Middle School on the east side of town.

Carter G. Woodson School / American Legion

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This trail begins at a park dedicated in honor of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, known today as the Father of Black History for his scholarship and for his leadership in establishing the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, Journal of African American History, and Black History Month. The trail continues to his Washington D.C. home and then his Virginia birthplace and continues on to the coalfields of southern West Virginia where Woodson worked before graduating and teaching at Douglass High School. The trail currently ends in West Virginia but will be expanded to include additional stops all the way to Berea College where Woodson earned a degree before continuing on to Harvard University. This trail is a work in progress and more entries and information will be added throughout the coming months. 

Completed in February 2015, this memorial park is dedicated to Dr. Carter G. Woodson, who is widely regarded as "The Father of Black History." The park is located near his Washington DC home, which is a National Historic Site, as well as the Black community's YMCA where often dined. Woodson was the second African American to graduate with a Ph.D. from Harvard University. He established the leading academic journal related to African American history. He also founded the organization now known as the Association for the Study of African American History and Life (ASALH). Finally, Woodson created "Negro History Week" as an annual celebration of Black history and culture that has now been expanded to Black History Month and is commemorated each February .

Carter G. Woodson Memorial Park

The Carter G. Woodson Home was the site of some of the most productivity ever seen for the spread of African American History. Woodson’s home provided education, held meetings, and was even used to publish his own historical works. The Woodson Home was even home to Woodson’s own company for publishing books, entitled Associated Publishers. From its founding up until Woodson’s death in 1950, and for some years afterward, this building spread information on African American History to the world (The Carter G. Woodson Home).Today, the Carter G. Woodson home is a National Historical Landmark and is still used to hold events. Ever year, the ASALH celebrates Woodson’s birthday with an event at the Woodson Home. It became a landmark in 1976, and is part of the National Park System. With the help of the upkeep and importance of his home, Dr. Woodson will be remembered for years to come (The Carter G. Woodson Home).The Woodson home is in the Shaw neighborhood of DC, which is often called the “Heart of the African American Community in Washington” (The Carter G. Woodson Home). The Shaw neighborhood is also home to places such as the Shiloh Baptist Church, the African American Civil War Memorial, and more. It is also known as being the home of Howard University. The ASALH still considers Woodson to be a very important figure, and has continued to celebrate him by having his home made a National Historical Landmark (The Carter G. Woodson Home).

Dr. Carter G. Woodson is often called the Father of Black History. He is best known for being the founder of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. At the start of the ASALH, he led meetings and gatherings for the organization at his home at 1538 9th Street NW in Washington DC. In 1970, the ASALH moved from Woodson's house to its headquarters on 525 Bryant Street. The Carter G. Woodson Home is now a National Historical Landmark (The Carter G. Woodson Home).

Carter G. Woodson Home

While the exact address of his original family home is unknown, several historians have authored books about his life. Woodson left Virginia in 1892 to seek employment in the timberlands, mines, and railroads of West Virginia in hopes of saving enough money to support his education. After working in Nutallburg and other mining communities, he attended and graduated high school in Huntington, WV. He later taught at that same school and secured a degree from Berea College with coursework from the University of Chicago before earning a Ph.D. from Harvard University.Carter G. Woodson, known by many as the “Father of Black History,” was born in New Canton, Buckingham County, Virginia in 1875 to former slaves. His father, James Henry Woodson was enslaved on the Toney Plantation near Richmond. When the Civil War broke out, James fled his master and came across a Union cavalry unit, which unit took him back to his master to only, according to Woodson family oral history, tied up Master Toney and whipped him. After this event, James Woodson would stay with this same unit of cavalry and act as a scout. One such mission concluded with the destruction of Confederate supplies. After marrying Anne Eliza Riddle, they moved to Buckingham County, VA (western Virginia) when land in the area became available for freed slaves. James and Anne would raise a large family and generate a decent, but not highly profitable, farm life  Carter Woodson was the eldest son of the family with 8 other siblings. He was sickly through most of his youth and was oft times considered his mother's favorite child. Woodson and his siblings were only able to attend school four months out of the year at a one-room school house because their help was needed on the family farm. In 1892 he left Buckingham County for West Virginia to seek employment in the coal mines of Fayette County as well as furthering his education since that was not possible at the time where he lived. Woodson moved to Huntington, West Virginia in 1895.

Dedicated in 1979 by the local chapter of the organization known today as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, this monument honors Carter G. Woodson, one of the leading historians of the 20th century. Woodson was a prominent educator and publisher and is remembered today as the "Father of Black History" for his role in establishing academic journals, periodicals, organizations, and traditions dedicated to the study of African American history. He was also the founder of Negro History Week, recognized annually in February as Black History Month. Woodson was born near this site in Buckingham County on December 19, 1875.

Carter G. Woodson Birthplace Monument

African Americans made up a large part of the workforce in mines throughout the New River area with many arriving from Southern states south seeking a better life. To be sure, the advertising campaigns of coal companies and the professional labor recruiters spurred southern Black men and families to move to the coalfields. Nuttallburg was one of the many towns that recruited African American laborers. The town, however, was segregated and maintained separate schools, churches, and other facilities. White residents lived on the west side of the river while Black residents lived on the east side and between the railroad tracks and river. Despite being segregated, African Americans were able to earn a relatively decent living in the New River area.

This is the approximate location of a small canteen that served African American coal miners in Nuttalburg. The location is historically significant for many reasons, including its formative influence on Dr. Carter G. Woodson, a West Virginia miner known today as "The Father of Black History" for his work establishing what is now Black History Month, The Association for the Study of African American Life and History, and the Journal of African American History. At the age of seventeen, Carter G. Woodson moved to Nuttallburg with his brothers to earn money for schooling. He worked several years at Nuttallburg and the nearby Kaymoor mine, and it was here where Oliver Jones, the operator of a small canteen that served the needs of Black coal miners made young Woods a deal. Mr. Jones had amassed many books and subscribed to African American newspapers such as the Chicago Defender, but his reading skills and those of most of his patrons were less substantial than Woodson's mastery of the written word. As a result, the owner offered his food to Woodson in exchange for reading the latest news to the miners along with works from his library which included books on Black history, art, and culture. Woodson referred to Jone's small establishment as a tearoom that was also a veritable reading room, and he credited his experiences here as furthering his interest in the study and teaching of Black history. After graduating high school and teaching in Huntington, Woodson earned a Bachelor of Literature degree from Berea College, partly through coursework at the University of Chicago. Woodson later returned to the southern coalfields of West Virginia for a short time, teaching school in the town of Winona. Woodson went on to become the second African American to earn a Ph.D. at Harvard University and became one of the most influential scholars of the 20th century.

Carter G. Woodson and Black Coal Miners in Nuttallburg, West Virginia

Douglass Junior and Senior High School was built in 1924 to replace the old Douglass School at 16th Street (now Hal Greer Boulevard) and 8th Avenue, which had been open since 1891. Both schools were named after abolitionist leader Frederick Douglass. The new school, located at the corner of Tenth Avenue and Bruce Street, was built in response to evolving educational standards and a rising enrollment of Black students. It was designed by Frampton and Bowers, an Ohio architectural firm. It is a three-story building consisting of red brick and white terra cotta trim, with entrances finished with half columns and enlarged arched windows. When the new school opened, the original Douglass School was renamed Barnett Elementary School after one of Huntington’s pioneer African American ministers. Henry Davis Hazelwood served as Douglass Junior and Senior High School’s first principal from 1925 until he retired in 1949. He was followed by Henry Smith Jones (1950–51), Leonard H. Glover (1952–55), and Joseph A. Slash (1955–61). Under Hazelwood’s leadership, Douglass was designated a first-class high school by the West Virginia Department of Education, and it was accredited by the North Central Association of Schools and Colleges in 1927. The school had a band, varsity athletic teams, choirs, and hosted various speakers and performers. Douglass Senior and Junior High School became a source of pride for Huntington’s African American community, as enrollment grew each year and its graduates went on to have successful careers.There are several notable alumni of Douglass Junior and Senior High School. Carter G. Woodson, attended the school at its first location. In 1895, at the age of twenty, Woodson entered Douglass High School and graduated in only two years. After teaching for three years, Woodson returned to Douglass School in 1900 to serve as the principal while he worked on his Bachelor of Literature at Berea College, Kentucky. He went on to receive his M.A. from the University of Chicago in 1908 and became the second African American to earn a doctorate from Harvard in 1912. Woodson taught in schools across the country as well as in the Philippines and served as the dean of West Virginia Collegiate Institute, later West Virginia State University. He was an active member of the NAACP and wrote many books on African American history. Woodson founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History in 1915, developed Negro History Week in 1926, and published the first issue of the Negro History Bulletin in 1937. Together, these achievements have led Woodson to often be referred to as "The Father of Black History."Huntington native and musician Revella Hughes was a teacher at Douglass from 1932 to 1941. Born in 1895, Hughes received a Bachelor of Music from Howard University in 1917 and appeared in several Broadway shows in the 1920s. In 1932, she returned to Huntington to take care of her ailing mother. Hughes became the supervisor of public school music in the then-segregated schools and created the band at Douglass High School. She took her young musicians out into the community to perform at major events and for white civic groups.Hal Greer was another graduate of Douglass Junior and Senior High School. Greer began his basketball career at Douglass before becoming the first African American athlete at Marshall University. During his three-year college career, Greer scored 1,377 points, averaged 19.4 points per game, and set the Marshall record for field goals. After his success in college, Greer was drafted by the Syracuse Nationals, who later became the Philadelphia 76ers. In the 1966-67 season, he played alongside Wilt Chamberlain and won the NBA championship. By the time that Greer retired in 1973, he held the career record for most games played and ranked in the top ten in points scored, field goals attempted, and field goals made He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1982.Although its graduates certainly testify to the school’s excellence, Douglass High School is notable for more than just its alumni. The school served as a close-knit community and a source of pride for African-Americans in the Huntington area, comparable to a church or community center. Given West Virginia’s proximity to the Jim Crow South, such a place helped the community thrive at a time of racial inequality. In 1954, Brown v. Board of Education abolished segregated schooling, meaning that Huntington’s schools would have to integrate. Although small numbers of students of color started to attend formerly white schools right after the court ruling, it was not until 1961 that Douglass Junior and Senior High School closed and all of its students began attending Huntington High School. In 1963, the building was reopened as the Fairfield School, a school for special education, and in 1981 its purpose was again changed to house educational offices and a testing center. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. In 2001, the building was renovated to house Ebenezer Medical Outreach, a community center that was established in 1986. Now called the Douglass Centre and owned by Marshall University, the former school continues to house Ebenezer Medical Outreach and other offices.

Constructed in 1924, Douglass Junior and Senior High School served the African American community of Huntington during the era of segregation until its closing in 1961 and now serves as the home of a variety of community organizations. This school was the second in Huntington to be named after Frederick Douglass and remained open until 1961, a reflection of both Huntington's reluctance to integrate and the Black community's desire to maintain what had become an important institution for them. As an academic, social, and cultural center for Black families in Huntington, the school had a profound and enduring impact on the city’s African American community over its seventy years. Notable graduates include Carter G. Woodson, a Harvard-trained scholar known as the father of Black History, and NBA All-star Hal Greer, the first African American athlete at Marshall University. The building, which currently houses a community medical outreach center, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

Douglass Junior and Senior High School

Carter G. Woodson was born in Buckingham County, Virginia, on December 19, 1875, where he grew up working on a farm. Carter’s family temporarily moved to Fayette County, West Virginia, in the 1880s so that his father could work in the railroad industry, and he and his brother could work in the coal mines. In 1895, when Carter was 20 years old, he enrolled in high school at Frederick Douglass High School and completed all the coursework required to graduate in just two years. After graduating in 1897, Carter attended Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, but graduated from Berea College in Kentucky in 1903. Berea had been a higher education institution established by abolitionists in the 1850s with the purpose of educating ex-slaves, and Carter graduated one year before Kentucky made a law prohibiting interracial education. Carter returned to Frederick Douglass High School after graduating college to teach, and also spent four years teaching in the Philippines. Carter G. Woodson valued education more than anything in life, and believed that it was the key to transforming society, improving race relations, and benefiting the lower classes. He enrolled in the University of Chicago in 1907 to better educate himself, and graduated with a bachelor’s and master’s degree in European History; his thesis was on French diplomatic policy toward Germany in the eighteenth century. In 1909, Woodson was accepted to Harvard University and earned his Ph.D in history in 1912 with the assistance of scholarships. Woodson’s dissertation was never published, but it was on the events leading to the creation of the state of West Virginia after the Civil War broke out. After Harvard, Woodson taught in Washington until 1919 at the Armstrong and Dunbar/M Street high schools. From 1919 to 1920, Woodson was the dean of arts and sciences, professor of history, and head of the graduate program in history at Howard University. Then from 1920 to 1922, Woodson taught at the West Virginia Collegiate Institute, followed by a return to Washington to direct the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History full time.While Woodson was earning ranks in higher education, he was also still working on his passion project of spreading knowledge of African American history to all levels. The Journal of Negro History began publication in 1916, to provide a platform for works in Black history. Woodson believed that if African American history was taught at all levels it would diminish racial issues, and founded the annual celebration of Negro History Week in February 1926. The Journal of Negro History led to the creation of the Negro History Bulletin, another platform that could be used to publish African American history works, and the Negro History Week turned into what we now know at Black History Month. The Journal of Negro History was a pure form of equality; not only did the journal provide a place for Black scholars to be published, but it also provided a place for white scholars to be published when their ideas of slavery or Black history did not fit the well-known white narrative. The journal provided multiple topics on Black history such as slavery, the slave trade, Black culture, the family, religion, and antislavery and abolitionism, and included biographical articles on prominent African Americans.Negro History Week increased awareness of and interest in Black history among both Blacks and whites, and was chosen to be celebrated at that time because of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln’s birthdays. Each year, he sent promotional brochures and pamphlets to state boards of education, elementary and secondary schools, colleges, women's clubs, Black newspapers and periodicals, and white scholarly journals suggesting ways to celebrate. Woodson provided these institutions with primary and secondary sources to be handed out as information, and eventually Negro History Week was being celebrated in every state in America, and even reached some foreign countries.Woodson changed the way America viewed the Black population by using new sources and methods, such as census data, slave testimony, and oral history. This information made Americans realize that Blacks were not just victims of white oppression, but they were vital and major roles in America’s development. The NAACP awarded Woodson with the highest honor, the Spingarn Medal, in June 1926, because of his endless efforts to promote African American history. Woodson directed the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History until his death in 1950; today there are multiple scholarships and programs dedicated to his life and research.

Carter G. Woodson, known to many as "the Father of Black History,” was born to former slaves and worked in the mines of West Virginia before graduating from Berea College, the University of Chicago, and Harvard University, where he earned his Ph.D. Woodson believed that educating the populace about Black history had the power to transform society, improve race relations, and benefit people of all races. Woodson was educated in the segregated public schools of Huntington, West Virginia, and became the principal of his former high school after completing a teacher certification program at Kentucky's racially integrated Berea College. He went on to earn a M.A. from the University of Chicago and a Ph.D. from Harvard University. Woodson founded Negro History Week in February of 1926, and his efforts to grow this annual celebration of Black history and culture led to the creation of Black History Month. Woodson also created the Journal of Negro History and the scholarly and community organization known today as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. These institutions, together with his scholarly and popular books, journals, and articles, provided a platform for educating others about African American history with works written by Black and white scholars. Woodson was among one of the first scholars to research and publish works on slavery from the perspective of the enslaved.This statue was commemorated in 2003, and is said that Woodson's line of sight is directly pointed at the first location of Douglass High School.

Dr. Carter G. Woodson Heritage Trail

Carter G. Woodson School / American Legion

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