NEWPORT — Southgate Street School, the first African-American school in Kentucky funded by the General Assembly, will gain more historical recognition from the state Saturday.

        The Kentucky Historical Society and the Transportation Cabinet will dedicate a Kentucky Historical Highway marker at the school. Built in 1873, the school is at 215 East Southgate, just a block from Newport on the Levee.

Built in 1873, Southgate Street School is a link to Newport's past, and just a block from the Levee. (Patrick Reddy photo) | ZOOM |

        “We'll officially mark the site of the school as a historic location,” said Historical Society manager of community services Karla Nicholson. “This is part of a series of markers for schools around the state. It's a joint effort by the society and the Transportation Cabinet, and we've been working with Kentucky African-American Heritage Commission.”

        Southgate Street School was born as part of the Freedmen's Bureau, formed after the Civil War to assist the freed slaves. Campbell, Kenton and Boone counties joined to form a Freedmen's Bureau district in 1866, and in 1870 Newport officials purchased the property on Southgate Street, opening the school in 1873.

        Originally a one-story brick structure that housed African-American students in grades one through eight and high school students for a short time, a second story was added about 1893 to accommodate the increasing number of students.

        Four years ago, 66-year-old Robert Ingguls, amember of the Southgate Street School Alumni Association, began a fund-raising effort to restore the building's interior and exterior and possibly form a partnership with the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati.

        The building is empty while the restoration proceeds.

        However, the money has been slow in coming and a spokesperson for the Freedom Center said the center is not linked to the school or to the alumni association.

        Bill Huston, another Southgate Street School alumnus who is working with Mr. Ingguls in the fund-raising effort, said restoration of the building “is important to the African-American community as well as the community at large.”

        He said the dedication of the historical highway marker will bring more attention to the restoration project.

        In 1921, the Southgate Street high school students began attending William Grant High School in Covington. But Southgate Street School continued to house the lower grades until federal desegregation prompted its closure after the 1955-56 school year.

        Purchased by a Newport Masonic group when the school closed, the building continued to be used as a social center for African-American residents. At one time, a barber shop was housed in the basement, and rooms on the upper floors were used for meetings and youth recreation.

        The school is one of only two structures remaining on the block bordered by Third Street, Saratoga Street, Southgate and Washington Street. The other is a large brownstone structure that housed a former beer distributing company and is set to become a Hofbrauhaus restaurant.

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