[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 18 (Tuesday, February 3, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S735-S736]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                RECOGNIZING THE LEGACY OF STORER COLLEGE

 Mr. MANCHIN. Mr. President, I wish to honor Storer College, a 
historic educational establishment that truly left a significant 
imprint on the history of our State and our Nation.
  Located in West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle in beautiful Harpers 
Ferry, the legacy of Storer College began following the Civil War. It 
was established by the Reverend Dr. Nathan Cook Brackett and 
philanthropist John Storer of Sanford, ME, whose goals were to create a 
school that was open and accepting of all students regardless of 
gender, race, or religion.
  Particularly now, during Black History Month, it is fitting to 
recognize such a tremendously important endeavor as Storer College 
because it had such a significant impact on civil rights in the decades 
following the Civil War. This educational institution was a constant 
refuge for former slaves who found themselves without the necessary 
skillsets to lead marketable lives. Attendees were taught how to read 
and write, but they also gained a sense of purpose.
  John Brown's raid is largely considered the motivation for the 
school's creation in Jefferson County, as the 1859 rebellion liberated 
countless African Americans in the area. Frederick Douglass, also a 
trustee of Storer College, once spoke at the school about John Brown 
and the raid's significance.
  On October 2, 1867, Storer Normal School opened its doors with 2 
teachers and 19 attending students. Under the leadership of Henry T. 
McDonald, Storer converted into a college in 1938.
  Storer College set the groundwork for integrated education across the 
rest of the Nation. For many years, it was the only school that allowed 
African Americans to acquire an education past elementary school.
  By the end of the 19th century, our Nation faced another battle 
marked with Jim Crow laws and legal segregation. To combat these 
injustices, many brilliant leaders in the African-American community 
created the Niagra

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Movement, a precursor to the NAACP. The second meeting of the Niagra 
Movement was held at Storer College in 1906. It was supported by such 
leaders as W.E.B. Du Bois, William Monroe Trotter, and Booker T. 
Washington.
  In 1954, legal segregation came to an end with the Supreme Court's 
decision in Brown v. the Board of Education. This decision, while 
revolutionary across our Nation, also brought an end to Federal and 
State funding for Storer College, and regrettably, its doors closed a 
year later.
  Today, though no longer a learning institution, the National Park 
Service continues the college's mission to welcome individuals of all 
backgrounds by using the campus as a training facility. It continues to 
serve as a staunch reminder of triumph over injustice.
  As we reflect on Storer's history, it is important that we continue 
to pass down this legacy for future generations because it remains 
relevant in so many ways to this day.

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