In this chapter I shall deal with the Baptist schools managed by colored people. Many of these schools have had a very hard struggle; but by the patriotism and race pride of the colored people, they have been constantly growing and developing, until to-day they are among the very best educational institutions in this country. In I open this chapter with a brief sketch of "The Western College," located at Macon, Mo., because I regard it as one of the best schools of the kind in the West. THE WESTERN COLLEGE. One of the best institutions in the West for the education of Negroes is The Western College located at Macon, Mo. Since it was founded, in January, 1890, its growth has been extraordinary, and to-day (1901) its temporary buildings are crowded with earnest young men and women anxious to secure a Christian education. Believing that religious principles should underlie all true education, the Negro Baptists of Missouri, several years prior to 1890, had in mind the establishment of a Christian institution in which ministers might receive biblical training and where hundreds of men and women might be[Pg 42] educated and thoroughly trained for teaching and other useful pursuits in life. They realized that the Christian college is one of the greatest forces in the aid of Christianity, inasmuch as its great aim is to build up a character in accord with the principles of God's Word. When first opened, the school was conducted in rented quarters at Independence, Mo., for a part of two sessions. In the Fall of 1891 the Board of Trustees purchased twelve acres of land, conveniently located within the city limits, at a cost of $4,000. The school was opened here in January, 1892. At present two buildings are occupied, but the growth of the school has rendered these wholly inadequate for the demands of the work. The colored Baptists themselves have raised a large amount of money for paying on the property, for current expenses and for building purposes. In this work they have been kindly assisted by The Home Mission Society of New York, which has contributed annually toward the payment of teachers. But for its timely aid, the work, so well begun, must have suffered. [Pg 42] Located as this school is, in the northern part of Missouri, it has a large territory from which to draw. Students have matriculated from Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, Mississippi and Alabama. With enlarged facilities in the way of commodious buildings and apparatus, the power of this institution in the
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