Site Type: Educational Site

Historical Significance:

Christiansburg Institute was founded in 1866 by Captain Charles Schaeffer, an agent of the Quaker Freedmen's Bureau. It was the first school to provide secondary education for blacks in Southwest Virginia. In 1895, through the involvement of the Freedmen's Bureau, Booker T. Washington advised the school in its transition to the industrial model of education. Christiansburg Institute principals provided leadership not only within the school, but in the larger community. The school closed in 1966 with the desegregation of Virginia's schools. In 1976, the Christiansburg Institute Alumni Association was founded. In 1996, a subsidiary organization, Christiansburg Institute, Inc., was formed to renovate, restore, and develop the institute - not just as a historic site but as a living institution.

Physical Description:

No Physical Description Available