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On July 1, 1872, Harriet Ward took her eleven year daughter, Mary Frances, to the public school closest to their San Francisco house to enroll her in classes. The principal of Broadway Grammar, Noah Flood, denied her admission. He said he had no choice due to her brown skin. You are probably reading this as I did and saying to yourself, “Wait a minute! There were segregated schools in San Francisco? How can that be?”
I write that because there was so much fanfare about California joining the country as the 31st state in 1849. It joined as a FREE state, meaning a state without slavery. This was a huge deal as it tipped the balance of slave states and free states that had been established in 1821. But in reality, slavery had been banned in California since Mexico abolished their slave laws in 1823. California, under Mexico's rule, was known for the civil rights of its citizens, especially women. (Sadly, we know how they treated those they didn't consider citizens.) How could segregation exist under this umbrella?
Yet freedom has not necessarily meant equality and early California was no exception. California had some of the strictest fugitive slave laws and separate schools for Whites, Native Americans, and Blacks. The African American population of California in the 1860s was a small mix of free blacks and slaves. In San Francisco, there were approximately 1,800 blacks in a total population of 56,802. In 1870, that number was 1,330 with San Francisco's population being tripled at 149,473. |
From what I can sort out by using sfgenealogy.com, there were over thirty grammar schools available to meet the needs of San Francisco's children in the 1860s. California had passed laws early in its history (1866) stating that public education was free for white children ages five to twenty one. However, there was only one “Colored School” in the city until 1871. It opened May 22, 1854, in the basement of a church near Jackson Street. It was moved twice; once in 1864 to Broadway and again in 1869 near Taylor streets. A second school opened for less than 15 students on Howard street in 1871. There was also only one Chinese school in Chinatown. |
It was two years after the passage of the 15th Amendment gave African Americans the right to vote that Mary Frances Ward was denied access to her neighborhood school. The community rallied around the family and raised money so they could take their case to court. Two years later, the California Supreme Court issued its ruling on Ward v. Flood.
The ruling is a fascinating read in its positives and negatives. The victory in the ruling was a clear declaration that all children had the right to go to school. “If there were more than ten Native American or black children in the community, a school must be opened. If there was no school available, the students had the right to integrate into the existing schools.” That's a racial change from the law of 1866.
This ruling also validated the segregation of schools. Since San Francisco offered a school for Mary Frances, even if it wasn't convenient for her family, that was the school she was to attend. Mary Frances was sent to school at the corner of Vallejo/Broadway and Taylor. This land was purchased by the city in 1858 with a school being opened from 1864 to 1877. The school no longer exists but its location has been Ina Coolbrith Park since 1931.
Thankfully, California seems to have maintained these segregation practices for only a short time in its history. In 1880, they ended the practice and blended all students together by a simple alteration to the law. The word “white” was removed. Why was that decision made? It is curious to wonder whether it was it equality or cost that drove the change. San Francisco of the 1880s was facing the decline of the gold rush wealth. Managing separate schools is expensive especially when there aren't that many students in them. In 1880 the black population is estimated to be 1,628 out of a total population of 298,997. Native Americans weren't counted at the time. As the Pacific Appeal wrote in “it was the retrenchment of economy rather than a really spontaneous desire to do justice to colored children.” I can't help but agree. |
Ina Coolbrith Park
Vallejo & Taylor
San Francisco, CA 94133
Vallejo & Taylor
San Francisco, CA 94133
*Ina Coolbrith Park is located at a steep little corner of Russian Hill in San Francisco.
*It is named for the first poet laureate of the city.
*The views are stunning but there's not much else there.
*No restrooms or parking available.
*It is named for the first poet laureate of the city.
*The views are stunning but there's not much else there.
*No restrooms or parking available.
For those who continue to be curious about California's education in the 1860s, there's a fascinating article about the curriculum focus here. and for a list schools open at the time, check out SF Genealogy.com