The Library of Virginia
800 E. Broad Street
Richmond, Virginia 23219
http://www.lva.virginia.gov
State Government Records Collection, Acc# 29632
Extent: 4 cubic feet
ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
Provenance:
Received by the library from the State Department of Education, Division of Secondary
Education, on September 2, 1976.
Restrictions:
Access restricted to Student files until 2066 and Teachers' registers until
2065.
Preferred Citation:
Virginia Dept. of Education, Indian School Files, 1936-1967. Accession
29632. State government records collection, The Library of Virginia,
Richmond, Va. 23219.
AGENCY HISTORY
The two State recognized Indian reservations in Virginia are the Mattaponi and Pamunkey. The establishment of the two reservations was brought about by the treaties of 1646 and 1677 between the Indians and the English Government. The Mattaponi Reservation is located on the Mattaponi River in King William County, and the Pamunkey Reservation is located on the Pamunkey River in King William County. In 1917, Assistant Attorney General of Virginia, Leslie C. Garnett, gave an opinion that the Mattaponi and Pamunkey Indians were wards of the State. The two reservations are not a part of King William County, and do not receive any support or services from the county. The two reservations are self-supporting, except for the services provided by the various departments of the State, such as Department of Health, Education, etc.
In 1917, the State Superintendent and State Board of Education were made aware of the educational needs of the Indian children living on the two State reservations. A sum of $1012.43 was spent during the session 1917-18 in providing elementary educational opportunities for these children by operating an elementary school on each reservation. In the session of 1949-50, a lunch program was started at the Mattaponi school. In June 1950, the two tribes voted to consolidate the two schools into one school in order to offer a broader and better program for grades 1 through 8. During the summer of 1950, the school building on the Mattaponi Reservation, which was to house the consolidated school, was completely renovated with many new facilities added since through additional State funds and donations from the Society of Friends and the Richmond Dietetics Association. Starting in 1953, opportunities were provided for high school students to complete their courses at Bacone Junior College in Oklahoma, at Cherokee Reservation School in North Carolina, at Oak Hill Academy in Grayson County, Virginia, or in Michigan. The State paid the tuition and transportation. By 1965, public education was provided for grades one through twelve. All expenses for the operations and maintenance of the school and transportation of the children from the Pamunkey reservation were provided by the State Board of Education.
In addition to these two tribes who were living on the only two State recognized Indian reservations, there were remnants of other tribes of Virginia Indians who were not living on reservations but as citizens of local governmental units. The Samaria School, located in Charles City County served Indian pupils from Charles City and New Kent Counties, and the Sharon School located in King William County served Indians residing in that county.
SCOPE AND CONTENT
This collection is comprised of the Indian school files, 1936-1967. The schools that are included are: the Mattaponi and Pamunkey schools, Oak Hill Academy, Mouth of Wilson, Va., Samaria Indian School, Charles City County, and the out-of-state schools, Bacone College, Oklahoma, Haskell Institute, Kansas, Cherokee School, N.C., High Plain Indian School, N.C., and Chilocco Indian Agricultural School, Oklahoma. They contain teachers' monthly reports, student files, school lunch program records, applications, budget information, committee records, general correspondence, reports, catalogs and information about Virginia and out-of-state Indian schools.
The collection is arranged into four (4) series: Administrative Files, 1944-1967; School Lunch Program, 1949-1966; Student Files, 1944-1966 (RESTRICTED) and Teachers' Registers, 1936-1965 (RESTRICTED). Each series is described in the folder listing.
SERIES DESCRIPTIONS AND CONTAINER LIST
| Box | Folder | Contents | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Series I: Administrative Files, 1944-1967 | |||
| Arranged alphabetically by folder title. Contains all files pertaining to the administration of the Indian Schools in Virginia including files from out-of-state schools. | |||
| 1 | 1 | Agreements regarding Indian School and lot | 1958 |
| 2 | Annual reports, Mattaponi-Pamunkey | 1957-1966 | |
| 3 | Bacone College, Oklahoma, the Bacone Indian | 1948-1950 | |
| 4 | Bacone College, Oklahoma, bulletins | 1946-1952 | |
| 5 | Bacone College, Oklahoma, correspondence | 1947-1955 | |
| 6 | Bacone College, Oklahoma, publications | 1946-1961 | |
| 7 | Budget and financial reports | 1947-1966 | |
| 8 | Cherokee School, Cherokee, NC, correspondence | 1952-1955 | |
| 9 | Chilocco Indian Agricultural School, Oklahoma | 1948 | |
| 10 | Equipment and supplies | 1952-1965 | |
| 11 | Exhibit Day, May 21 | 1954 | |
| 12 | Forms | ||
| 13 | General correspondence | 1945-1964 | |
| 14 | Graduation exercises | 1958-1966 | |
| 15 | Handicrafts | 1952-1956 | |
| 16 | Haskell Institute, Lawrence, KS | 1948-1954 | |
| 17 | High Plain Indian School, NC | 1951 | |
| 18 | Historical data | 1951-1964 | |
| 19 | Historical data | 1965-1966 | |
| 20 | Indian education | 1948-1950 | |
| 21 | Indian School Advisory Comm. mtg. | 1964-1965 | |
| 22 | Indian Survey Committee | 1955-1956 | |
| 23 | Inventories, equipment and supplies | 1958-1966 | |
| 24 | Inventories, text books | 1958-1966 | |
| 25 | Library books | 1960-1966 | |
| 26 | Meetings of Indian School Comm., Dept. of Ed. | 1953-1954 | |
| 27 | Memos regarding Indians | 1950-1958 | |
| 2 | 1 | Monthly teachers' reports, Mattaponi | 1944-1950 |
| 2 | Monthly teachers' reports, Pamunkey | 1944-1949 | |
| 3 | Monthly teachers' reports, Mattaponi-Pamunkey | 1950-1955 | |
| 4 | Monthly teachers' reports, Mattaponi-Pamunkey | 1956-1961 | |
| 5 | Monthly teachers' reports, Mattaponi-Pamunkey | 1961-1966 | |
| 6 | Oak Hill Academy, VA | 1954-1956 | |
| 7 | Philosophy of education | 1957 | |
| 8 | Requests for state aid | 1946-1955 | |
| 9 | Samaria Indian School, VA | 1949-1955 | |
| 10 | School calendar and curriculum | 1953-1966 | |
| 11 | School census, Indian reservations | 1950-1955 | |
| 12 | School closing procedures | 1960-1962 | |
| 13 | School directory | 1964-1966 | |
| 14 | School enrollment and grade placements | 1964-1967 | |
| 15 | School regulations | 1959-1966 | |
| 16 | Specifications for addition | 1953 | |
| 16 | Specifications for renovations | 1964 | |
| 17 | Specifications for additions, blueprints (Oversize Box 5) | 1953,1958 | |
| 18 | Specifications for painting | 1956 | |
| 19 | Superintendents' memos | 1960-1964 | |
| 20 | Teachers' meetings | ||
| 21 | Teaching applications and contracts | 1946-1956 | |
| 22 | Teaching applications and contracts | 1958-1966 | |
| 23 | Teaching permits | 1944-1956 | |
| 24 | Transportation reports | 1960-1965 | |
| 25 | U.S. Dept. of the Interior | 1964 | |
| Series II: School Lunch Program, 1949-1966 | |||
| Arranged alphabetically by folder title. Contains monthly reports, commodity distribution information, and the school milk program information. | |||
| 3 | 1 | Agreements | 1962-1963 |
| 2 | Forms | ||
| 3 | General information | 1962-1966 | |
| 4-12 | Mattaponi-Pamunkey Lunch Program, reports | 1949-1966 | |
| 13 | School Milk Program | 1954-1959 | |
| Series III: Student files, 1944-1966 (RESTRICTED UNTIL 2066) | |||
| Arranged alphabetically by student name. Contains standardized test scores, grade reports, and medical reports from Mattaponi-Pamunkey School students. | |||
| 4 | 1 | Standardized tests | 1963-1965 |
| 2 | Teachers' reports | 1944-1963 | |
| 3-37 | Student files | 1955-1966 | |
| Series IV: Teachers' Registers, 1936-1965 (RESTRICTED UNTIL 2065) | |||
| Arranged chronologically. Contains teachers' registers listing grades and attendance from the Mattaponi-Pamunkey School. | |||
| 41 registers. | |||
| 5 | 2 items. Specifications for additions, blueprints. | 1953,1958 |