National Register of Historic Places

Simms, Lucy F., School

Harrisonburg (Independent City), Harrisonburg County, Virginia
Listed
February 11, 2004
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
04000040

About this property

The Lucy F. Simms School is a school building at 620 Simms Avenue in Harrisonburg, Virginia. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 11, 2004. Lucy F. Simms (born 1855, died July 10, 1934) was a former slave who went on to become an influential teacher in Harrisonburg. The school was located in north-eastern Harrisonburg, on the site of a previous school, the Effinger Street school. It was co-educational but was only available to African American children. The site had housed a school from around 1880 on what had previously been the Hilltop estate of the Gray family. The Lucy F. Simms school was built in 1938 and closed from 1966 when American schools finally became integrated and so open to all children. After the school's closure, the building remained empty until it was re-opened in 2005 as the Lucy F. Simms Continuing Education Center.

Location

620 Simms Ave.
Harrisonburg (Independent City), Harrisonburg County, Virginia
38.45453, -78.85812

Categories

ARCHITECTUREBLACKEDUCATION
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Newtown Cemetery
Listed
0.1 mi
Hockman, Anthony, House
Industrial
0.5 mi
Harrisonburg Downtown Historic District
Listed
0.6 mi
Old Town Historic District
Listed
0.7 mi
Rockinghan County Courthouse
Industrial
0.7 mi

Questions about this property

When was Simms, Lucy F., School listed on the National Register?

Simms, Lucy F., School was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 11, 2004.

What type of historic resource is Simms, Lucy F., School?

Simms, Lucy F., School is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Simms, Lucy F., School?

The period of significance for Simms, Lucy F., School is recorded as the industrial era.

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