Robert Brannum Robinson account book for the William McKinley Normal and Industrial School, 1903/1916

Access and use

Location of collection:
University of Virginia, Special Collections Dept.
Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library
University of Virginia
P.O. Box 400110
170 McCormick Rd
Charlottesville, Virginia 22904-4110
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Special Collections Public Services & Reference Staff
Phone: (434) 243-1776
Fax: (434) 924-4968
Restrictions:

This collection is open for research.

Preferred citation:

MSS 16966, Robert Brannum Robinson account book for the William McKinley Normal and Industrial School, Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia Library.

Summary

Extent:
0.03 Cubic Feet One letter-size file folder
Creator:
Joe Fay Company and Robinson, R. B. (Robert B.), 1848-
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

MSS 16966, Robert Brannum Robinson account book for the William McKinley Normal and Industrial School, Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia Library.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains a manuscript account book kept by Reverend Robert Brannum Robinson during his tenure as Secretary and Treasurer of the William McKinley Normal and Industrial School in Alexandria, Virginia. The School was originally founded in 1894 by Robert Brannum Robinson and his brother Magnus Robinson and re-incorporated in honor of William McKinley 1902. It offered boys' and girls' normal, primary, and industrial departments, a chapel, and a kindergarten program.

The account book primarily records philanthropic contributions to the school from 1903 to 1916 across fifty pages. Manuscript entries in the book list donor names and monetary contributions, interspersed with ephemeral items tipped or laid in, including partially printed receipts (many signed), typed and handwritten correspondence, four business cards, and a small printed broadside describing the school.

Contributions are predominantly small donations of between $5 to $25. Notable donors recorded include William Payne Whitney, Alexander Graham Bell, Simon Guggenheim, Gifford Pinchot, Thomas Nelson Page, Mrs. Anson Phelps Stokes, Clara Hay, Secretary of State John Hay, and J.P. Morgan. International contributors include ambassadors and ministers from Mexico, Costa Rica, Bolivia, Haiti, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, Switzerland, Germany, Japan, and China.

Biographical / historical:

The William McKinley Normal and Industrial School was an African American vocational and classical school founded in Alexandria, Virginia. Originally established as the John Hay Normal and Industrial School in 1894, the institution was incorporated by the Virginia legislature in 1898 and officially renamed in 1902.Located on South Peyton Street in Alexandria, the school was a crucial community initiative led by African American clergyman and educator Magnus L. Robinson (President) and Rev. Robert Brannum Robinson

Curriculum: The institution provided a classical education alongside vocational training, preparing Black students for jobs in specialized fields such as typing, music, and broom-making.Community Pillars: The Robinsons were prominent civic leaders who founded the earliest Emancipation Day observances in Alexandria, drawing prominent figures like Frederick Douglass and Booker T. Washington.Historical Records: Original pamphlets outlining the courses, student attendance, and operational costs are preserved today within the Library of Congress Manuscript Division.Legacy: While it existed for only a few years before facing financial difficulties and defaulting on loans, the school remains a significant part of Alexandria's rich Black educational history.

Acquisition information:
This collection was a purchase from Joy Fay Company to the Small Special Collections Library at the University of Virginia Library on 26 March 2026.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard