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 Most
memorable about Voorhees history is the story of its
Founder, Elizabeth Evelyn Wright. She was a black woman
in her early twenties who, in spite of betrayals, arson,
jealousies, threats of violence, and weariness from
wandering, persevered and founded a school in Denmark,
South Carolina, on April 17, 1897.
Through more than 100 years of
service, the mission of Voorhees College has remained
the same; it is committed to providing a top quality
educational experience to young men and women and equip
them to assume leadership positions in our state and
nation and to provide service to mankind.
From its founding in 1897, Voorhees
College has evolved into a leading four-year liberal
arts college accredited by the Commission on Colleges of
the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and
affiliated with the Episcopal Church and The College
Fund/ UNCF. |
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Honoring Our Legacy... Embracing a
New Vision
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Elizabeth Evelyn Wright was born in 1874 in Talbotton, Georgia, one of twenty-one children. In reflecting on her life in his book Tuskegee to Voorhees, author, J.B. Coleman recounts that it seemed almost by Providence that she found her way to Tuskegee. Walking outside on a windy March day, fourteen-year-old Elizabeth picked up a piece of newspaper that had been blown in her direction. Looking at it, she saw an advertisement for Tuskegee Industrial School. Despite her poor health, she graduated and sought immediately to follow in the footsteps of her role model... Booker T. Washington.
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Original Classroom |
Three times, Miss Wright purchased land or lumber only to have them "mysteriously" destroyed by fire, Yet, she never gave up. Still undeterred, she eventually found a site she was impressed with. ..Denmark, South Carolina. On April 14, 1897 Miss Wright opened the Denmark Industrial School with a total enrollment of fourteen students in a makeshift classroom above a dilapidated general store.
The name was changed to Voorhees Industrial School (1902), to honor the generosity of the blind philanthropist Ralph Voorhees, who became a partner with her in building, stabilizing and ensuring the future of the Industrial School.
Six months after her marriage to school stenographer and bookkeeper, Martin Menafee, Elizabeth Evelyn Wright died at the age of 34. Her life is summed up best in her own words, "To try and help my fellow man to help themselves and if a way was not open for them, I must open it myself".
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