Slater High School

Slater High School
Location
325 McDowell Street

Bristol
,
Tennessee

36°35′38.08″N 82°10′21.71″W / 36.5939111°N 82.1726972°W / 36.5939111; -82.1726972
Information
Established1900 (1900)
Closed1965 (1965)
Campus size
3.75 acres (1.52 ha)
Area70,100 square feet (6,510 m2)

Slater High School (also John F. Slater High School) was a segregated high school for African-Americans in Bristol, Tennessee, United States.

The school was named for John Fox Slater, a philanthropist who funded the education of freedmen after the Civil War.

History

The school was founded as Bristol Normal School in 1900, administered by the United Presbyterian Church. A donation by the John F. Slater fund in 1914 enabled the Bristol, Tennessee Board of Education to purchase the school and property for $8,000. The name was changed to McDowell High School, and renamed to honor John F. Slater in 1955 after the school was enlarged.

The football team won the Tri-State championship in 1962.

The school closed in 1965 following desegregation and students were transferred to Tennessee High School.

The building was later occupied by the Slater Community Center.

Notable alumni

References

  1. ↑ "Slater Community Center". The City of Bristol, Tennessee. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
  2. ↑ Bristol City Directory (PDF). Vol. XV. Piedmont Directory. 1930. p. 274.
  3. ↑ John F. Slater Fund, Proceedings and Reports. John F. Slater Fund. 1922. p. 19.
  4. 1 2 3 "Our Story: Douglass School (1892-1965) & Slater School (1900-1965)" (PDF). Douglass-Slater Alumni Associations. Retrieved December 27, 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Athletic Hall of Fame Inducts Inaugural Class". Bristol Tennessee City Schools. September 24, 2024.
  6. ↑ "Renovation Plan for Slater Community Center". The City of Bristol, Tennessee. June 7, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Vivian Wilson Henderson papers". Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. Retrieved December 26, 2025.