WACO, Texas (KXXV) — The Waco History App has a self-guided African American history tour with 30 stops around our community.
- Black History Month is honored in February.
- The tour focuses on significant historical sites in Waco related to African American history.
- Three stops on the tour include Paul Quinn College, Doris Miller Memorial and Baylor's Tidwell Bible Building.
- Baylor's Institute for Oral History is hosting a Black History Walk on Feb. 15.
- The African American History tour is available all year round.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
“What's happened in recent years is that Rapoport Academy has been taking the old Paul Quinn buildings over the last 20 years and spending money rehabbing them," Director of the Institute of Oral History Stephen Sloan said.
Baylor's Dr. Stephen Sloan says Paul Quinn College was the center for black academic life in Waco.
"That college was here since the late 1870s and it's here over 100 years," he said. "It was extremely important for black life and Waco in general."
While no longer in our neighborhood—Paul Quinn College is still operating in Dallas on the site of what used to be Bishop College.
"There are all sorts of locations within walking distance that you can explore on the app to see different aspects of Waco's African American history," Dr. Sloan said.
Another part of the tour features a name we see a lot in our community: Doris Miller. Miller was a World War II hero from Waco. He became an icon of the civil rights movement after.
Now, taking the tour over to Baylor's campus—you can see two statues outside the Tidwell Bible Building of the first two black graduates, Barbra Walker and Reverend Robert Gilbert. Both graduated from Baylor in 1967.
"It's extremely important to have them on campus," Dr. Sloan said.
These places are just the start. The African American history tour is self-guided and has 30 different stops. Dr. Sloan tells 25 News they are adding more stops all the time.
“For me, it's important in February, because these are under-told stories" he said. "These are underrepresented stories, and they've been underrepresented for most of Waco's history."
Some other stops on the tour include New Hope Baptist Church, the College View Court Hotel and Bridge Street.
Later this month, Baylor's Institute for Oral History is hosting a Black History Walk.
