PINOLA, Miss. (WJTV) – The trailblazing educator Professor Edgar Quitman Collins was honored Sunday in Pinola. Many people shared that Collins’ work has been a hidden gem for decades.
Now that a marker is placed along Highway 28, his legacy will live on.
“We have history that is awesome we have a history that’s good we have history that you can be proud of we have history that its important to all people,” said Pastor Jerry Magee.
It’s a mutual feeling for many as they gathered reflecting on history dating back to 1897.
“We stand on the shoulder of giants every day without realizing who they were and what the story is behind it,” said Lillie Hardey.
Many stood on the same grounds as visionary Edgar Quitman Collins– the man who founded New Hymn School an institution established to educate Black students during a time of racial and civil unrest.
“We are all getting older and if we don’t mark places now then that memory will someday be lost,” said Jim Woodrich, Mississippi Department of Archives and History.
One memory so precious to Peggy Bowden, the great-granddaughter of Professor Collins, who said today was one she’s looked forward to for a while.
“It was important because he reached out to the people he didn’t just think of what was good for him, but what was good for his community,” said Bowden.
As the historical marker shines bright, it’s a story and legacy fulfilled.
The New Hymn School remained open until the late 1960s; it was then consolidated into the Simpson County School System where the original building is still utilized for learning but has since been renamed Simpson Central Elementary School.