• Harper

    CHARLES LINCOLN HARPER

    (1877 –1955)

    INSPIRING PRINCIPAL AND ACTIVIST 

    “A MAN WITH A VISION”

    Before there was Washington High School, there was no public education beyond the sixth grade for African-Americans in Atlanta.  By the time C. L. Harper retired in 1942, B.T. Washington was considered the largest Black high school in America, with an enrollment of 4,200 students.

    Charles Lincoln Harper believed that America’s survival depended upon a thorough education of the youth of this country without regard to race, color, or creed. He had a deep understanding of young people and was committed to their highest development.

    Birthplace:  Hancock City, Georgia

    Education:                   

    • Sparta Public Schools, Sparta, Georgia
    • Morris Brown College, Atlanta, Georgia

    Employment:              

    • Clerk for the United States Post Office in Atlanta, Georgia
    • Instructor, Morris Brown College
    • First Principal, Young Street Night School
    • First Principal, Booker T. Washington High School

    Religious Affiliation: Sunday School Superintendent, Big Bethel A.M.E. Church

    Civil Service:             

    • President and Executive Secretary, Georgia Teachers and Education Association (GTEA)
    • State Chapter Vice President and Atlanta Chapter President, NAACP

    Education in the State of Georgia is better because of Charles Lincoln Harper.  At his death, then Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall said:  “There have been others devoted to causes; however, Professor Harper stood out head and shoulders above many others becauseof his complete lack of fear of physical and economic repercussions.”

     

    “There is nothing more thrilling than to lead youth – disadvantaged youth -- 

    to do battle against great odds:  nothing more rewarding than to see a child,

    whose soul you have touched, rise from the depths and make his way to the

    pinnacle, bearing a torch that lights the way for others who move from the

    shadows to the heights, and develop into stalwart characters despite conflict.”