MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation is working closely with alumnus and retired administrator Vincent Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School to help preserve one of the states only remaining Black schools built during segregation.
Dr. Carroll Van West
“There so few surviving examples of segregated schools built in the rural South. At one time there were thousands of them. Rutherford County has one of the best conditioned Black schools we have left. It’s remarkable,” said Carroll Van West, director of the Center for Historic Preservation, or CHP, and Tennessee State Historian.
Tucked behind a historic church on Old Nashville Highway near the Stones River National Battlefieldand National Cemeteryis an aging concrete block building that once served a bustling hub of activity.
The Cemetery School has roots dating back to the late 1800s. The school served the Cemetery Community that grew out of the post-Civil War formerly enslaved families who worked burying Union soldiers at the neighboring graveyard that is now part of the National Park System.
Middle Tennessee State University alumnus and former administrator Vincent Windrow stands in front of The Cemetery School, located off Old Nashville Highway just outside Murfreesboro, Tenn. The school was once the heart of a thriving Black community, and Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School are working with MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation to restore the school and transform it into a community center and museum. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli) Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.
‘Deep dive’ into history
After integration happened in the late 1960s, the Cemetery School was closed and students were sent elsewhere. Queen Washington and her sister-in-law Bertha Washington, who lived by the school, purchased the property and began using the building as a gathering place for the Cemetery Community. Eventually, it became a storage facility for the family.
“If they hadn’t bought it, they would have torn it down and the story would have been lost. Now we get to tell the story,” said Windrow, his eyes brightening as he talked about the history of the school where his mother once attended. “And that’s powerful.”
Students of the Cemetery School, located just outside the city limits of Murfreesboro, Tenn., once sat in this desk that bears their artistic endeavors carved into the wood. Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation in Murfreesboro is working with the MTSU alumnus and retired administrator Vincent Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School to restore the structure and open it as a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli) Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.
Two-time MTSU alumna Leonora “Miss Boe” Washington, Windrow’s cousin who lived in one of the houses by the old school, wanted to restore the school she attended as a child. She sought help from West.
“Boe Washington made it her mission to save the school,” West said. “She first showed it to me 20 years ago and she said, ‘You can help me preserve the school.’”
West said several classes over 18 months “did a deep dive” on the school and community, which included doing interviews with former students and poring through documents.
Since then, interpretive panels and an exhibit plan have been developed for the restoration project.
Windrow, who also pastors Olive Branch Church in Murfreesboro and Nashville, said they discovered the Cemetery School that stands today was constructed in 1941 by the National Youth Administration, a New Deal program started by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to help unemployed young people find jobs and teach them skills during the Great Depression.
The Cemetery School, located off Old Nashville Highway just outside Murfreesboro, Tenn., was once the heart of a thriving Black community. Shuttered in the late 1960s, the school served as a community center. Middle Tennessee State University students working with MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation discovered the structure that stands today was constructed by the National Youth Administration, a New Deal program started by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to help unemployed young people find jobs and teach them skills during the Great Depression. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli) Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.
The Cemetery School construction was based on plans for a Rosenwald School, which were built in the early 1900s for Black children in underfunded areas of the South. The building program was developed through a partnership between Julius Rosenwald, part owner and president of the iconic Sears & Roebuck Company, and the legendary Black philanthropist and educator Booker T. Washington, founder of the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama.
“They were effective, efficient and cheap to build,” West said. “A Rosenwald School had two rooms, a partition between them, and a stage at the end of a larger classroom.”
Remembrances of a thriving community
When “Miss Boe” died in 2019, Windrow took over caretaking duties. And that’s when the plans for restoration got closer to a reality. The next step was “cleaning house.”
“We probably cleared about 85% of it out. There was a pool table in there. Old tires in there, mattresses. There’s still a wood-burning stove in there,” Windrow said, looking around at the dust-covered collection of items that remain.
Books used by students of the Cemetery School, located just outside the city limits of Murfreesboro, Tenn., are stacked throughout the interior of the former classrooms. Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation in Murfreesboro is working with the MTSU alumnus and retired administrator Vincent Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School to restore the structure and open it as a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli) Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.
Inside the school, there’s a musty smell of history. Muted sunlight streaming through the tall windows illuminates the dust hanging in the air. Laminate tiles are cracked and some parts missing. There’s no electricity or operational plumbing.
But years ago, Washington made sure the roof was repaired to keep out rain to protect the interior of the structure. All things considered, wear and tear from 80 years of history has not damaged the structural integrity.
Remnants of the old school remain: 1940s-era desks with initials carved into the wood, coal burning stoves, dozens of ragged fabric-covered books with yellowed pages, an art deco antique radio and a well-worn piano. Outside there’s a dried-up water fountain connected to a well.
Those things will be incorporated into the restoration plans for a museum and community center.
“This side over here,” said Windrow, with his long arms pointing to the right, “will be the museum showcasing the history of Cemetery School and the Cemetery Community. I have all of Boe Washington’s report cards. We have the desks. We’ll have displays and signs telling the history and who taught here.”
The other side will be a gathering place and space for programming. Eventually they hope to have a park-like setting outside with pavilions.
The nonprofit Friends group is working in concert with the battlefield and there are grants available to help with paying for the restoration and maintenance.
Plans for the future
“We’ve just submitted an application for a National Trust for Historic Preservation grant. We’ve received a grant from the Pi Gamma Gamma Foundation and donations from individuals,” Windrow said. “We are also looking to partner with construction firms who’d be willing to sponsor the electrical work, the roof repair, and the plumbing needs.
“We’re trying to, we’re trying to do a holistic rebirth and renovation.”
And the Friends of Cemetery School want to tell the history of a strong, vibrant community. Plans are to open the museum in the summer of 2026.
“This is a story of resilience, a story of hope, right. This was their educational experience and so they had to do what they had to do with what they had,” said Windrow, referencing their modest accommodations. “And so that’s using ingenuity. These teachers gave their lives to these students. So I am so excited about it.”
Middle Tennessee State University alumnus and former administrator Vincent Windrow stands inside the long-shuttered Cemetery School, which once served as a hub for a bustling Black community. Windrow talks about the history of the school, which sits just outside Murfreesboro, Tenn., and is one of the few surviving examples of segregated schools built in the rural South. Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School are partnering with MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation to restore the structure and open a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli) Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.
West said the Cemetery School project has been beneficial for his graduate-level students who will eventually go on to preserve and manage historical sites much like this one.
“Students primarily come to the center for field project experience. Few other Ph.D. programs do as much as MTSU does,” West said. “The legacy I’ve instilled in these students is that community really matters. We can learn from them by supporting them and helping them achieve their goals. Dozens of graduate students have taken this model and applied it to communities across the country.”
Over the years, the CHP has expanded services to serve the entire Mid-South region, not just in Tennessee.
“We do many of these projects in a given year, and sometimes it can be challenging to manage everything simultaneously. However, we have an excellent staff at the center who help us keep all the balls in the air,” West said. “I don’t see any other way of doing public history, and it’s truly unique in all the different projects we do and how we serve communities.”
If you’re interested in helping with restoration efforts for the Cemetery School, email Windrow at vincent.windrow@mtsu.edu or call 615-981-0080. You can also donate funds to the nonprofit Friends of Cemetery School on Cash App at $FOCSgive.
The Cemetery School, located off Old Nashville Highway in Murfreesboro, Tenn., was once the heart of a thriving Black community. Middle Tennessee State University alumnus and former administrator Vincent Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School are working with MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation to restore the school and transform it into a community center and museum. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)The Cemetery School, located off Old Nashville Highway just outside Murfreesboro, Tenn., was once the heart of a thriving Black community. Shuttered in the late 1960s, the school served as a community center. Middle Tennessee State University students working with MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation discovered the structure that stands today was constructed by the National Youth Administration, a New Deal program started by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to help unemployed young people find jobs and teach them skills during the Great Depression. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.Middle Tennessee State University alumnus and former administrator Vincent Windrow stands in front of The Cemetery School, located off Old Nashville Highway just outside Murfreesboro, Tenn. The school was once the heart of a thriving Black community, and Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School are working with MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation to restore the school and transform it into a community center and museum. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.Echoes of the past remain in the classroom of the Cemetery School, a historic Black school located off Old Nashville Highway just outside Murfreesboro, Tenn. Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation in Murfreesboro is working with the MTSU alumnus and retired administrator Vincent Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School to restore the structure and open it as a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.A coal-burning stove, albeit cracked, is tucked in the corner of the long-shuttered Cemetery School, located just outside the city limits of Murfreesboro, Tenn. Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation in Murfreesboro is working with the Friends of Cemetery School to transform this once bustling hub into a museum and historic destination. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.Students of the Cemetery School, located just outside the city limits of Murfreesboro, Tenn., once sat in this desk that bears their artistic endeavors carved into the wood. Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation in Murfreesboro is working with the MTSU alumnus and retired administrator Vincent Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School to restore the structure and open it as a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.Middle Tennessee State University alumnus and former administrator Vincent Windrow stands inside the long-shuttered Cemetery School, which once served as a hub for a bustling Black community. Windrow talks about the history of the school, which sits just outside Murfreesboro, Tenn., and is one of the few surviving examples of segregated schools built in the rural South. Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School are partnering with MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation to restore the structure and open a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.Students of the Cemetery School, located just outside the city limits of Murfreesboro, Tenn., once sat in this desk that bears their artistic endeavors carved into the wood. Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation in Murfreesboro is working with the MTSU alumnus and retired administrator Vincent Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School to restore the structure and open it as a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.Students of the Cemetery School, located just outside the city limits of Murfreesboro, Tenn., once sat in this desk that bears their artistic endeavors carved into the wood. Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation in Murfreesboro is working with the MTSU alumnus and retired administrator Vincent Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School to restore the structure and open it as a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.Books used by students of the Cemetery School, located just outside the city limits of Murfreesboro, Tenn., are stacked throughout the interior of the former classrooms. Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation in Murfreesboro is working with the MTSU alumnus and retired administrator Vincent Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School to restore the structure and open it as a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.Middle Tennessee State University alumnus and former administrator Vincent Windrow talks about the history of the long-shuttered Cemetery School that once served as a hub for a bustling Black community. The historic structure, which sits just outside Murfreesboro, Tenn., is one of the few surviving examples of segregated schools built in the rural South. Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School are partnering with MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation to restore the structure and open a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.Remnants of the long-shuttered Cemetery School, located just outside the city limits of Murfreesboro, Tenn., include 1940s-era desks with initials carved into the wood, furniture and a well-worn piano. Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation in Murfreesboro is working with the Friends of Cemetery School to transform this once bustling hub into a museum and historic destination. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.Books used by students of the Cemetery School, located just outside the city limits of Murfreesboro, Tenn., are stacked throughout the interior of the former classrooms. Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Historic Preservation in Murfreesboro is working with the MTSU alumnus and retired administrator Vincent Windrow and the Friends of Cemetery School to restore the structure and open it as a museum and community center. (MTSU photo by J. Intintoli)
Vincent Windrow, retired vice provost, alumnus, pastor of Olive Branch Church in Nashville and Murfreesboro, is leading the project. The goal he said is to transform the two-classroom school house that opened February 1941 during the during the “Jim Crow” segregation era into a “community gathering place” in Rutherford County’s historic Cemetery community off Old Nashville Highway.
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