Florida Historical Markers Programs - Marker Detail

Description: Williams Academy, originally located between Lemon Street and Anderson Avenue (later MLK Boulevard), was built in 1913. Named for J. S. Williams, the Lee County Supervisor of Colored Schools, it was Lee County's first government-funded school for black students, and served students from Lee County and Punta Gorda, Charlotte County. In the 1930s, fire destroyed the second floor, and in 1937, the remaining building was moved to the African American Dunbar High School campus on Blount Street. The school was renamed Williams Primary School and served grades 1-2. In 1942, the school added two new classrooms, classes expanded to include grades 4-9, and the Williams Academy name was restored. In 1958, the original Williams building was dismantled and the 1942 addition was relocated elsewhere on the Dunbar campus. The addition served as a band room, daycare facility, and storage room. In 1994, the building was slated for demolition until the Lee County Black History Society successfully requested that the city give it to the organization. The building was relocated to Roberto Clemente Park in 1995, and reopened as the Williams Academy Black History Museum.