Hindman Settlement School

Earl Palmer, a Bell County, Kentucky native, worked extensively in the Appalachian region, portraying scenery and traditional culture in his photographs.

Elizabeth Watts came to Hindman from New York in 1909, intending to stay only one year. Instead, she served successively as teacher, principal, and director for forty-seven years, and was on the School's governing board for thirty years. Most of these photographs were taken by Watts.

Hindman Settlement School had its origins in three rural social settlements supported by the Kentucky Federation of Women's Clubs and organized by Katherine Pettit and May Stone: Camp Cedar Grove at Hazard in Perry County in 1899; Camp Industrial at Hindman in Knott County in 1900; and Social Settlement at Sassafras in Knott County in 1901. Hindman was chosen as a permanent location in 1902 and the Settlement School opened under the auspices of the Kentucky Women's Christian Temperance Union. The Kentucky WCTU sponsored it until 1915, when it was incorporated as a private institution.

The curriculum of the School combined academic subjects with manual arts, home economics, agriculture, art, music, and folk art. In addition, social service programs such as a bookmobile, medical clinics, and recreational activities were offered. Fireside Industries, sponsored by the School, provided a sales outlet for local crafts people and students.

The School received private financial support, as well as money from the Knott County Board of Education. From the 1950s to the 1970s, after the Knott County School System consolidated and new and better roads made boarding facilities unnecessary, the School adjusted its programs. It continued to promote Appalachian culture and provided room and board for some public school teachers. A public library and community center were located on the school's grounds.

Hindman Settlement School was founded by May Stone and Katherine Pettit at Hindman in Knott County, Kentucky in 1902. Its original name was the Women's Christian Temperance Union Settlement School. The curriculum was patterned after that of Jane Addams's Hull House in Chicago, which emphasized community activities and training in crafts. In 1919, the school had twenty buildings, including a hospital, a power house, dormitories, and classroom buildings, on 255 acres.

The School continued to play a significant role in education and in the general development of Knott County during the 1920s and 1930s. As the county school system developed and then consolidated, Hindman's role as an educational institution diminished. It later operated as a conference center.