Gentry, Minus E.

In 1892, the Reverend Charles Sheldon of Central Congregational Church made a study of the social and economic problems of Topeka, Kansas' Tennesseetown district, which was an area settled by Exodusters. Convinced that education was key to social improvement, Sheldon and the Church started a kindergarten for the Tennesseetown children; it was the first African American kindergarten west of the Mississippi River. The Sheldon Kindergarten first opened in 1893 in a rented Tennesseetown building and, in 1895, the school moved to the Central Congregational Church. During that time, the kindergarten served a total of 210 children, with an average daily attendance of 28 children. An auxiliary of forty African American female residents instructed mothers in child care, health, and hygiene. In 1908 the Sheldon Kindergarten became part of the Topeka city school system.

From the guide to the Minus Gentry Collection of Sheldon Kindergarten photographs, 1898-circa 1908, 1898-circa 1908, (University of Kansas Kenneth Spencer Research Library Kansas Collection)