1910 location of the Richmond Colored Normal School in the Jackson Ward District of Richmond, Virginia
HISTORIC JACKSON WARD WALKING TOUR
STOP 11: RICHMOND COLORED NORMAL SCHOOL
See the Jackson Ward Walking Tour web page for a map of tour stop locations.
21 East Leigh Street
The Richmond Colored Normal School is the school that Maggie Walker graduated from in 1883, allowing her to become a teacher. The school first opened in 1867 and operated out of churches near the corners of St. James and Clay Streets. It began as a normal school—a school to teach high school graduates how to become teachers—but between 1873 and 1906 it morphed into a combination of normal and high school, with four years of high school and one year of normal school.
After moving from the church sites, the school relocated two more times before finally finding a home at the corner of 1st and Leigh Streets in 1910. It was also renamed Armstrong High School in honor of the first principal of the Hampton Institute, General Samuel Chapman Armstrong. By 1917, the student body had grown too big for the building and the school was moved again, this time to the corner of Prentis and Leigh Streets in what is today the Adult Career Development Center building. Armstrong High School still exists, but is now located at 2300 Cool Lane.
The building is currently an apartment building.
Stop 10: Council of Colored Women | Stop 12: Maggie L. Walker House
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Last updated on May 14, 2025
