15th Street Presbyterian Church, 1705 15th St. NW

 

The congregation of this church has a remarkable history of, and commitment to, African-American education.  Their original building was a re-purposed school.  Their first minister, John F. Cook, was a teacher and former director of one of the first private schools for African-Americans in D.C., the Columbian Institute.  And the roots of D.C.'s African-American public schools began here.

The Preparatory High School of Negro Youth was founded in 1870 in the church basement.  Not only was this the first public high school for African-Americans in the city, it was the first in the nation.  The first class enrolled four students.  The first commencement was not held until 1877, when eleven students graduated.  This institution would later become the renowned M Street High School.

In 1918, the church moved down the street to its current home, moving into what was formerly a Christian Science Church.  The current building was erected in 1979.