NCE 1913 Negro Building Chilhowe Park LR

This is a relatively rare postcard depicting a landmark central to the African American community. The “Colored High School” was the name of Knoxville’s public school for black students, built in 1915 on old Payne Avenue, just east of downtown. Designed by Albert B. Baumann, Sr., it replaced the original Austin High, which was on Central, near the old “Bowery” saloon district. This 1915 school, which accommodated both elementary and high-school students, was quickly overcrowded. The old name was revived in 1928, when a new high school was built on Vine Avenue, and survived in the combined black and white high school known as Austin East. This building no longer exists, and in fact Payne Avenue itself was erased during urban renewal in the late 1950s. (Postcard shared by Cindy & Mark Proteau)