THE JAXSON | The Legacy of the Boylan-Haven School

In April 1886, the Methodist Episcopal Church established the Boylan Industrial School and Home for Negro Girls in LaVilla. Its mission was clear: to provide newly freed African Americans with opportunities for education, vocational training, and independence in the aftermath of the Civil War. The school was named after major benefactor Ann Boylan DeGroot.

*The original location of the Boylan Industrial Home School in LaVilla was at the intersection of Lee and Duval streets. | University of Florida*

Expanding opportunities

The school began modestly, operating out of a six-room cottage at the corner of Davis and Duval streets. Under the leadership of missionary Hattie E. Emerson of Manchester, New York, the school housed seven young women in its first year. By the following year, that number grew to 18.

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Students were trained in skills that prepared them for self-sufficiency, including needlework, dressmaking, housekeeping and cooking. While some women lived in the home, many attended classes during the day. As demand increased, evening classes were also introduced, ensuring broader access to education.

The curriculum expanded over time, most notably with the addition of nurse training. In 1901, the Nurse Training School officially opened, laying the groundwork for what would eventually become the Brewster Hospital and Nurse Training School, the first hospital for African Americans in Jacksonville.

Growth, mergers, and relocation

By 1910, the Boylan Industrial School and Home had outgrown its original location and moved to Jacksonville’s Eastside neighborhood. In 1932, it merged with the Haven Industrial Home and School, another institution dedicated to educating African American youth, that was founded in Savannah, Georgia, in 1885. Together, they became the Boylan-Haven School, a respected institution that served generations of students.

The Boylan-Haven School remained in Jacksonville until 1959, when it merged with Mather Academy and relocated to Camden, South Carolina, to economize finances. Due to declining enrollment, the Boylan-Haven-Mather Academy permanently closed in 1983. Although it eventually closed, its legacy lives on through the countless lives it shaped and the communities it strengthened.