Thomas Indian School, American Indian boarding school in Cattaraugus Indian Reservation, New York, United States.
Thomas Indian School is a campus of red brick buildings in Georgian Revival style on the Cattaraugus Indian Reservation in western New York State. The complex was designed by the New York architecture firm Barney and Chapman and groups several structures together as a registered historic district.
The school was founded in 1855 by Presbyterian missionaries working with Seneca children on the reservation. It operated as a state-supported boarding school for over a century before closing in 1957, when New York State ended the residential program.
The name comes from Phillip E. Thomas, a Quaker philanthropist who supported Native American education in the 19th century. Walking through the grounds today, visitors can see how the Seneca Nation community has reclaimed the site over the decades since the school closed.
The campus sits on tribal land, so it is worth checking in advance whether public access is permitted before visiting. Most of the buildings are best seen from the outside, and the layout of the grounds is easy to follow on foot.
Unlike most Native American boarding schools of that era, Thomas Indian School was located directly on the reservation of the tribe whose children attended it, rather than sending them far from home. This made visits between students and their families more possible than in most similar institutions.
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