Palmer Memorial Institute

Palmer Memorial Institute is a historic campus with 16 preserved buildings that include dormitories, classrooms, and administrative structures spread across several hundred acres. The layout shows the infrastructure of a complete school facility with separate areas for learning, housing, and daily activities.

The institute was founded in 1902 by educator Charlotte Hawkins Brown and operated as a preparatory school for African American students until its closure in 1970. Over its decades of operation, it grew into a recognized educational institution that trained hundreds of students.

The institute drew students from many regions and provided them with education in a community that emphasized academic excellence and personal growth. It served as an important center for African American education in the South.

The campus is now a museum featuring exhibits in the preserved buildings that document African American educational history and the school's legacy. Visitors can walk through different structures and gain a sense of how life unfolded in this school community.

Eleanor Roosevelt and educator Mary McLeod Bethune gave speeches here during the 1940s, recognizing the institute as a center of Black educational excellence. Such visits from national leaders highlighted the school's role in the movement for Black opportunity and advancement.

Location: Sedalia

Inception: 1902

GPS coordinates: 36.06722,-79.62361

Latest update: December 8, 2025 20:02