Olympia Mill School

Front: One of approx. 300 homes built 1900-01 for workers at nearby Olympbia Cotton Mill, this 6-room duplex later housed the Olympia Mill School. Organized by first teacher and principal Mary “Mamie” Boozer (1874-1947) at the behest of company leaders and county school officials, the school opened in Oct. 1901 in a one-room building with about thirty white pupils, whose families came to the mill seeking personal opportunity. Reverse: Enrollment at the Olympia school grew quickly, and in 1902 classes moved to this larger frame building. When converted to a school, the house’s interior partition walls were removed to form three large classrooms. By 1909, around 240 students attended Olympia each day with 8 teachers. For a time, it was the largest school in Richland County. In fall 1909, the school moved into a new 2-story brick building in an adjacent lot just SE.