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(404) 978-2052
Edmund Asa Ware Records 1860-1888
1.67 linear feet
Edmund Asa Ware (b. 1837 d. 1885) came to Atlanta in 1866 to replace Frederick Ayer as the American Missionary Association's (AMA) superintendent of schools. He immediately made plans to convert a former Confederate commissary into a school for newly freed slaves. The building was named the Storrs School, in recognition of the financial assistance provided by the Congregational Church of Cincinnati and Ware served as principal. In 1867 Ware was appointed superintendent of schools for the Freedmen's Bureau in Georgia. He was one of the eleven signers of the charter to establish Atlanta University and served as President of the Board of Trustees. He was appointed the first president of the University in 1869 and retained the position until his death in 1885. Under Ware's leadership, land was purchased and the first physical structures for the University were built. The educational program was established including a grammar school to train students not ready to enter the preparatory and college programs.
The Edmund Asa Ware Records document his efforts working with the AMA and Freedmen's Bureau in developing educational programs for Negroes in Georgia and his leadership and contributions to the early development of Atlanta University. The Records include correspondence, reports, minutes, building plans and financial papers related to the purchase and sale of property, construction of buildings, fund-raising, and student expenses financial aid and scholarships. This collection also includes a small amount of correspondence of Acting-Presidents Thomas H. Chase, Horace Bumstead and Cyrus W. Francis.
Related collection:
Atlanta University Presidential Records, 1856-1984