Historic Walker County

Local citizens were vital to the establishment of
Austin College and Andrew Female College.
And, once Sam Houston Normal Institute
opened its doors, the same could be said of it.
Local residents sent their children to the school;
they donated money to SHNI programs; and
many local women set up boarding houses for
the students who attended the school.
The influx of students to SHNI brought
increased economic activity and a renewed
spirit of optimism to the Walker County
community. Students and faculty members
attended local churches and spent money at
local businesses. In addition, young people soon
discovered amusing ways to bypass the strict
discipline code enforced at the Institute. The
local skating rink appreciated the business of
the student body, until the pastime was added to
the list of prohibited activities for girls. The
male students also faced disciplinary actions if
caught drinking or playing cards. SHNI kept a
watchful eye on the student body in order to
promote its graduates as exemplary members of
❖
Top, left: Henry Carr Pritchett,
Sam Houston Normal Institute’s
fourth principal.
COURTESY OF THE SAM HOUSTON STATE
UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES.
Top, right: Miss Henrie Willison’s
boarding house for ladies in
Huntsville, c. 1899.
COURTESY OF THE HUNTSVILLE
ARTS COMMISSION.
Below: Residents of the Smede Valley
boarding house for ladies in
Huntsville, c 1897.
COURTESY OF THE HUNTSVILLE
ARTS COMMISSION.
C h a p t e r I V ✦ 2 5