State Street School

State Street School

State Street School is one of the oldest public schools in Newark, significant for its leading role in educating African Americans during a period of segregation in education. The principal of this school, James M. Baxter Jr. was the first black principal in Newark's educational system. Baxter is commemorated with a bronze plaque in the front facade of the school and his name was given to the Baxter Terrace housing complex. The front facade of this school has a central protruding block and two flanking blocks slightly set back. Each block has two floors and four tall windows with segmentally-arched brick lintels. The roof eaves are supported by wooden brackets. Brownstone is used in accentuating keystones in the arches, the water table and the belt course that wraps around the front facade. The building has eight classrooms, four in each floor.

1845

extant

An 1892 addition gave the building an L configuration. A stone plaque above the entrance commemorates these two dates. The school closed in 2012 and was transferred to the Newark Housing Authority for sale or redevelopment. The Newark Preservation and Landmarks Committee has been advocating for its reuse as a Newark school archives.

National Register of Historic Places, State Street Public School, Essex County, New Jersey, National Register #90001201

Cunningham, John T. Newark. Newark, N.J: New Jersey Historical Society, 1966.

Gordon, Mark W., and Anthony Schuman, editors. Newark Landmark Treasures: A Guide to the Landmark Buildings, Parks, Public Art & Historic Districts in New Jersey’s Metropolis. Newark Preservation and Landmarks Committee, 2016, p. 27.

Renaissance Revival