bly expanded. Following him
came Byrd Prillerman, a man beloved by the people of West Virginia. He
had already been a successful teacher of English in this school. He
then served the institution as president for ten years, emphasizing
the high ideals of Christian character as the essentials in the
preparation of youth. In 1915 a collegiate course was established at
this institution and its name was changed to that of the West Virginia
Collegiate Institute. In 1919 Byrd Prillerman was succeeded by John W.
Davis, under whom the institution is progressing with renewed vigor in
its new field as a reorganized college furnishing facilities for
education not offered elsewhere for the youth of West Virginia.

The influx of Negroes into the southern counties of the State, which
necessitated the establishment of many elementary schools, caused at
the same time a demand for the extension of the facilities of
pedagogic training of the advanced order provided in the West Virginia
Colored Institute, which was not at first easily accessible to the
people of southern West Virginia. Acting upon the memorials, praying
that this need be supplied, the legislature established the Bluefield
Colored Institute in 1895. Mr. Hamilton Hatter was made the first
principal and upon him devolved the task of organizing this
institution. After serving the institution efficiently until 1906 he
retired, and was succeeded by Mr. R. P. Sims, who had formerly been an
efficient and popular assistant under Mr. Hatter at this institution.
Mr. Sims has acceptably filled this position until the present time.

THE WEST VIRGINIA TEACHERS' ASSOCIATION

To promote education and to encourage interest in their particular
work the Negro teachers of the State soon deemed it wise to take steps
for more thorough cooperation of the whole teaching corps of West
Virginia. White and Negro teachers were then admitted to the same
teachers' institutes and in certain parts were encouraged to
participate in the general discussions; but believing that they could
more successfully cooperate through organizations of their own, the
teachers in Charleston, in 1891, appointed from their own reading
circle a committee to organize a State Teachers' Association. This
committee was composed of H. B. Rice, P. B. Burbridge and Byrd
Prillerman. The meeting was invited by Byrd Prillerman, as secretary,
to meet at the Simpson M. E. Church in Charleston. More than fifty
teachers and race lea