Ashley Hunter
ECB Publishing, Inc.
A historical structure and former school of Jefferson County experienced a theft recently, and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office (JCSO) is now working to recover the stolen property and solve the case.
Elizabeth School, located in the Dills Community that is in the northeast portion of the county, was built in the 1930s as a school for African-American children. The three-room building was funded entirely by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and local parents who wanted a place for
their children to receive an education.
During its years of use, the school typically had a staff of three teachers – one of which also served as a principal and the school, at one point, educated students all the way up through the twelfth grade. When student transportation began to be provided in 1949, the school limited its educational range to the grades of first through sixth, and high schoolers in the Dills Community were transported to another school.
Elizabeth School closed in 1964, and has remained a historical marker of Jefferson County's African-American past since then.
On Saturday, July 11, a groundskeeper for the school noticed that the historical marker, which was provided by the Florida Department of State and sponsored by the Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners, was missing.
According to a press release from the JCSO, it is believed that the marker was stolen sometime between Wednesday, July 8 and July 11. Deputies report that the marker would have been stolen from the post that stands between the school and Groover Road.
This theft is disheartening to those who have been trying to re-establish the historic building into the community.
While the JCSO continues to investigate the theft, they are also asking that anyone with information pertaining to the removal of the historic marker places contact the sheriff's office at (850) 997-2023 or Big Bend Crime Stoppers at (850) 574-TIPS.