AFRICAN AMERICAN SCHOOL BUILDING REVIVAL
DeSoto High School
Desoto Parish
DeSoto High School started out as Mansfield Colored School and was founded in 1913 with its construction in East Mansfield. The founder and principal, Dewitt Johnson, was from Texas. He was a graduate of Leland College, New Orleans, and had a great vision for the school’s future. In the following years, the school expanded as enrollment increased, all made possible by donations from community members and the Rosenwald Fund in 1920. Mansfield Colored School became known as DeSoto Parish Training School in 1925 with its first graduating class in 1928 from the school. In 1962 the school was renamed DeSoto High School and served the community of East Mansfield until 1970 when the students were integrated and the school closed. Now, the school functions as the DeSoto High School Alumni Association’s headquarters, and some of the grounds have become a park for children in the surrounding neighborhoods
Desoto High School
OPENED: 1913
CLOSED: 1979
OTHER NAMES OF SCHOOL: DeSoto Parish Training School, Mansfield Colored
OTHER USES/CURRENT USE: Alumni association center and local park
SQUARE FOOTAGE: 42,700 sf
PROPERTY OWNER: Unknow
