Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Park

Topeka, Kansas

One of the schools at the heart of Brown v. Board of Education.

On May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court issued its ruling in Brown v. Board of Education.  The landmark decision stated that the segregation of schools was a violation of the 14th Amendment, and of the four segregated elementary schools for Black children in Topeka, Monroe Elementary School was the newest. 

The school closed in 1975 due to declining enrollment, but remained privately owned for 15 years. In 1990, the Trust for Public Land purchased Monroe in 1991. President George H.W. Bush signed legislation to make the school the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site in October of 1992.

A hallway in the Monroe Elementary School, Topeka, Kansas.