After the Civil War, black families were invited to Berea by white abolitionist Rev. John G. Fee to develop an interracial school and church. From 1866 to 1904, residents' lives revolved around Berea College, which educated black and white students together from primary school through college. In 1904, the Day Law prohibited interracial education. College trustees retained white students while funding blacks to attend allblack colleges elsewhere. From 1904 to 1950, when the Day Law was amended, many residents upheld racial equality principles.
Jacqueline Grisby Burnside teaches at Berea College. She is director of the Historic Black Berea Project, the collaboration between blacks and whites from town and campus to create a touring map, audiotape, and Web site featuring black settlers' contributions to the region.