Fire at the Negro Boys Industrial School in 1959

PJC Media

The Negro Boys Industrial School in Arkansas operated from 1927-1968 and was a segregated juvenile correction facility and work farm for black male youth. There were 2 locations in 1936. As of March 1959, the Wrightsville school had 69 boys aged 13-17. Most of the boys were there for minor offenses such as hubcap stealing, or because their parents had split and they had no place to go.One little black boy was arrested for riding a little boys bike even though the white boys parents said that he had permission. On March 5, 1959, 21 black boys burned to death inside a dormitory that was locked from the outside.