A Glimpse of the Past: Alice Laura Cunningham Lee & The Bay Ridge School

Pictured Above:

The Bay Ridge School was a one room schoolhouse located at Settlement Road and Blackwater Road.  It was taught by Alice Laura Cunningham Lee, the mother of May Lee Denham.  She was the 6th daughter of Daniel A. Cunningham and Martha Ann Kenner, and was born in 1851, according to the Obadiah Moses Lee family Bible.  Alice was married to Obadiah Lee, the founder of Central Schools, had 8 children (3 of whom appear in the photo), and died in 1933.  The photo was taken in 1896

 Images from a map are a portion of East Baton Rouge Parish, dated 1895.  showing  the Bay Ridge School at the intersection of Settlement Road and Blackwater Road at Mrs. C. McCullough's property.  The location is marked "school".  Settlement Road (now Sullivan Road) joined Joor Road at DD Puckett's property ("Puckett's Corner").  Later, this section of Settlement Road was renamed Joor Road, and continued on to Zachary Road (now Deerford).  The bend to the west became McCullough Road, and connected Joor to Blackwater.