Hattie Cotton School by Stephen MacKenzie

About the book…

On September 9, 1957, six-year-old Patricia Watson became the first black child to attend Hattie Cotton Elementary School, as a result of the court-mandated desegregation of Nashville public schools. Just after midnight the school was bombed, likely by the KKK supremacists protesting integration.

Hattie Cotton School was published to memorialize the horrific event and honor Principal Margaret Cate and all those who helped guide students, faculty, and the surrounding community through the devastation and the difficult period that followed.

A poignant reminder of the anger and malice between whites and blacks during the 1950’s. The personal knowledge of one who was there lends itself to a solid understanding of who, why, and how they survived and prospered.

About the author…

This author Stephen MacKenzie, husband of MaryAnne MacKenzie whose story, from all those years ago, inspired him to write this book.

Now retired, Stephen was an English teacher and department chair at Somersworth High School, Somersworth, NH, with a Master of Arts, Literature from the University of New Hampshire. He is also a former newspaper columnist, and serves as Director of Music at St. John’s United Methodist Church, Dover, NH.

The story was as seen through the eyes of MaryAnne (Bruce) MacKenzie, the last living faculty member from the 1957/58 school year

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