It had several buildings and existed for decades, so surely there must be something left from the original George Washington Carver School. Or at least Donald Singleton thinks so and he’s on a mission to find out.

The school was built by Henry Ford on Bryan Neck Road to educate the African-American students of South Bryan County, but all that remains standing is the shell of its gymnasium.

“Something had to have happened to all that stuff,” said Singleton, who graduated from the school in 1962. “It couldn’t have all just disappeared.”

The school was dedicated in 1940 at an event attended by its namesake, who was a friend of Henry Ford. Carver was known for his research at the Tuskegee Institute on things such as crop rotation and soil regeneration, and came up with some 145 alternative uses for peanuts. After Carver’s health declined, Ford paid to have an elevator installed in the building at Tuskegee where Carver lived so he would not have to climb stairs.

At its height, the school had several buildings including living quarters for teachers who would stay during the week and travel home on weekends. It also included several shops where students were taught trades, such as woodworking, and a garage where school buses were repaired.

“I’m pretty much looking for anything and everything that would have been there,” Singleton said. “Chairs, desks, blackboards, trophies, books.”

Singleton said his goal is to put together a display for the Richmond Hill History Museum.

“There were a lot of students who went through that school over a lot of years,” Singleton said. “That’s a lot of history that should be honored and recognized.”

All that’s left standing today is the shell of the school’s gymnasium, which stands in a large field near Bryan Neck Baptist Church.

“I’d like to see them fix that up, too,” Singleton said. “Maybe someone can apply for some grants and refurbish it and turn it into a community center or something.”

Anyone with information can contact Singleton at (912) 272-5666.