David Bancroft Johnson | S.C. Hall of Fame

As Superintendent of Schools in Columbia, South Carolina, David Bancroft Johnson saw the need for an institution that would focus on training teachers. He received funds from Robert Winthrop and the Peabody Education Board in Boston, Massachusetts, and founded Winthrop Training School for Women in 1886. 

In 1895, the school moved to Rock Hill, and Winthrop University continues to educate students today.

“D.B.” Johnson was President of Winthrop until his death in 1928.  

Standards

• 8.4.E Utilize a variety of primary and secondary sources to analyze multiple perspectives of the challenges and changes within South Carolina and the nation that allowed the U.S. to emerge as a global power during the time period 1862–1929.