Freedmen's teachers were volunteers from all over the country that travelled to the South to teach the newly freed African American children. They were primarily single women (black and white) but did include a variety of other people such as men (black and white), married and unmarried persons, free-thinkers and those dedicated to religious or social reform. 

The schools they taught in were usually abandoned buildings or old Confederate buildings that were taken away after the Civil War. Most were in very poor condition with very little resources for teachers to use in the classroom. Some met in churches or in buildings that resembled barns with very little heating or cooling systems in place. Some were rudimentary buildings that were quickly put together by the freedmen or union forces that could accommodate up to 150 persons. These buildings were usually very hot, with no window sashes or blinds, and children would have to be sent home during the day due to the unbearable conditions. 

These teachers did not just teach academics-they performed a wide variety of services to both the children and the community. First, they focused on the body to make sure these children had adequate food and clothing. They were taught basic skills on how to take care of themselves before even starting an academic education. The teachers were also there for religious, spiritual and emotional needs such as basic life advice. Many took on a parental/motherly role to many of the children. They were well loved and liked by the community and became part of the family. 

Charlotte Forten was the first north African American female to move to South Carolina and teach the newly freed African American children in the south post the Civil War. She stayed and taught on St. Helena island for two years before she got ill and had to return to the North. She was also the first African American to teach at a northern school in Salem, Mass. Later in life, she moved to Washington, DC where she dedicated the rest of her time fighting for African American civil rights. She died in 1914. 

When the Freedmen's Bureau ended, most of these schools were abandoned and African Americans were usually left to their own devices to survive in a very racially charged south. Most funding to these schools diminished quickly - yet some were able to survive with the financial assistance of private organizations or fundings. Schools that continued to operate were left to operate under the "separate but equal" doctrine established by Plessy vs. Ferguson.