The goal in the school creation was for rural students to eventually find industrial work with their new experiences, or alternatively create an educational foundation for these students in order to continue their education at other institutions afterwards.

[4] The Kowaliga Academy and Industrial Institute was established in roughly 1895, the first building cornerstone was laid in August 1896, and the school was incorporated in c. 1898.

[4][5][6] In 1900, William E. Benson serving as the founding president added to the Dixie Industrial Company, an industry centered company designed to put his former students to work locally.

The company initially included a modern sawmill, a large turpentine distillery, and a cotton ginnery.

[7] The school operated for over 30 years and educated hundreds of children, and eventually closed around 1925.