County Training School
Also known as: Vienna High & Industrial School; Vienna Rosenwald School
Why it's listed
Built in 1926 on a rise in an African-American neighborhood east of downtown Vienna, this one-story brick building served as the County Training School, the main school for Black children in Dooly County. Its H-shaped plan follows the Rosenwald Fund's six-teacher community school design, with classroom wings on either side of a central auditorium and stage. Office and library rooms flank the entrance. The school cost $17,737 to build, and the Rosenwald Fund contributed $1,700. Small classrooms were added to the wing ends in the 1930s as enrollment grew. Two shop buildings, from 1926 and 1959, supported vocational training. Students attended from first through eleventh grades, including rural pupils who boarded in town. The school was renamed Vienna High and Industrial School in 1959 and closed in 1970 after integration. A state pre-school program then used the building until 2004. It is recognized for its architecture and for its role in education, Black ethnic heritage and social history.
Significance in brief: It is an excellent example of an early 20th-century African-American school built with Rosenwald Fund support from the fund's Community School Plans. It was the principal school for Black children in Dooly County and reflects efforts by philanthropists, educators and local communities to improve Black education in the segregated South.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 10000158, listed April 7, 2010. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 190 Ninth St., Vienna |
|---|---|
| County | Dooly County |
| Listed | April 7, 2010 |
| Reference number | 10000158 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1926-1959 |
| Architectural style | Other: Rosenwald six-teacher community school plan |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Education, Black, Social History |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The school closed in 1970 after integration of the county school system; the Rosenwald building housed a state-funded pre-school program from 1970 to 2004. The form lists its current function as education-related. |
| Acreage | 4 |
| Coordinates | 32.09174, -83.78376 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 10000158.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q134296703
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.