Ware Creek School
Why it's listed
Ware Creek School is a one-story frame building on Maul's Point Road in the Blount's Creek district of rural Beaufort County, North Carolina. Funded in 1919 and dedicated in 1921, it has three main classrooms set side by side, a projecting front industrial classroom under a gable roof, and flanking cloakrooms. Its brick piers, clapboard walls, standing-seam metal roof and banks of six-over-six windows reflect the Julius Rosenwald Fund's standardized plans, which emphasized daylight and efficient layout. Local black residents raised part of the construction cost, with county and Rosenwald Fund support. The school operated as a public school until 1952 and then continued as a community center, and the nomination describes it as one of the best-preserved Rosenwald schools in North Carolina. Its interior retains original layout, German siding and classroom partitions, with only minor alterations such as added restrooms and a stage. The building is significant for its education role and for its close match to the Fund's published school designs.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the school is an exceptionally intact example of the Julius Rosenwald Fund's standardized school designs and reflects segregated-era education and community efforts for African American children. It is also described as possibly an experimental prototype in the development of the Fund's plans.
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 96001443, listed December 6, 1996. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | E side of NC 1103, .3 mi. SE of jct. with NC 1112, Blounts Creek |
|---|---|
| County | Beaufort County |
| Listed | December 6, 1996 |
| Reference number | 96001443 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1921-1946 |
| Architectural style | Craftsman |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Black, Architecture, Education |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Used as a community center since the school closed in 1952 and sold to local citizens in 1954. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 35.42009, -76.93819 (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 96001443.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q18159135
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.