Massey Hill High School
Also known as: Massey Hill Classical High School
Why it's listed
Built in 1925 on a prominent site near the junction of Trade Street and Southern Avenue in Massey Hill, this two-story red brick school has a raised basement and a pedimented four-bay entrance portico with paneled pilasters and the name Massey Hill School inscribed on its entablature. Stiles S. Dixon, a Fayetteville architect, designed it for the Cumberland County Board of Education, and Carolina Construction Company of Hamlet built it for a contract of $78,807. The community had been a mill village around three mills established in the late 1890s and early 1900s, and the school replaced earlier buildings that had burned or been overcrowded. Its plan included an auditorium, a basement cafeteria and sixteen classrooms, and much of the original interior, including heart pine floors, plaster walls and transoms, remains. The school is regarded as a model of the consolidated school movement in Cumberland County. A 1938 classroom building by William Henry Deitrick and a 1947 gymnasium by the same architect add to the campus.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the school is significant under Criterion A for its association with educational history in Fayetteville and Cumberland County during the consolidated school movement of the 1920s. It also argues under Criterion C that the building is a representative example of Classical Revival school architecture by a local architect, retaining a high degree of integrity in its plan, interior finishes and setting.
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 04001387, listed December 23, 2004. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 1062 Southern Ave., Fayetteville |
|---|---|
| County | Cumberland County |
| Listed | December 23, 2004 |
| Reference number | 04001387 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1925-1954 |
| Architect / builder | Dixon, Stiles S., AIA (architect); Dietrick, William H., AIA (architect); Lasilets, Basil (architect); Carolina Construction Co., Hamlet, NC (builder) |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Education, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Continues in use as Massey Hill Classical High School, serving grades nine through twelve. |
| Acreage | 6.6 |
| Coordinates | 35.03109, -78.89483 (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 04001387.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6784612
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.