Jarvisburg Colored School
Why it's listed
Built around 1911, this two-story frame schoolhouse on Caratoke Highway in Jarvisburg served the area's African American children until 1950. Its plain balloon-frame form carries some Queen Anne decoration, including a front shed cloakroom with two pedimented corner porches and a small bell tower with a pyramidal roof and original wooden spire. The upper floor was long rented to the Sandy Ridge Masonic Lodge and also held classrooms and a small library. Local families fought for better schooling from the 1860s onward, and this was the third school on its site. After closing, it became a Sunday school annex for neighboring Corinth Baptist Church, then fell into serious disrepair. A restoration from 2005 to 2008 retained much of the original cypress and juniper frame and interior beaded board. The school is considered an extremely rare pre-Rosenwald example in North Carolina and one of only three pre-consolidation school buildings left in Currituck County.
Significance in brief: The school is argued to be significant under Criterion A for Education and Black Ethnic Heritage. It served the area's African American students from 1911 to 1950 and is an extremely rare surviving example of a pre-Rosenwald Fund plan Black school in North Carolina. It is also one of only three pre-consolidation era school buildings still standing in Currituck County.
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 09001104, listed December 11, 2009. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 7301 NC 158, Jarvisburg |
|---|---|
| County | Currituck County |
| Listed | December 11, 2009 |
| Reference number | 09001104 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1911-1950 |
| Architect / builder | Barrett and Thomson, Raleigh, NC (Architect); Ferebee, James Brown, Camden, NC (Builder) |
| Architectural style | Queen Anne |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Education, Black |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed as vacant/not in use as a current function. It was restored in 2005-2008 after years of deterioration; it had served as a Sunday school annex for the neighboring church after the school closed. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 36.18648, -75.86453 (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.
Noted as vacant in the nomination. Nomination documents can be decades old; current status may differ. If you are considering buying an empty listed property, read the due-diligence checklist.
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 09001104.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q18208272
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.