Snow Hill Colored High School
Approximate location: the National Park Service places this pin arbitrarily within the property, not at a surveyed point (stated accuracy ±12 m).
Why it's listed
Built of common bond red brick in 1925 on a rise above West Harper Street in Snow Hill, the Snow Hill Colored High School is a one-story building with an H-shaped plan, two gable-front wings, and a recessed central section containing an auditorium, office and library. It followed a six-room plan supplied by the Julius Rosenwald Fund, with groups of large nine-over-nine windows admitting daylight. The Greene County Board of Education oversaw construction, and the building opened in September 1925 as the first place in the county where African American students could attend high school. Through 1953 it also hosted plays, adult classes, films, extension meetings and community gatherings, and trained teachers. A granite obelisk honours Mary M. Battle, the county's Industrial Supervisor for Colored Schools from 1914 to 1917. The school is regarded as a significant example of the Rosenwald building program in North Carolina.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the school is significant under Criterion A for education and ethnic heritage (black) because it served as the first high school for African Americans in Greene County and as a community center. It is also significant under Criterion C for architecture as a six-room Rosenwald school built to the fund's standard plan, one of relatively few such schools in North Carolina with six or more classrooms.
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 03000853, listed August 28, 2003. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 602A W. Harper St., Snow Hill |
|---|---|
| County | Greene County |
| Listed | August 28, 2003 |
| Reference number | 03000853 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1925-1953 |
| Architectural style | Other: Rosenwald School |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Education, Black |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Acreage | 5.6 |
| Within district | Snow Hill Historic District |
| Coordinates | 35.44960, -77.67260 (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 03000853.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q18706059
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.