Billingsville School
Why it's listed
Billingsville School is a one-story brick school building at 3100 Leroy Street in Charlotte's Grier Heights neighborhood, a historically African American community southeast of downtown. Built in 1927, it has a hip roof, a symmetrical facade, a front gable porch and banks of nine-over-nine windows. A small brick addition was made in 1949. Grier Heights residents bought land from Sam Billings, the first African American landowner in the community, and the school took his name. The Mecklenburg County School Board and the Rosenwald Foundation of Chicago built it as a four-teacher Rosenwald school, and the community soon raised money to veneer the frame building in brick. Only two Rosenwald schools in the county received that treatment. In 1949 it became the first county school absorbed into the Charlotte system after annexation. It is one of three best-preserved Rosenwald schools left in Mecklenburg County, and it was listed for its role in education and African American heritage.
Significance in brief: The school was built in 1927 with support from the Rosenwald Foundation and is a landmark in African American education in Mecklenburg County. It reflects philanthropic efforts to improve schooling for rural Black communities in the segregated South. It is one of three best-preserved Rosenwald schools remaining in the county and an important institution in the Grier Heights community.
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 99001366, listed November 12, 1999. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 3100 Leroy St., Charlotte |
|---|---|
| County | Mecklenburg County |
| Listed | November 12, 1999 |
| Reference number | 99001366 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1927-1949 |
| Architect / builder | unknown |
| Architectural style | Craftsman |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Black, Education |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Retains its architectural integrity and schoolyard setting; connected by a covered walkway to the modern Billingsville Elementary School campus. Current function is listed as Commerce/Trade: Organizational. |
| Acreage | 3 |
| Coordinates | 35.19616, -80.80800 (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 99001366.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q19460533
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.