Julius Rosenwald School

Long-Lost Piece of Black History: Early 19th Century Schoolhouse Found

By Monica Manney / Concord
Published 4:15 PM ET Jun. 07, 2021

CONCORD, N.C. — Following the abolition of slavery, a Jewish philanthropist learned African Americans had little access to education. So, he built more than 5,000 schools across the South.

Now, historians in Concord believe they've found the last-standing school in the county, and they're working to preserve it.

Ashley Sedlak-Propst said she remembers when she fell in love with history as a little girl. It all started on a family trip to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina.

"I ducked beneath the red velvet rope in the library and took a running jump for the books," Sedlak-Propst said. "I didn't want to be on the wrong side of the velvet rope."

Now, she serves as the executive director of the Historic Cabarrus Association, focusing on history and race relations in America.

In 2016, Sedlak-Propst created an exhibition on the historic Rosenwald Schools. The schools were created in the early 1900s by the president of retailer Sears and Roebuck, Julius Rosenwald.

"He was distraught by the fact that a lot of African American students did not have proper means of education," Sedlak-Propst said.

Along with activist and educator Booker T. Washington, Rosenwald funded over 5,000 schools across the South for desdendants of slaves. According to the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, the duo built the most number of schools in North Carolina.

"I knew from my research that I had done there were 10 Rosenwald schools in Cabarrus County," Sedlak-Propst said.

So she traveled around the county searching for one of the schools in particular, the Meadow View School, but with no luck.

"There was nothing there, so I just kind of gave up hope of ever finding one still standing," she said.

Sedlak-Propst said when schools were integrated, Meadow View School was abandoned, meaning it was possible that the school could have been demolished.

She says she gave up hope until she met the Motley family.

"We came out on her request ... to see ways the Historic Cabarrus Association could save [a] structure," Sedlak-Propst said.

And while they were there, they noticed a small shed in the yard.

"I said, 'what's that building over there?' And that's the moment when Ms. Motley told us, 'Oh that is one of the old Black school houses,'" Sedlak-Propst remembered.

The Motley family bought the school from the Board of Education in the 1950s and moved it from its original location.

"It had been in that spot all those years ago when I was looking for the Rosenwald Schools of Cabarrus County," she said.

Sedlak-Propst said the building is archetectuallly similiar to the Rosenwald designs, with ceiling to floor windows, allowing light to flow in and facing a certain direction.

She says they'll need proper documentation to determine if it is a Rosenwald School. Regardless of whether it's a Rosenwald school, it's a piece of history worth preserving.

"This is a way to help tell their story and save their story so they can show it to their kids and their grandkids and their story can be told perpetually," she said.

For the next three weeks, Foxx Contracting will take apart and catalog the school.

According to the Mayor of Concord, the school will be held in storage for the time being.

Source: Spectrum News