Liberty Colored High School
Encyclopedia
Liberty Colored High School is a former high school for African-American students in Liberty, South Carolina
during the period of racial segregation
. It originally was called Liberty Colored Junior High School. The building is now a community center
known as the Rosewood Center. It is at East Main Street (South Carolina Highway 93
) and Rosewood Street in Liberty. The school was built in 1937 on the site of a Rosenwald school
that had burned down. Because of its role in the education of local African-American students, it was named to the National Register of Historic Places
on April 18, 2003.
The current building was built in 1937 on the same site with the assistance of the Works Progress Administration
. Additional funds came from the State insurance fund and community contributions. It was named Liberty Colored Junior High School and had grades one through nine. In 1945, grades ten and eleven were added and its name was changed to Liberty Colored High School. Twelfth grade were added in the 1949. It was one of two high schools for African-American students in Pickens County. It served students in Liberty, Norris
, Central
, Clemson
and the adjacent rural areas. In 1955, the two high schools were consolidated into Clearview Colored High School in Easley
.
After the high school was moved, the school building was used as an elementary school for African-American students. It was named Rosewood Elementary School after its location on Rosewood Street. It had grades one through seven.
When the Pickens County schools were desegregated in 1970, the student body was gradually merged with Liberty Elementary School. Then it was renamed as the Rosewood Center and used by Pickens County Schools as a special education, adult, and teacher education center.
The building was sold to the City of Liberty in 2001. Although renovations on its interior began to use it as for municipal offices, the project was abandoned. In 2002, it was leased to Liberty Baptist Church for a youth activity center.
Currently, the building is used as a community center. It can be rented for parties, receptions, and other events.
es with cast key stones and imposts. There is a louvered vent above the center arch. There is a double door with fanlight
transoms. There is a secondary entrance on Rosemont Street in a similar style.
The school had an auditorium, four classrooms, and offices. The auditorium stage also served as the lunchroom. Originally, the basement had separate restrooms for the boys and the girls. In the 1950s, the stairway to the basement was closed, and the corridor was converted to new restrooms.
Liberty, South Carolina
Liberty is a city in Pickens County, South Carolina, United States. It is part of the Greenville–Mauldin–Easley Metropolitan Statistical Area...
during the period of racial segregation
Racial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
. It originally was called Liberty Colored Junior High School. The building is now a community center
Community centre
Community centres or community centers or jumping recreation centers are public locations where members of a community tend to gather for group activities, social support, public information, and other purposes. They may sometimes be open for the whole community or for a specialised group within...
known as the Rosewood Center. It is at East Main Street (South Carolina Highway 93
South Carolina Highway 93
South Carolina Highway 93 is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It runs from US 76/123/SC 28 in Clemson northeast to US 123 in Easley.-Route description:...
) and Rosewood Street in Liberty. The school was built in 1937 on the site of a Rosenwald school
Rosenwald School
A Rosenwald School was the name informally applied to over five thousand schools, shops, and teachers' homes in the United States which were built primarily for the education of African-Americans in the early twentieth century. The need arose from the chronic underfunding of public education for...
that had burned down. Because of its role in the education of local African-American students, it was named to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on April 18, 2003.
History
The first school for African-American students in the Liberty area began in 1899 at the New Hope Baptist Church. A year later, a wooden school was built next to the church. Around 1922, a three-teacher Rosenwald school was built on the site of the current building through funding from the parents, community, and matching funds from the The Rosenwald Fund. This school burned in 1935.The current building was built in 1937 on the same site with the assistance of the Works Progress Administration
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
. Additional funds came from the State insurance fund and community contributions. It was named Liberty Colored Junior High School and had grades one through nine. In 1945, grades ten and eleven were added and its name was changed to Liberty Colored High School. Twelfth grade were added in the 1949. It was one of two high schools for African-American students in Pickens County. It served students in Liberty, Norris
Norris, South Carolina
Norris is a town in Pickens County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 847 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Greenville–Mauldin–Easley Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Norris is located at ....
, Central
Central, South Carolina
Central is a town in Pickens County, South Carolina, United States, along SC Highway 93. Contrary to its name, it is not near the central area of South Carolina...
, Clemson
Clemson, South Carolina
Clemson is a college town located in Pickens County in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 11,939 at the 2000 census and center of an urban cluster with a total population of 42,199...
and the adjacent rural areas. In 1955, the two high schools were consolidated into Clearview Colored High School in Easley
Easley, South Carolina
Easley is a city in Pickens County in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is a principal city of the Greenville–Mauldin–Easley Metropolitan Statistical Area. Most of the city lies in Pickens County, with only a very small portion of the city in Anderson County...
.
After the high school was moved, the school building was used as an elementary school for African-American students. It was named Rosewood Elementary School after its location on Rosewood Street. It had grades one through seven.
When the Pickens County schools were desegregated in 1970, the student body was gradually merged with Liberty Elementary School. Then it was renamed as the Rosewood Center and used by Pickens County Schools as a special education, adult, and teacher education center.
The building was sold to the City of Liberty in 2001. Although renovations on its interior began to use it as for municipal offices, the project was abandoned. In 2002, it was leased to Liberty Baptist Church for a youth activity center.
Currently, the building is used as a community center. It can be rented for parties, receptions, and other events.
Architecture
The school is a one-story, brick building. It has a gabled, asphalt-shingled roof. A projecting wing has the primary entrance facing East Main Street. The entrance has three brick archArch
An arch is a structure that spans a space and supports a load. Arches appeared as early as the 2nd millennium BC in Mesopotamian brick architecture and their systematic use started with the Ancient Romans who were the first to apply the technique to a wide range of structures.-Technical aspects:The...
es with cast key stones and imposts. There is a louvered vent above the center arch. There is a double door with fanlight
Fanlight
A fanlight is a window, semicircular or semi-elliptical in shape, with glazing bars or tracery sets radiating out like an open fan, It is placed over another window or a doorway. and is sometimes hinged to a transom. The bars in the fixed glazed window spread out in the manner a sunburst...
transoms. There is a secondary entrance on Rosemont Street in a similar style.
The school had an auditorium, four classrooms, and offices. The auditorium stage also served as the lunchroom. Originally, the basement had separate restrooms for the boys and the girls. In the 1950s, the stairway to the basement was closed, and the corridor was converted to new restrooms.