Central High School

Central High School was formed in 1936. It was previously named “Hillsborough High for Negroes”. The land for Central was purchased from Lois Wilson and George Mayo for around $2,200 and the first principal was C.E. Hester. Central High School originally went from 1st to 11th grade. 12th grade was added in the 1940s, as well as a private kindergarten class, taught by Agnes Whitted.

Since its establishment, Central High School had been segregated. Segregation, the legal separation of races and denial to equal access to goods and spaces, caused the school to have fewer resources and supplies than nearby white schools. In addition, schools for students of color lacked many amenities and often used old textbooks from white students. This concept of prejudice was because the government did not equally distribute the resources they were responsible for. Segregation was not just happening in learning environments; it was legal and common in businesses as well. Despite these circumstances, Central High School had quality teachers and administrators and many students went on to have renowned careers in their respective fields.

Segregation in schools ended on May 17, 1954 when the Brown v. Board of Education court case was won in favor of Brown. This decision mandated school integration, but North Carolina did not implement this law for over a decade until they were pressured into doing so by the federal government. Orange High School was founded in 1963 as an all white school and didn’t integrate until 1968, when all local high schoolers attended there.

This school is significant to Hillsborough’s history because it’s an example of segregation and the struggle against unequal access to education. Central High School was officially converted into Hillsborough Elementary School in 1996 and is still in use today.