PERIOD 1890-1913

The records of the Negro school do not exist prior to 1913, because at this time the “day-law” that segregated white and Negro pupils in the schools of Kentucky was incited. It is not clear if both races attended the same public schools in Harlan County before this law. We do have files of information authenticating that in 1890, school was conducted in a one-room log cabin near the site of the residence occupied at this writing by Mr. Jim Green. This school remained on the same site with same instructor, Professor McKinley, until 1900. It is reasonable to assume that somewhere between 1900-1906, the pupils had been segregated according to race. Information was gathered, authenticating Mr. John Riley Turner as instructor in 1905, when the site of the school was moved to a field in the vicinity of Elm Street. The site of the school remained the same during the period of 1906-1909. Miss Polly Turner replaced her brother, John Riley Turner. In 1910, a noted growth occurred in the enrollment. This enrollment required two teachers, Ollie Ledford and Lillard Turner. No name other than The Colored School was given to this school which was moved to and from various locations. It was reported that in 1912, the school was located in an upstairs room in a building on the site once occupied by Foster & Spillman. Miss Polly Turner was instructor at that time.

PERIOD 1914-1927

It was told by some of the old settlers of Harlan County that The Colored School was held in a Methodist Church on Cumberland Avenue in 1912. The teacher at that time was Miss Ollie Ledford. In 1913, the school was moved to the First Baptist Church on North Main Street. School was held there from 1913 through 1916. During 1916-1917, G. G. Green went to the Board of Education and requested a permanent site for The Colored School in this community. According to the superintendent’s report of 1917-1918, the Board authorized the superintendent to investigate possibilities of securing a location for the school. Members of the Harlan Board of Education from 1916-1917 were: B.F. Unthank, Chairman T.L. Smith, Secretary W.W. Lewis, Treasurer F.D. Perkins, Superintendent. The following information was taken from the superintendent’s report of 1917-1918: “With the adoption of the commission form of government for our schools, it became necessary for the Board to assume charge of the education of the colored children of this district. While it was not obligatory for me to do so. I assume that this was my duty to see that there was a school for the education of colored children. Now I can say, The Colored School is fairly well organized, and I think the work of the coming year will prove satisfactory.

The plans for the purchase of better lots or a school building will probably be carried to a successful conclusion in the near future.” In 1918, the negotiation was carried on for the purchase of a lot for a colored school building, but due to the fact that committee was unable to purchase the land on satisfactory terms, suit was instituted at the June session at the County Court, but the case was passed on until the July term. As soon as a location had been secured, the colored people of this community undertook to raise $500.00 to be applied to the construction of a building with the $400.00 that The Rosenwald Fund had definitely promised to contribute for the same purpose. At that time there were no colored organizations in Harlan to help raise the money except the churches. The churches began to raise the money needed for the building. The persons who led this fundraising effort were Henry Creech, G.G. Green, rev. P.A. Mayfield, William Bencher, Sam White, and others. With these two appropriations, it was possible for the erection of a suitable building in which to carry on classes for The Colored School of this community. In 1920, the splendid new colored, two-room school building on Clover Street was completed and it was opened for school immediately. Mr. L.S. Turner was assigned as teacher. The attendance on the first day was 67 students. It was impossible for one teacher to manage this number, which grew to near 100. Miss Emme Mayfield was employed as an assistant. These two teachers together succeeded in enrolling the full one hundred, the number on the census rolls. A splendid record for the entire year was very satisfactory in every respect. From the period of 1921 through 1927, the records of the school are unknown.

PERIOD 1929-1942

In the fall of 1929, as a result of building an incinerator across the street from the school building, the city water line was extended to the new construction, and the school was immediately supplied with city water. Improvements were made in instructional material such as books for the library. One set of the World Book Encyclopedia was purchased through school activities and donations from the Parent Teacher Association. A set of Compton’s Red Book Encyclopedia was added to the collection of reference material. To aid in the preparation of materials for seatwork, an efficiency duplicator was purchased. With the use of the duplicator, the Rosenwald Zip, a school paper came into being. It was published by the junior and senior classes. At the end of that year, these classes published the first yearbook, The Echo.

Interscholastic athletic activities were also organized in the year 1929 in the form of football. This activity brought the school in contact with other schools in this section of the state. It also became necessary to organize an Athletic Conference among these schools. The boys and girls who entered the ninth grade in 1929 were ready for completion of the tenth grade in the spring of 1931. The community realized that the high school training was inadequate, and asked that a four year course be organized. In the fall of 1931, the eleventh grade was added. In this period, the County board of Education agreed to pay tuition for the county high school pupils, in order that they could attend the city school. This increased the overall high school enrollment. With an organization of high school, extra-curriculum activities increased also. These included debating, oratorical contests, and the Hi-Y club. The Hi-Y club for older boys comprised all schools in the upper Cumberland area. In the fall of 1933 our athletics reached the height in winning the football championship of their district. Also, during this year, a boy’s scout troop was registered and the improvement of the grounds by the Work Program Association (W.P.A.). A toy orchestra was organized in the primary grades that gave delightful performances for the community. The operetta, Once In A Blue Moon, was directed by Miss Alberta Settle, and performed in the Harlan High School Auditorium. The addition of a basement room for the primary work brought much to the community. From January to May, lunches were served to forty-two children whose parents were on relief. Rosenwald’s student candidate, Jack McGhee, won the County Spelling Bee of February 22, 1933. He was privileged to travel to Louisville to compete in the state contest. Perhaps the best year in the history of the school was the year of 1937-1938. With the opening of the September fall term, we were able to accommodate the entire colored enrollment in splendid fashion! This was possible because the Harlan Board of Education completed some remodeling to the school building, added new equipment, and hired an additional teacher. Books in the library were cataloged. The Board of Education and the PTA added many new books during the year A home economics department was organized. The teachers worked under the Smith-Hughes Setup with the Board of Education assuming a portion of the salary. The first ever fashion show was held under the supervision of the home economics teacher. A very successful event! A yearbook, The Torch, was published by the junior and senior classes. This was done at a very small cost and those associated with the project were highly commended. Other activities were sponsored that year, the dramatics club, debate club, and miscellaneous activities.

During the year of 1938-1939 another teacher was added to the faculty. It was decided to secure one who could coach athletics as well as teach classes. Mr. Joseph Kendall, a former Negro All-American was hired for this dual position. The Red Devils had a 7-1 winning season, placing them in a three-way tie for the championship for Southeastern Kentucky. What a great accomplishment by Professor Kendall and the team! The largest graduating class to date, 18 students was graduated that year. What a glorious accomplishment! For the second consecutive year, the school received an accredited rating. This enabled all graduates to attend any Negro college of his or her choice without taking an entrance examination. Twenty-seven students received certificates of honor for scholarships and attendance for the year. Gold medals were awarded to Alfreda Jackson (Mrs. Watts), the class valedictorian and other students with high scholastic achievements. Ninety-seven students received blue ribbons for achievement in health. In February 1941, a school band was organized. The band met twice weekly under the direction of Mr. Leroy Davis, band director of the Lynch, Kentucky Colored School. The band presented an excellent concert during commencement week, with limited training. Roberta Howard received a reward key for Best Individual performance in dramatics for her role in the play, "Patty Makes Things Hum." Thirty students of the elementary grades received certificates of recognition in attendance and scholarship. Blue ribbons were awarded to fourth grade students for achievements in health work.

PERIOD 1943-1954

The war had a definite effect on the activities of the school and it’s development. The problem of securing qualified teachers was indeed a serious one. During this period, the turnover in faculty personnel was greater than ever in the history of the school. Two teachers were called to military service and several others resigned to take higher paying positions in other school systems or defense plants. Despite this handicap, our activities continued with little interruption. The annual fashion show was postponed because of wartime restrictions, so the home economics department sponsored the May Day Health Contest instead. The school participated in all war campaigns, such as Defense Stamp buying, purchasing bonds, and collecting scrap iron and tin. The band played and paraded in some of the war campaigns. Another activity that became very popular during this period was the Football Queen Contest. This contest was conducted for the purpose of supplementing the Athletic and the General School Funds. These contests had a positive effect in developing school spirit and creating a general community interest in the school’s activities. The idea of a football queen originated in 1936 from a suggestion by Mr. C. A. Orton, a faculty member at the time. The first Rosenwald Football Queen was Ollie Horton, who was chosen on the basis of the amount of money raised by her class. This method of choosing queens continued until 1950, when it was changed to election by popular vote. Representatives in the popular vote contest could be 11th and 12th grades girls only. During this period, our school enrollment and graduating classes increased greatly.  This increase was due largely to the provision made by the County board of Education for the transportation of county high school students to and from Rosenwald School. Also, there was an increase in the population in the city of Harlan, due to the demand of war works.

The music/band program was discontinued due to inability to secure a band director. This was the only activity discontinued during this period. Our athletic teams continued on a limited basis throughout the war years, and their share of success was evident. The photography club was organized in 1939 under the direction of Mr. J. B. Clemens. The club learned to develop and enlarge pictures, as well as to take photographs. This club gave a number of successful performances. One at the Junior High School in Harlan, and another at the Loyall High School. The Dramatics Club was successful in the presentation of many plays throughout the years. The Y-Teen Club always participated in the Annual Potato Chip Sale. Proceeds from those sales were used to sponsor two girls at summer camp as representatives of Rosenwald Y-Teen Club. The boys Hi-Y Club. The construction of the Rosenwald High School building was completed. There were four rooms on the first floor. Three of them were used as classrooms and the fourth was the library/study hall. This expansion also provided space for typing classes. The building received an “A” rating from the Kentucky Department of Public Instruction. It was necessary to move the homemaking equipment from one side of the basement of the frame building to the other side, necessitating the installation of plumbing and electric power with two partitions. Ten new Royal typewriters and typing tables were purchased for our typing classes. The PTA donated a kitchen sink to the food room. The board of Education purchased several books for the library, including a new set of the World Book Encyclopedia. A set of Modern Social Study maps were purchased and several film strips. On behalf of the PTA, stage curtains were installed. The Rosenwald Alumni Association donated an electric scoreboard clock for the basketball games. In February 1952, the district basketball tournament was held in the Rosenwald gymnasium for the first time. The Red Devils were runners in the district that year. The PTA was a vital and active body during this time. They purchased a school bus for the transportation of the county school students, and a piano for the school. During 1949-1950, the PTA concentrated on the activity of organizing a school band. Rosenwald sent representatives to the State Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers in Stanford, Kentucky, during this period. One such representative, Mr. William Woods, was elected Vice President of the Congress. Another major accomplishment by the PTA was the success of the Birthday Calendar project. This successful project provided funding for three delegates to the State Congress of Colored Parents & Teachers in the state of Delaware. Mrs. Addie Hollingsworth, a Rosenwald graduate, was PTA president at this time. The band committee was organized and took care of concessions at all football games from the time of its inception. Mr. William Woods was elected president of the State Congress for the year 1954-1955. A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE FOR THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS TO THIS HISTORICAL BIOGRAPHY: Doris Jean Haynes, Editor in chief of Staff Alice Gregory ,Lula Mae Tentman, Erlene Bradley, Dora Ella Allen.