Rural schools looked quite different from those in the city. Small, one-to-two room schools dotted the landscape in Mecklenburg County. Usually there would be more than one school in a community so it would be within walking distance for the children living in the ten or more nearby farms. Each school had at least one professional teacher for students from grades one to nine. Most children walked to school.
This is the Myers Street School (1886) at 515 South Myers Street. At the turn-of-the-century, it was the only public school for black students. The students nicknamed it the “Jacob’s ladder” because of the exterior stairways. Approximately sixteen teachers led by Principal Isabella Wyche taught at the Myers Street School. Children heading home after school.
North Graded School opened in 1900. It was located at 600 North Brevard. There were eighteen classrooms in the school. Frank P. Milburn of Washington, D.C. was the architect. It cost $35,000 to build this school.
