Oberlin School (1882, 1916) - Raleigh, North Carolina

The community of Oberlin, then on Raleigh’s western fringe, was established by freedmen in 1865. Its first school opened in a Methodist church in 1869.

In 1882, a one-room frame schoolhouse was built across from the church on Oberlin Road. As the school grew, two rooms were added to the building in 1884. The Raleigh school board brought the Oberlin School under its administration before the community was annexed by the city in 1920.

In 1916, the three-room frame building was moved back from Oberlin Road and a modern brick building erected that contained eight classrooms, steam heat, electric lights, running water, a library, and a basement auditorium. The 1882 building was then used to teach classes in “domestic science” for many years.

Following desegregation of Raleigh public schools in the 1960s, Oberlin students were assigned elsewhere. The community landmark was demolished in 1969. An office building now occupies the site.

Source:N_53_17_227 - From the Albert Barden Collection, State Archives of North Carolina, Raleigh, NC.