Wayne County, NC - History of Grantham School

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 Posted with permission of Self-Evaluation of Grantham School: 
 Kindergarten - Grade 9
 Goldsboro, North Carolina 1982: 
 For Accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools;
 Mr. Donald R. Faison, Principal
 Dr. Maylon McDonald, Consultant
 Department of Administration and Supervision 
 East Carolina University

 Grantham School is one of the oldest consolidated schools in NC.
It has a long history of progressive growth. At the present time,
the school occupies a 25 acre tract of land in southwestern Wayne
County, with an option to buy additional acreage for future 
expansion.

 Grantham School is a continuation of the old French School which
was established about 1840. The French School flourished a number
of years under the management of Levi French, of Massachusetts, as
principal. From the close of the Civil War to the early 1900's, the
school was known as Falling Creek Academy. After the building was
burned in 1887, a new building was erected about one mile from the
original site.

 The Kennedy School was established around 1887, and located a few
miles from the Falling Creek Academy. They were consoldated in 1905
into Falling Creek School, with Robert Teague as principal, and
E. T. Atkinson as superintendent. Public funds were used to carry on
the school for four months per year, but the studens paid tuition
in order that they might have a longer term.

 The first commencment was held in 1906. In 1907, the County Board
of Education changed the name of Falling Creek Academy to Falling
Creek State High School. The Falling Creek District voted a special
tax in 1912, and the school became a state high school.

 Leaders in the community felt that a larger school was needed. 
The original site, on which a new brick building was erected in
1923-24, was a tract of land donated by Gideon Grantham. In early
1924, the school was moved and the name again became Grantham
School with an enrollment of about 400.

 Within a few years other schools - Beaver Dam, Park Hill, Union
Academy, Corbett Hill, Pine Crest, White School, and Bizzell Grove -
became a part of Grantham. In 1935, eight more rooms had to be added
as the enrollment increased to about 800.

 Through the efforts of laymen interested in the educational process,
the school was able to offer students opportunities for the development
of skills in agriculture, home economics, and cultural values.

 Further growth brought about a need for a bigger school plant. A
one-story high school building was constructed and ready to be occupied
in the fall of 1938. Fire destroyed a portion of the new facility in the
spring of 1941. This building was not restored until several years later.
In the meantime, a lunchroom was annexed to the original two-story
elementery structure.

 Being in a rural setting, the school needed and built an agriculture
building in the early nineteen forties. A dream for a gymnasium was
also realized in the late forties. Finally, a home economics annex was
extended from the high school building in 1954.

 Desirability of high school consolidation in the southern portion of 
the county became apparent. This was a result of considerable interest
shown by communities which would become feeder schools. In the fall of
1965, Grantham, Mount Olive, Seven Springs, and Brogden became the 
consolidated Southern Wayne High School.

 With the beginning of integration, the boundaries of Grantham extended
to include students from Carver, Dudley, and Brogden. Prior to 
integration, the following Black schools were consolidated with Carver:
Wesley, Chapel, Shady Grove, and Mount Carmel.

 As a result of the 1973 state bond issue, Grantham School received 
$1,300,000 dollars for construction of a new facility for Kindergarden
through Grade 6. The Junior High Building was renovated, with the 
addition of a new Cultural Arts Building. The existing cafeteria was 
converted into an Industrial Arts Center.

 The new plant and renovations of existing buildings were completed in
1978. With the return of the ninth grade from Brogden and Mount Olive,
Grantham School now encompasses Kindergarden through Grade 9.

 Grantham School originated about one hundred years ago as a one-room
facility with an average enrollment of 25 students. After several
mergers, a student body of approximately 800 existed during the 
1935-1955 period. With a loss of the high school due to consolidation 
and the influx of new students due to integration and extended 
boundaries, the present enrollment stands at 690. During the century
of growth and change, there is evidence of comparable growth in the 
school's appreciation for all its fellowman and their immediate needs.

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This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by
Carolyn Pipkin Ott
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