This marker with just a few words on it points out the founding of one of the first rural high…read moreschools for African-Americans. It reads, "Berry O'Kelly School. Begun 1910. Early Negro teacher training school. Named for benefactor. Later used as elementary school. Closed in 1966." Online, there is more detail... "Among the first rural high schools for African Americans in North Carolina, the Berry O'Kelly Training School on Method Road in Raleigh was established in 1910. Accreditation came in 1922-23, when black schools in Reidsville, Wilmington, and Durham also were enrolled. The boarding school provided students academic grounding along with training in the industrial and vocational arts. The benefit was to both blacks and whites. The school provided African Americans with a sound education and provided the entire community with skilled laborers, carpenters, seamstresses, and laundresses." [Review 12191 overall, 1975 of 2019.]

Traveling through Hillsborough, it was nice to spot a marker that denoted something other than…read moreColonial or Civil War history. This one is much more modern. The marker reads, "Bill Strayhorn. 1915-1967. Jazz composer & pianist. Wrote "Take the A Train" and other songs for Duke Ellington Orchestra. Boyhood home site 1/4 mi. W." Online is more information. "William Thomas ("Billy" professionally) Strayhorn, Duke Ellington's longtime collaborator, was among the most influential figures in American jazz. A versatile composer, arranger, and pianist, Strayhorn joined Ellington's orchestra at age 22 in 1939 and worked with the bandleader the rest of his life. Ellington publicly acknowledged the central role Strayhorn played in his success, writing the band's theme "Take the A Train" and penning popular and widely recorded songs such as "Lush Life" and "Satin Doll." Strayhorn was a formative influence on an entire generation of musicians. Living in New York City most of his adult life, he was actively involved in the civil rights movement and was a personal friend of Martin Luther King Jr.. "Although Strayhorn was born in Dayton, Ohio, his roots ran deep in Orange County and, importantly, his frequent stays in Hillsborough as a boy were essential to his musical development. His father and grandfather both worked at the Eno Mill. His grandparents, who owned a piano, lived in a house (now gone) at the corner of Margaret Lane and Hillsborough Avenue. Returning with his mother and siblings to North Carolina from Ohio regularly from age five, Strayhorn attended his first year of school while in Hillsborough; a classmate remembered him as "small and bright." He spent breaks and summers in North Carolina through his early teenage years (by then the family had moved to Pittsburgh) and often took the train to visit an uncle in Durham. "Biographer David Hajdu contends that North Carolina became the young man's spiritual home, the place he was introduced to music. Initially gospel tunes drew him to the piano. He often wandered through the slave cemetery across from his boyhood home and walked along the Eno River. At Strayhorn's death at age 52 in 1967, Ellington said his friend "had no aspirations to enter into any kind of competition, yet the legacy he leaves, his oeuvre, will never be less than the ultimate on the highest plateau of culture." In 2007 Strayhorn was the subject of a PBS documentary." This is marker number G-125. It was erected in 2008 by the North Carolina Office of Archives and History. [Review 102 of 2025 - 4072 in North Carolina - 23669 overall]

A historical marker about a historian seems a little meta but here we go with your history lesson…read more This marker is located on the main street that joins downtown Hillsborough towards the interstate exit and is near the Orange County Historical Society. The marker reads, "J. G. de Roulhac Hamilton, 1878-1961. Historian, professor, and founder of the Southern Historical Collection at UNC. Born 1/2 block west." Online, there is a lot more information. "Born in Hillsborough, N.C. on August 6, 1878, Joseph Gregoire de Roulhac Hamilton came from a family with deep South roots. His great-grandfather was Nullification governor of South Carolina. His father came to North Carolina to teach at Hillsborough Military Academy and remained to fight in the 13th N.C. Regiment. Hamilton studied first at home and then did college work at the Sewanee: University of the South graduating with the M.A. degree in 1900. He taught at the Horner Military School at Oxford before continuing his education at Columbia University (1902-4) with historian William Archibald Dunning, and was awarded the Ph.D. degree in American history in 1906. Hamilton, as did many Dunning students, wrote his dissertation about reconstruction in his home state (NC) which was then published as a history book, Reconstruction in North Carolina in 1914. "Hamilton returned to teaching, first at the Wilmington (NC) High School (1904-1906) and then, in 1906, he was appointed an associate professor of history at the University of North Carolina. He served UNC until his retirement in 1951. He was among the important historians of his era, however, like many in his time, his writings were slanted to the Lost Cause mythos of Civil War and Reconstruction history, favoring a narrative crafted to support white racial ideology over actual events. His monograph on North Carolina Reconstruction was not refuted for half a century. "While Hamilton's work as an historian supported white supremacist narratives, it was his work as a nascent archivist for special collections at the University of North Carolina that built a collection to memorialize that narrative. In 1927 he announced plans for what he initially called the "National Southern Collection." In 1930, Sarah Graham Kenan gave a gift to establish the Southern Historical Collection. Hamilton was named as the first director. His manuscript-collecting travels across the South, placing almost a million miles on a series of Ford coupes, are legendary. Some states attempted to block his efforts and he came to be known as "Ransack" Hamilton for his gathering practices. While he gathered and built an amazing collection of southern history materials, it was singular in focus on the history of white southerners. Recent writings in 2020 argue his tenure was dedicated to shaping the university (and collections) to the benefit of white supremacy. "Nonetheless, some credit the renaissance in southern history in the mid-twentieth century to Hamilton's foresight (in the collecting of what materials he did gather). In partial recognition of that fact, and his contributions to the field of history, the 1972 new building occupied by the UNC History Department was named for him. After a reevaluation of his career and contributions, the History Department building was recommended in 2020 for a name change. "Hamilton passed away on 10 November 1961. He is buried in the Old Chapel Hill Cemetery on the campus of the university." There is parking at the police department. This is marker number G-103. It was erected in 1989 by the Division of Archives and History. [Review 106 of 2025 - 4075 in North Carolina - 23673 overall]

This marker is on the side of the road in a mostly residential area. As is customary with North…read moreCarolina's markers, there is a little bit of information on the sign and more of it online. The marker reads, "John Chavis, ca 1762-1838. African American teacher, preacher, & Revolutionary War veteran. Taught free black & prominent white students in school nearby." Online, "The marker, originally approved and erected in 1938 (the centennial of Chavis's death), was the first one in the North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program dedicated to African American history." "John Chavis, born around 1763 in Virginia, was a prominent free black preacher and educator in and around the Raleigh area from 1810 onwards. Chavis was raised in Virginia and had an extensive education for the time period, likely the best education of any African American of his day in North Carolina. He is best known for his classical teaching in Raleigh, educating children of all races and from all different backgrounds. In 1832 free blacks lost many of their rights in North Carolina, and Chavis lost his freedom to preach and to teach. He died in 1838, having lived and worked as a respected member of society amongst all races of people. Chavis is considered by many historians to be the first free black to demonstrate to white slaveowners the abilities of blacks in formal education." [Review 11914 overall, 1696 of 2019.]

This is not an official state of North Carolina marker but it still points out some important…read morehistory of the area. The marker reads, "In the late 1860s freed slaves founded Oberlin, the largest Reconstruction-era black settlement in Wake County. By 1880 some 160 families lived in Oberlin Village, named in tribute to the Ohio college that supported education for Negroes. They established Wilson Temple United Methodist Church in the late 1860s, Oberlin School about 1873, Oberlin Baptist Church about 1880, and Latta University about 1892. They buried their loved ones at Oberlin Cemetery (est. 1873), which exists 400 feet to the east/north east." In 1858, Jesse Pettiford, a free Black tenant farmer, purchased 16 acres of land along New Hillsborough Road west of Raleigh. After the Civil War, Lewis Peck, a wealthy white grocer, divided his farm into lots and sold them to African Americans at about $50 per acre. This area became known as Peck's Place and later Oberlin Village. Oberlin Village is a testament to the resilience and determination of its residents, who built a thriving community from the ground up. It stands as one of the longest-surviving and most intact Reconstruction-Era freedmen's colonies in North Carolina. [Review 2461 of 2024 - 3916 in North Carolina - 23473 overall]

This marker is located in downtown Hillsborough and points out a local citizen who earned the ire…read moreof other locals thanks to his abuse of ower. The marker is legible and in good condition. There is parking nearby. The marker reads, "Edmund Fanning, 1737-1818. Judge and local official. Target of Regulators who ransacked and destroyed his nearby home, 1770." There is more information online. "One of the most despised figures in North Carolina history, Edmund Fanning was born in Suffolk County, New York in 1737. Fanning, a Loyalist and colonial official between 1760 and 1771, held a variety of positions while living in Hillsborough. Because of his abuse of his office, Fanning became a prominent target of the Regulators. After leaving North Carolina in 1771, Fanning served as a Loyalist commander, a General in the British army, and a Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia. "Fanning attended Yale University, graduating in 1757 before attending Harvard College and King's College (present-day Columbia University). In 1760, he moved to Childsburgh, renamed Hillsborough in 1766, and soon thereafter was elected town commissioner, a position he held until 1771. Fanning developed mercantile partnerships and gained additional power in Orange County, beginning as a representative to the General Assembly. Slowly, Fanning supplemented his position as assembly representative with other positions, so that between 1766 and 1768 he served simultaneously as assemblyman, register of deeds, a Superior Court Judge and a Colonel in the militia. "The public was outraged at Fanning's abuse of power, but probably more angered by his close personal friendship with Governor William Tryon. Fanning's authority was challenged in 1768, when he was sued for taking excessive fees as the register of deeds. Although he was found not guilty on all charges, the acquittal did not assuage the rapidly growing ranks of Orange County Regulators. They fired warning shots through the roof of Fanning's house, but did no further damage, dispersing after Governor Tryon called out the militia. "By 1770, the Regulator Movement again gained strength in Orange County, leading to riots in September of that year. The Regulators destroyed Fanning's house, but his law offices were left unharmed and overran the courthouse, physically abusing members of the "Courthouse Ring," which included Edmund Fanning. With Fanning's urging, Governor Tryon again called out the state militia, who defeated the Regulators at the Battle of Alamance on May 16, 1771. Fanning led the left wing of Tryon's army during the engagement. "Soon after the Battle of Alamance, Edmund Fanning left the state, following Governor Tryon to New York as his private secretary. He then served as a colonel in the Loyalist militia throughout the Revolutionary War, during which time he was wounded twice. After the conflict, Fanning was made a Colonel in the British army and appointed Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia. In 1786 he was appointed Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island, a position he held until his retirement in 1805. Promoted to major general in the British army in 1793 and full general on April 25, 1808, Edmund Fanning died at his home in London in 1818." I am unable to find where Fanning is laid to rest. With the above history, it's not here in Hillsborough. [Review 104 of 2025 - 4073 in North Carolina - 23671 overall]

This well-preserved marker is not listed on the official North Carolina highway markers site. I…read moredon't know who installed it, but I'm glad they did. It reads, "Melville B. Cox, 1799-1833. Minister of Edenton Street Methodist Church, 1831. First American Methodist Missionary to Africa, 1833. 'Let a thousand fall before Africa be given up.'" Online, I learn that Melville Beveridge Cox was born near Hollowell, Maine. He had a tough and short life. He contracted tuberculosis and was unable to preach. His wife and young daughter died of cholera and then he volunteered as missionary where he was sent to Liberia. He organized the first Methodist Episcopal church among the immigrants (freed slaves from the United States). He established a mission at Grand Bassa and another along the Niger with a school of agriculture and art. A month later, he contracted malaria and refused to return to America. He was dead within four months of his arrival in Africa. I am glad that he is remembered. [Review 11733 overall, 1515 of 2019.]

This marker stands in front of the beautifully maintained 20th century schoolhouse. There is…read moreparking adjacent. The marker reads, "Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the Historic Russell School is the last remaining Rosenwald School in Durham County. The school served as a refuge for Black children to have a formalized education from 1926 to 1945. It is owned by Cain's Chapel Missionary Baptist Church." While the building is secured, you can still walk the grounds. It is not a State of North Carolina marker. [Review 2165 of 2024 - 3822 in North Carolina - 23184 overall]