CHARLOTTE, N.C. — This weekend, alumni from the first high school for Black students in Charlotte are celebrating 100 years since their school was founded.

What You Need To Know

  • Second Ward High School celebrates 100 years 
  • The Centennial Celebration is Saturday, July 15, at Second Ward High School Gym from 11:00 a.m to 2:00 p.m.
  • The celebration is free to the public and the community is welcome to join 
  • Organizers say food, a DJ, class recognitions and history exhibits will be there

Second Ward High School opened in 1923. Prior to its opening, Black students who wanted a high school education would have to go outside the city. It served as a school for Black students in all of Charlotte until 1969, when the school was demolished due to urban renewal. Second Ward High School Gym still stands and operates on E. Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd as one of Mecklenburg County's parks and recreation facilities.

The centennial celebration will be held at Second Ward High School Gym on Saturday, July 15, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. There will be food, a DJ, class recognitions, history exhibits and a craft zone for kids.

County Commissioner Arthur Griffin, Jr. is a 1966 graduate from the high school. 

"This school represents going from trauma to triumph during a period of segregation, state sanctioned segregation, to Jim Crow. And, [the school] really produced some outstanding alumni in every walk of life," Griffin said.

Griffin says the teachers and students were all like family. They were all neighbors.

"The skills that were being shared by the teachers were really preparing us to be functional adults in the society we were moving into. They recognized the society we were moving into and made absolutely sure that could compete," Griffin said.