Cherokee High School

Cherokee High School began here in 1921 as a grammar school with two teachers in a new frame building. The building was erected by African Americans using a Julius Rosenwald Grant with additional funds from the local community. The county school board agreed to operate the school after it was built. The cost of the school was $2,900 , $1,200 from the African American community, $800 from the Rosenwald Grant, and $900 from public donations raised through nickel and dime donations, individual and church gifts, picnic sales, and ballgame admissions. Some farmers planted and gave an acre of cotton or donated lumber or labor., Cherokee was one of seven Rosenwald schools in Colbert County and one of 5,357 such schools, workshops, and teacher homes built in the South. As it grew, more teachers and classrooms were added. Grammar school graduates from Lane Springs, Barton, and Pride attended the school plus additional students from Carter Branch, MS. The first class graduated in 1938 and the last class in 1969. Total graduates exceeded 500. Five principals served the school: Alfred Carter, Amanda Bailey, E.Z. Matthews, C.K. Calloway, and P.B. Reynolds. Due to integration, the school closed and the students moved to Cherokee Vocational High School. Later, after renovation, the school reopened as a middle school. , Sponsored by Cherokee High School Alumni and Colbert County Historical Landmarks Foundation.