High Point in Guilford County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
February 11, 1960
On Thursday, February 11, 1960, at the close of the school day, a group of 26 students in High Point became the first high school students in the United States to stage a Woolworth "Sit-In" Demonstration. This action by the high school students followed an earlier demonstration on February 1, 1960 by the "A&T Four" college students in Greensboro.
Student organizers of this event were Mary Lou Andrews, Brenda Jean Fountain, Miriam Lynn Fountain and Andrew Dennis McBride. Led by Reverend B. Elton Cox, accompanied by Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth, this demonstration was to protest the racial social and educational injustices that existed. Key rallying songs were "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me 'Round" and "We Shall Overcome." These, along with prayer, were essential to the student demonstrations.
After eight long years of the Civil Rights struggle, efforts began in earnest to heal the city with the forming of an interracial Human Relations Commission, which still exists.
"The sit-ins were, without question, productive of the most change… No argument in a court of law could have dramatized the immorality and irrationality of such a custom as did the sit-in… The sit-ins reached far out into the back country. They inspired adult men and women, fathers, mothers, grandmothers, aunts and unclesto support the young students in the cities. Not even the Supreme Court decision on schools in 1954 had done this…"
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Ralph McGill
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights. A significant historical date for this entry is February 11, 1960.
Location. 35° 57.413′ N, 80° 0.279′ W. Marker is in High Point, North Carolina, in Guilford County. Marker is on South Wrenn Street just south of East High Avenue, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 115 S Main St, High Point NC 27260, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Woolworth Students' Sit-in (a few steps from this marker); Willis Howard "Willis" Slane (within shouting distance of this marker); The Ragan and Mills Building (within shouting distance of this marker); Sewell Farlow Store (within shouting distance of this marker); Maxwell Reid "Max" Thurman (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); African Americans in World War II Memorial (about 300 feet away); World War II Memorial (about 300 feet away); Revolutionary War Patriots (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in High Point.
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, September 2, 2023
2. February 11, 1960 Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on October 6, 2023. It was originally submitted on June 20, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 378 times since then and 79 times this year. Last updated on February 21, 2023, by Michael Buckner of Durham, North Carolina. Photos: 1. submitted on June 20, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. 2. submitted on October 5, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
