Local group has big dreams for historic Kings Mountain school

In a quiet little neighborhood not far from downtown Kings Mountain sits a plain, box-like brick building surrounded by soaring trees and several acres of land.

In 1954, Davidson Elementary School opened across the street from the historic Davidson High School and created new educational opportunities for Black students during the still-segregated South.

Today, the empty hallways are silent, the classrooms dark and windows boarded up.

But there are big plans for 500 W. Parker Str., future home of the Davidson Resource Center.

Randy Miller, president of the Davidson Alumni Resource Center, spoke of the past and future of the school.

“It is our home, and it has been our home for many years,” Miller said.

He pointed up and across the street a short ways where Mount Zion Baptist Church stands.

“Catty corner across there is where the high school was,” he said. “Before, you had all grades going there to the high school.”

He said during lunch time, the Davidson Elementary students walked across the street to eat in the high school cafeteria.

No longer standing, a historic marker is placed at the corner where it once was. Davidson High was built in the 1920s through community funds and contributions from the Rosenwald Fund, which helped build schools across the south for Black students.

“During segregation, these were the Black schools,” Miller said.

They were named after the school’s second principal, R.J. Davidson.

Miller said there are still some former alumni living who remember attending Davidson Elementary.

When the Kings Mountain school systems consolidated, the students were bussed to the Compact School and Davidson Elementary became administrative offices and then later, following the desegregation of schools, it served as an alternative school.

Now, the Davidson nonprofit wants to turn the historic structure into a community resource center.

“What we’re trying to do is put together a video and put it on our website so people can get a more advanced vision of our school,” Miller said.

Although the building is in need of extensive renovations, the structure, which has concrete floors and cinder block walls, is solid and has good bones.

Miller said the building has been designated a historic landmark, and they are applying for grants to help fund the project.

The Davidson Foundation purchased the school in 2019 from Cleveland County Schools.

“We wanted to carry the vision and same ideas of the original school,” Miller said.

He said they want to create a center of hope and empowerment while preserving the heritage of Davidson Elementary.

He said the mission is to create sustainable programs for the community.

“Our long term goal is to encourage mental and physical wellness and promote employment, self-sufficiency and quality of life.”

He said they want to provide an abundance of resources to assist with the needs of the community, although they didn’t want to wait until the building was complete and Miller said they have already hit the ground running with various initiatives and projects.

He said they’ve established three committees, including Healthy, Wealthy and Wise. They’ve hosted two health fairs in partnership with Mount Zion Baptist Church, food distributions on-site and a free over-the-counter medicine give away with Med First. They helped bring back the summer farmers’ market to downtown Kings Mountain through a partnership with Albemarle.

Miller said they give out small scholarships to deserving students.

Funds come from membership dues and fundraisers, and they are applying for federal grants and seeking donations.

“I want us to get a footprint in the community,” he said. “We talk to people in the community and our question is always, what resources do you need?”

They are trying to meet those needs now with big goals for the future.

“We’ve got a job ahead of us still,” Miller said.

He estimated building renovations will cost $1 million, and they hope to begin in the next three to five years. Miller said they are waiting to hear back about a $750,000 grant from the parks service.

He said they want to model the Davidson Resource Center after the Ada Jenkins Center in Davidson, which provides food assistance, adult education classes, emergency rental and housing assistance, help with childcare, education on different financial topics, help with tutoring, resources for the homeless and more.

“They are a model of what we’re trying to do here,” he said. “It’s another historic school.”

Inside Davidson Elementary are six former classrooms, an office, some storage space and bathrooms. The school sits on nearly five acres of land. Miller said it’s in a perfect location, almost centralized and close to downtown.

In the meantime, they continue to find ways to serve the community and will be partnering with Albemarle to host a community breakfast next month.

For more information, visit the Davidson Association website at historicdavidson.org

Reporter Rebecca Sitzes at rsitzes@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on The Shelby Star: Local group has big dreams for historic Kings Mountain school