Bel Alton High School was officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The addition of the formerly segregated high school is a prestigious recognition of its role in a national program that coordinates and supports public and private initiatives to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historical and archaeological resources.
"Placement on the NRHP is significant for us as it enables us to further our mission of preserving, promoting, and sharing the cultural history of Bel Alton High School and the Black community it served for 27 years," stated Matt Wills, Chair of Bel Alton High School Alumni Association said in a release by the organization.
Bel Alton High School operated from 1938 to 1966 as a Blacks Only school during the Jim Crow era of segregation in the United States. The school was spared demolition in the late 1980s in part by work of the Bel Alton High School Alumni Association, which rehabilitated the school building as a community center from 2008 to 2015.
Currently, the building is the home of the Bel Alton High School Alumni Association and county and State agencies.
"The addition of Bel Alton High School to the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is a tremendous honor that recognizes its important role in Charles County’s history,” Commissioner President Reuben B. Collins, II, Esq., said. “As one of only 42 sites in our county on this prestigious list, this designation ensures that Bel Alton High School’s legacy is preserved for future generations, highlighting our commitment to honoring and protecting the cultural heritage that shapes our community.”
The National Register of Historic Places is a prestigious list of approximately 100,000 sites across the country deemed worthy of preservation. Of those sites, 1,500 reside in Maryland, and 42 are in Charles County, including such notable locations as Thomas Stone National Historic Site, Moyaone Reserve Historic District, Mount Aventine, Pomonkey Historic District, and Rich Hill.
