![Nathan C. Newbold, head of the N.C. Division of Negro Education, and an unidentified African American man at the White Oak School shop, a Rosenwald Fund project in Chowan County, [c. 1927-1928].](https://files.nc.gov/dncr/styles/event_image/public/images/2025-04/Nathan_C_Newbold.jpg?VersionId=1GeW5bwRD2TgYEKODwdZ4qn1yFDwSkL7&itok=7pqOPXEZ)
A prominent education leader who worked with African American students soon will be recognized with a North Carolina Highway Historical Marker.
The marker commemorating Nathan C. Newbold will be dedicated during a ceremony Friday, April 25, at 1 p.m., at the corner of Hillsborough Street and West Park Drive in Raleigh.
Newbold, an educator, public servant, reformer, and longtime director of the Division of Negro Education in North Carolina was born in Pasquotank County, near Elizabeth City, on Dec. 27, 1871. He enrolled at Trinity College (later renamed Duke University) in 1894. He began his public service as a teacher and principal in eastern North Carolina and served as superintendent of schools in Asheboro, Roxboro, and Washington County.
In 1913, Newbold moved to Raleigh and became the state’s first state agent for Negro Education where he sought to expand educational opportunities for Black students. He convinced the state legislature and local governments to allocate matching funds to build rural schools.
Newbold’s enthusiasm for education led him to contact Julius Rosenwald and arrange for funding for a school to be built in Chowan County. This was one of the first Rosenwald Schools to be built outside of the Tuskegee area in Alabama. Over the years, Newbold and his team secured funding for over 843 Rosenwald Schools in North Carolina, more than any other state.
In 1920, following a state educational survey, he outlined to the State Board of Education a plan to create an entire Division of Negro Education. The plan was approved, $15,000 in funding was appropriated by the General Assembly, and Newbold was named division director in 1921. He retired from that position in 1950, 29 years later.
Newbold was a founding member of the North Carolina Commission for Interracial Cooperation and served as the director of the Division of Cooperation in Education and Race Relations, a project sponsored by the State Department of Public Education, Duke University, and the University of North Carolina.
He died at his home in Raleigh on Dec. 23, 1957, at the age of 85, after having given a full life to work across race and religious lines.
The marker describes Newbold as a “White advocate for Black opportunities within the system of segregation.” For more information about the historical marker, please visit https://www.dncr.nc.gov/blog/2024/06/27/nathan-newbold-1871-1957-h-127, or call (919) 814-6625.
The Highway Historical Marker Program is a collaboration between the N.C. departments of Natural and Cultural Resources and Transportation.
About the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) manages, promotes, and enhances the things that people love about North Carolina – its diverse arts and culture, rich history, and spectacular natural areas. Through its programs, the department enhances education, stimulates economic development, improves public health, expands accessibility, and strengthens community resiliency.