Noble Hill-Wheeler Memorial Center

Constructed in 1923 as a school for African Americans during the era of segregation, this historic structure now serves as a museum dedicated to sharing Black history and culture. Kown as the Noble Hill-Wheeler Memorial Center, the former school was constructed using local funds matched by the charity established by Julius Rosenwald to support education for African Americans in places such as Georgia during the Jim Crow era. The Rosenwald Fund supported the construction of over five thousand schools, homes for teachers, and educational workshops in the South in the early 1900s. This was the first Rosenwald School in northwestern Georgia, and thanks to the efforts of local supporters, it is among the estimated ten to fifteen percent of buildings supported by Rosenwald that are still standing today.

This community museum is located in Cassville and is located within a former Rosenwald School built in 1923. At the time of its construction, this was the only public school in the area open to African American children. The Noble Hill school included a classroom for grades 1-3 on one side and a second for grades 4-6 on the other side. The school lacked electricity and was heated by a pot-belly stove. The school district provided only minimal support leading to the community effort to raise funds that were matched by philanthropist Julius Rosenwald, and parents often bought books for the children along with other donations.

The school was built by Webster Wheeler and Danny Harris. Webster was born in 1871 and died in 1943. Webster was married three times and had 15 children. A builder and farmer, he was also a deacon at his local church prior to moving to Detroit in the early 1900s to work in the Ford Motor company. He returned to Cassville and was part of the effort to raise funds and support from Rosenwald, and even became an administrator at the school. Less is known about builder Danny Harris, a farmer with carpentry skills who was born in 1873 and lived until 1962. He was married to Alice Johnson Harris and the couple had ten children.

The school operated until 1955. A nearby Baptist church later acquired the property and then sold it to Mr.Bethel Wheeler (Husband of Bertha Wheeler and daughter-in-law of Webster Wheeler) who had used the building as a temporary storage facility. Thanks to community support, the former school is home to the Noble Hill-Wheeler Museum which offers artifacts, documents, photographs, and interpretive exhibits that share African American history from slavery and the Jim Crow era to the present.

- Ghs. “Noble Hill Rosenwald School.” Georgia Historical Society, https://georgiahistory.com/ghmi_marker_updated/noble-hill-rosenwald-school/.

- Harris, Danny. DannyHarris_Image, https://noblehillwheeler.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/IMG_20160216_140551.jpg.  

- “History.” Noble Hill-Wheeler Memorial Center, https://noblehillwheeler.org/history/. 

- JSTOR. BRINGING HISTORY HOME: HERITAGE EDUCATION IN GEORGIA, https://www.jstor.org/stable/40584006?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents.

- Wheeler, Webster. “Researchgate | Find and Share Research.” WebsterWheeler_Image, https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ivan-Burke/publication/318111136_Breach_Level_Index_2013-2016/data/595a492aa6fdccc5b33d25cb/Breach-Level-Index-2013-2016.xlsx.