Classroom

The construction of Bias Hall began in 1937 and had it's formal dedication in May of 1939.&nbsp; Formally a dormitory, it was constructed as a three-story brick building in the Colonial Revival style.&nbsp; It has a seven-bay central section, and is covered by a slate gable roof.&nbsp; It's round arched windows and stone columnns really define this building.&nbsp; At the time of the Bias Hall construction and opening, Elizabeth City State University was known as Elizabeth City State Teachers College.&nbsp; The teachers college consists of three adjoining areas around campus that is approximately nineteen acres.&nbsp; Close to the historical entrance, Bias Hall stands tall.&nbsp;

Bias Hall is located on the grounds of Elizabeth City State University.  It is part of the historical buildings found in the national historical registry.  Named for the president of the school at the time of construction, John Henry Bias.  It is an immaculate, historical structure built of a large three-story dormitory building in the Colonial Revival style.

Bias Hall (Elizabeth City State University)

Developed by Introduction to History students at Elizabeth City State University, this walking tour guides visitors through the Parkview Avenue side of campus, a National Historic District. The tour includes images, information about the buildings, and the history of the "shining star of the northeast."

"Believed to be the second oldest campus structure. Originally for women students, its normal capacity was 99 persons before going out of service. It was rebuilt in 1949 following destruction by a hurricane, then had several renovations. Symera and Lane Halls are connected by a small area formerly known as the “Captain’s Cabin,” then a Faculty dining area. The building is named for Symera Raynor Moore (1860-1922), wife of the first President." 

Symera Hall (Elizabeth City State University)

<ul><li>26 January 1891: Hugh Cale introduces legislation to
establish normal school in Elizabeth City, law enacted 3 March</li><li>4 January 1892: Elizabeth City
Colored Normal School opens on Roanoke Avenue under the leadership of Peter Weddick Moore with a state appropriation
of $90</li><li>1896:
Six students graduate in first
graduating class</li><li>1912:
School begins operations at its
current location</li><li>1914:
First football team</li><li>1928:
Peter Moore retires, Dr. John
Henry Bias elected the second president</li><li>1939:
Newly renamed Elizabeth City
State Teachers College awards first baccalaureate degrees, Dr. Harold Leonard
Trigg becomes third president following the death of Bias</li><li>1941:
Fiftieth anniversary celebrated</li><li>1946:
Dr. Sidney David Williams becomes
fourth president</li><li>1958:
Dr. Walter Nathaniel Ridley takes
the reigns as fifth president</li><li>1963:
School becomes Elizabeth City
State College</li><li>1964:
ECSC abandons Pirates as
athletics mascot and adopt Vikings, enrollment exceeds 1000 students for the
first time</li><li>1966:
Dr. Herman Cooke identifies a strain of bacteria that
specifically targets cancer cells</li><li>1968:
Dr. Marion Dennis Thorpe becomes
the sixth president</li><li>1969:
School becomes Elizabeth City
State University</li><li>1972:
School becomes a constituent
institution of the new University of North Carolina system, Ridley becomes
first chancellor</li><li>1981:
Basketball team wins the CIAA
championship</li><li>1983:
Dr. Jimmy R. Jenkins ‘65 becomes
the seventh chief executive officer and second chancellor</li><li>1986:
First broadcast by WRVS-RM
(“Wonderful Radio Viking Style”)</li><li>1994:
State Teachers College Historic
District recognized by the National Register of Historic Places</li><li>1996:
Mickey Lynn Burnim elected eighth chief executive
officer and third chancellor</li><li>2007:
Men’s basketball team wins the
2007 CIAA championship, Dr. Willie J. Gilchrist became ninth executive officer
and fourth chancellor</li><li>2011:
Washington
Monthly names ECSU the #1 baccalaureate
school for the first time&nbsp;</li><li>2014:
UNC Board of Governors elects Dr.
Stacey Franklin Jones tenth executive officer and fifth chancellor, the first
woman to hold the post</li><li>2016:
Dr. Thomas Conway elected
eleventh executive officer and sixth chancellor, ECSU celebrates 125 years of
excellence</li></ul>

On 3 March 1891, an African-American representative from Pasquotank County in the North Carolina General Assembly sponsored a bill for the establishment of a school for the "teaching and training teachers of the colored race [in Elizabeth City] to teach in the common schools of North Carolina." That school, now Elizabeth City State University, has transformed over the last 125 years from a normal school for African-American teachers to a four-year university offering both undergraduate and graduate degrees. In 1994, the National Register of Historical Places recognized the Elizabeth City State Teachers College Historic District, the original six campus buildings on the current site (an earlier building was rented on Shannon Street, now Herrington Road), as a historic landmark.

Elizabeth City State Teachers College Historic District (Elizabeth City State University)

Named for Harold Leonard Trigg, President of Elizabeth City State Teachers College (1939-45), the Trigg Building was built in 1939 in a Colonial Revival style and expanded in 195/69. It has served multiple purposes over time, as a library (named for G.R. Little, as the current library is), archives, student union, administration building (named for Marion D. Thorpe, as the current administration building is) and now office building. 

H.L. Trigg Building (Elizabeth City State University)

Moore Hall is an air-conditioned 2-story structure, that was erected in 1922 and an addition built in
 1939.There is a fully functional
 computer lab housed on the second floor of Moore Hall, that is used as a research
 tool, and as an avenue of communication between students and professors. Just downstairs
 on the first floor there is a state of the art auditorium for lectures. Moore Hall
 is equipped with an elevator, and is handicapped accessible.

Moore Hall is one of the oldest buildings on campus and is listed on the National Historic Registry. Moore Hall is named for the first leader of Elizabeth City State University, Peter W. Moore, who was called a Principal (subsequent leaders would be called President, then Chancellor). Moore served as Principal and then President until his retirement as President, Emeritus, on July 1, 1928. Currently, Moore Hall is closed. 

Moore Hall (Elizabeth City State University)

Lane Hall is one of the oldest buildings on campus; it was begun in 1910 and finished in 1912. The building was named after Mrs. Frances Lane Bias the wife of the schools second president. The seal on the front of the building is often displayed as a symbol of the university. Until later on in 1980s, Lane Hall was the campus dining hall and then construction of a new facility began. "The Department offers undergraduate programs leading to Bachelor of Science degrees in both Mathematics and Computer Science. The Department also offers a M.S. in Mathematics with concentrations in Mathematics Education, Applied Mathematics, Community College Teaching, and Remote Sensing."

Lane Hall is one of the oldest buildings on campus. The seal on the front of the building is now one of the symbols of the university. Lane Hall is used as the center for Math and Computer Science classes.

Lane Hall (Elizabeth City State University)

 Historic 2-story, wooden former residence for every CEO of ECSU and their families except Drs. Moore, Burnim, and Gilchrist. Constructed 1923 and known also as the “Vice Principal’s Residence,” since it was first occupied by –then Vice Principal Bias, it was renovated (1992) for its current usage and was renovated again (2004)  a matched State Historic Preservation grant.

Principal's House (Elizabeth City State University)

WILLIAMS HALL, 2-story complex (1949) with added wings in 1951 for Physical Education and Fine Arts instruction, plus a Home Economics area. The Laboratory Nursery/Kindergarten was formerly housed here. Renovated several times, it formerly housed the Music Department. With 2003 - 2004 rehabilitation and modernization, the 36,000-square foot facility has become the new home of the School of Business and Economics and continues to house the operations of WRVS-FM radio. With all new finishes and furnishings, a new elevator, and facilities for the disabled, it also has some revisions of its exterior design, modernized electrical, mechanical, and plumbing systems. It also houses the renovated intramural gymnasium along with offices and locker rooms for the Physical Education program. The fountain area in front of the building will become part of the revised campus ‘Greenspace.’ The building is named for Dr. Sidney David Williams (1892 - 1974), fourth President and second President Emeritus.

With the idea for a new physical education building in 1947 and help from architect 
J. Alien Maxwell Williams Hall was born. Williams Hall was constructed to be a 2 story building with 4 wings added in 1951 a gymnasium for physical education and classrooms for fine arts services as well as a home economics area. Williams Hall has been renovated and refurbished plenty of times and was formally the source for the music department as well. Since 2003-2004 the building has undergone plenty of moderations and improvements and is now the new home of the school's Business and Economics.


Williams Hall (Elizabeth City State University)

The Elizabeth City State Normal School's Model Practice School is a three-teacher type Rosenwald School, built in a Craftsman Bungalow style. Its construction cost $6,8000, including $1,000 from the Julius Rosenwald Fund. The Rosenwald Fund helped fund more than 5000 schools in the American South.

Built with the assistance of Sears Roebuck president Julius Rosenwald's school-building fund in 1921-22, the Model Practice School served local African-American children who were taught, in part, by teachers in training at the Normal School. Previously located along Parkview (then Southern) Avenue, it was moved in 1957 to its current site. It functioned as a practice school until the 1940s and has since housed the school laundry, a laboratory kindergarten, a cosmetology program, and most recently the ECSU ROTC Viking Battalion.

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Elizabeth City State University Historic Walking Tour

Bias Hall (Elizabeth City State University)

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Cite This Entry

Sources