ROANOKE, Va. – Roanoke City Public Schools announced Monday that the original Lucy Addison High School, built in 1928 as a segregated high school for Black Roanokers, was one of the nine historic places recently listed in the Virginia Landmarks Register.
The designation comes following approval by the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Board of Historic Resources on June 12. In addition, the Board approved a highway marker for Lucy Addison that will be installed in front of the building.
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Lucy Addison High School was built in 1928 at 40 Douglass Ave. NW as the City of Roanoke’s first high school specifically designed to serve Black students during the period of racial segregation in Virginia’s public schools.
The VLR is the Commonwealth’s official list of places of historic, architectural, archaeological and cultural significance. The Department of Historic Resources will forward the documentation for the newly listed VLR sites to the National Park Service for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places.
According to RCPS, the Board also approved a historical marker to educate the public about Addison, a pioneering educator who served as the principal of the Harrison School, Roanoke’s first Black high school. The marker will be installed at the corner of Burrell Street and Orange Avenue at the base of the original Lucy Addison High School property.