Historical marker will honor Black family’s efforts to integrate Raleigh schools
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Preserving NC’s Black history
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A historical marker will be unveiled Saturday to honor the first Black family that tried to integrate Raleigh’s all-white public schools.
The N.C. African American Heritage Commission will place a marker in front of the former Raleigh home of Joseph Holt Sr. and Elwyna Holt to mark it as a stop on the state’s Civil Rights Trail. The Holts waged a legal battle in the 1950s that, while unsuccessful, paved the way for the later integration of Raleigh City Schools.
“This day has been a long time in coming, and I am filled with joy and gratitude to my parents for their courage and persistence in fighting for our right to equal education,” Joseph Holt Jr. said in a news release.
In the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation of children in public schools was unconstitutional. Despite the ruling, integration proceeded slowly in Southern schools.
In 1956, the parents applied to send their 13-year-old son, Joseph Holt Jr., to the nearby all-white Daniels Junior High School, now called Oberlin Middle School. The school system rejected the request.
in 1957, the Holts applied to send their son to the all-white Broughton High School. The request was again rejected, leading to a three-year legal battle.
“When our photo was put in the paper, it sent shock waves through the community, especially the Black community,” Holt Jr. said in a 2004 interview. “After that, the pressure was enormous.”
After the family filed the lawsuit, Joseph Holt Sr. lost his job and the family received bomb threats. At one point, the family sent Holt Jr. to stay with relatives in Eastern North Carolina to keep him safe.
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case several months before Holt Jr. graduated from the all-black Ligon High School in 1960.
Integration would occur later in 1960 when William “Bill” Campbell became the first Black child to attend an all-white Raleigh school. The decision to allow the 7-year-old to attend the previously all-white Murphey School drew protests from those who opposed integration.
Preserving family legacy
Over the years, Holt Jr. has lobbied to preserve his family’s legacy in school integration.
In 2015, a group of Exploris Middle School students launched a campaign to have the Wake County school system name a school after the Holt family. The school system has declined, citing how it avoids naming schools after individuals.
The N.C. African American Heritage Commission credited several groups that sponsored Holt’s efforts to get the marker, including Exploris Middle teacher Shannon Hardy and her eighth-grade students, Preservation North Carolina, the Raleigh City Museum, StepUp Ministry, Cary Academy and Raleigh Charter High School.
A private dedication ceremony will be held Saturday morning. The public will be able to view the marker after noon when it’s installed at 1027 Oberlin Road.
This story was originally published September 14, 2022 at 12:37 PM.
