Free Hill, Tennessee

Free Hill, Tennessee
Unincorporated community
Free Hill
Coordinates: 36°33′44″N 85°29′32″W
Country	United States
State	Tennessee
County	Clay
Elevation [1]	620 ft (189 m)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central Time Zone)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (Central Time Zone)
Area code	931
GNIS feature ID	1284872[1]

Free Hills Rosenwald School
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The old Free Hills Rosenwald School at Free Hills Community Park
Location	Free Hills Rd., E of TN 52, Free Hill, Tennessee
Coordinates	36°33′45.5″N 85°29′12.7″W
Area	1 acre (0.40 ha)
Built	1929
Built by	Samuel L. Smith
Architectural style	Rosenwald School Plan
NRHP reference No.	96001360[2]
Added to NRHP	November 15, 1996

Free Hill (also called Free Hills) is an unincorporated community in Clay County, Tennessee, United States.^[1] It is an African American community established in 1816, before the Civil War.

History

The original inhabitants were the freed slaves of Virginia Hill, the daughter of a wealthy North Carolina planter.^[3] After purchasing 2,000 acres (8 km²) of isolated hilly land, Hill freed her slaves and turned the property over to them. Folklore suggests that the original residents included Virginia Hill's own mulatto children.^[4]

At its peak, the community had about 300 residents and included two grocery stores, three clubs, two eating establishments, two churches, and a school.^[4] Today, Free Hill's population is approximately 70.^[3]

Free Hills Rosenwald School

The settlement's Rosenwald school was one of 354 schools for African Americans built in the early 20th century with financial support from the Julius Rosenwald Fund. The Free Hills Rosenwald School was used from approximately 1925 to 1949. The structure, which is believed to be one of only about 30 Rosenwald schools still standing, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.^[2]

Recent years

A small number of residents remain in Free Hill, whose population has declined since the 1960s. In September 1993 the state of Tennessee placed a historical marker on Tennessee State Route 53 to identify the community and commemorate its history.^[4]

References

1. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Free Hill, Tennessee
2. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
3. Garrison, Joey (July 9, 2016). "Tennessee community founded by freed slaves fights extinction". The Tennessean. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
4. The Free Hills Community, an African-American heritage area

External links

• The Free Hills Community, an African-American heritage area
• Documentary video about the Rosenwald School