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Mary E. Branch School
Constructed in 1926, the building that would become the Mary E. Branch School originally served as the Farmville Colored School, offering elementary education to African American students within a segregated system. As the need for education grew, the school expanded to include higher grade levels, and in 1931 it was renamed Robert Russa Moton High School in honor of the prominent African American educator. It became the first free-standing high school for Black students in Prince Edward County.
In 1939, to accommodate a growing student population, a new high school building was constructed across the street. The original structure was then renamed the Mary E. Branch School, honoring a distinguished Farmville native who had become president of Tillotson College in Texas.
When Prince Edward County closed its public schools in 1959 to avoid complying with the desegregation mandate of Brown v. Board of Education, the Mary E. Branch School took on a new role. It was repurposed as Free School No. 2 by the Prince Edward Free School Association, serving as one of the few places where African American students could continue their education during this period of massive resistance.
Following the reopening and integration of public schools in 1964, the Mary E. Branch School continued to serve the local community. Today, it is being renovated to become the Mary E. Branch Heritage Center, a space dedicated to community programming and the preservation of the building’s rich historical legacy.