Nathan Carter Newbold

Nathan Carter Newbold was the Director of Negro Education in the North Carolina State Department of Public Instruction from 1921 to 1950. Newbold advocated for increased educational opportunities for African-American children in North Carolina within a racially segregated school system.

Biography

Nathan Carter Newbold was born in Pasquotank County, North Carolina near Elizabeth City. He was a school teacher and principal in Eastern North Carolina. Newbold then served as superintendent of schools in Asheboro, Roxboro, and Washington County. In 1913, Newbold moved to Raleigh to serve as the state's first agent for Negro Education. In this role, Newbold advocated for increased educational opportunity for African-American children in North Carolina. In 1920, Newbold proposed a Division of Negro Education to the State Board of Education. The plan was approved in 1921 and $15,000 was allocated by the General Assembly for the new division. In 1921, Newbold became the first Division Director of the Division of Negro Education. Newbold served as Director of Negro Education until he retired in 1950. Newbold died in his home at the age of 85 on December 23, 1957.

Works

He edited Five North Carolina Negro Educators published in 1939. Barry F. Malone wrote a dissertation on him and education in Jim Crow era North Carolina.
The North Carolina Digital Collections have some of his correspondence available online. North Carolina Central University has a collection of his and his family's papers. Duke University has a collection of his papers.

Legacy

Newbold High School was named in honor of Nathan Carter Newbold in 1952. The segregated high school served African-Americans until it closed in 1968 during desegregation. The school now serves as G. E. Massey Elementary School.
On April 25, 2025, a North Carolina Highway Historical Marker was dedicated for Nathan Carter Newbold. The marker stands at the corner of Hillsborough Street and West Park Drive, two blocks south of Newbold's former residence in Raleigh, North Carolina.