Chowan High School — Edenton, North Carolina

Posted by DaveSanders | North Carolina | Posted on December 16th, 2009

Edenton, North Carolina seems to consider itself a small town. With a population of around 13,000, maybe they try to maintain the small town feel. Edenton is the largest town in Chowan County, which is the smallest county in North Carolina (147 square miles according to the Chowan County Sheriff’s Office).

Here’s some Chowan County photos from the book Edenton and Chowan County, North Carolina.

And here’s the Edenton-Chowan County Recreation Department on Facebook.

——————————————————————————–Reunion apparel for Chowan High School
Chowan High School is listed as being in Edenton, but is physically closer to the little town of Tyner. A reader of this blog tells us the colors of the Chowan Bulldogs were Maroon and White. Another says they were Maroon and Gold. So, I’ve changed the alumni apparel to Maroon, Gold & White.

I couldn’t find much information at all about Chowan High School (but check out the excellent comments from alumni at the end of this post.)

“Chowan” refers to the Chowan Indian tribe that lived in the area at one time. The area is rich in history. The thick growth and swamps around the Chowan River was used at different times to “swallow up” people who didn’t want to be found.

Here’s a Google Street View which may be Chowan Middle School. What little I could find about Chowan High School indicates that, over the life of the school, there was more than one school building. I have no idea where the final Chowan High School building was or whether it still exists.

———– Sports ————————————————————–

The Chowan High School baseball team made it to the Class 1A playoffs in 1980.

Anne Hollowell scored 70 points in a basketball game against Conway in 1955.

————————————————————————————-

Here’s a few blurbs I found in old newspapers or books that mention Chowan High School.

NC Dept. of Public Instruction, 1915 Annual Report
Principal, Miss Mary Agnes Weaver, Chowan High School:
I made no report on the building. This school year we have had a comfortable building with passable equipment. For the next school year, the new building (brick) will be ready for occupancy.

In the 1936 “North Carolina Emergency Relief Administration” report, $1,700 was allocated for “Construction school building, Chowan High School.”

(Wilmington) Star-News, May 20, 1974
WHITEVILLE — Terry Grier of Whiteville Senior High School’s Wolfpack has been named the Three Rivers Conference’s “Co-Coach Of The Year” in baseball. Grier is in his first year at Whiteville Senior High, coming from Chowan High in Edenton where he was “Coach of the Year” in the East Tidewater 2-A Conference (now 3-A).

The Windsor Daily Star, Dec. 19, 1935
BASHFUL
SMALL’S CROSS ROADS, N. C.. Dec. 19
Eleazer Woodard, athletic coach at Chowan High School, played the leading part in “Bashful Mr. Bobbs” so well he almost stopped the show.
Bashful both on and off stage, Woodard forgot his lines when the girls in the play started to “cuddle up” as their parts specified.
“Brace up, Eleazer, nobody is going to bite you,” the school principal whispered from the wings.
Eleazer braced–and the show went on.

***** If you know anything about Chowan High School, please let us know. We will update this post with your comments.

9 comments
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9 Responses to “Chowan High School — Edenton, North Carolina”

  1. C.G. Bromley says:
    January 27, 2010 at 9:12 pm

    Chowan High School Bulldogs. Colors maroon and white. We had a basketball team but no football team.
    Country school near Tyner, TX. I graduated in 1970. I still have one yearbook and my megaphone from being a cheerleader. At the time I went there, grades six through 12 attended.

    The Indian had to do with the word Chowan which is an Indian word. Don’t remember what it meant.

    Reply
  2. Jackie Morris says:
    August 12, 2011 at 8:18 am

    I graduated from in 1955 and an trying to locate my Classmates.

    Reply
  3. Martin B. Hollowell says:
    August 17, 2011 at 10:46 pm

    Did C. G. Bromley say Tyner, TX??? LOL!
    Anyway, I grew up next to Chowan High School in Tyner, North Carolina. My parents graduated from there and I went to school there from grades 1-12. It later became grades 6-12 after intergration. I graduated in 1975.
    My parents probably know Jackie Morris… the name sounds familiar to me.
    True, the school was never large enough for a football team but it did have a basketball and baseball teams. It’s mascot was the bulldog. The Anne Hollowell you mentioned from an article is a cousin of mine. She’s lived most of her life in Pasadena, CA. I grew up next door to her parents who were like my grandparents.
    The school was located in Chowan County on Highway 32 (now named Virginia Road), 12 miles north of Edenton, NC. Chowan is named after the Chowanoke Indians which originally occupied the area. The school was demolished some time in the late 1980′s… I’m not certain about that… and the new Chowan Middle School was built at the same site. For some reason, I do believe they kept the old gym.

    Reply
    • DaveSanders says:
      August 17, 2011 at 11:33 pm

      Great info, Martin. Thanks!

      Reply
    • Jackie Morris says:
      September 23, 2011 at 12:07 pm

      I went to school with Anne Hollowell (Smith) for12 years she was one of my many friends in school. Others living near me in Virginia Beach are Evangeline Copeland (Wheeler)and Mary Sue Elliott (Spencer). I have tried to reach Anne in California on several occassions with out success
      can you provide her address to me or have her contact me. I think that she has a daughter, Rebecca, in Greensboro. My email address is jlm3481@aol.com. I have also tried to reach Sara Margatet Asbell who lives in Hawaii and has a sister in VB, Jacj
      kie (do not know her married name).

      Reply

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