Before Us Lies the Timber The Segregated High School of Montgomery County, Maryland, 1927-1960

In 1927, forty students about to enter the eighth grade, along with their teacher, arrived in the morning to open the doors to their small, two-room schoolhouse for the first time. There were already ten public high schools in Montgomery County, Maryland. But these forty students weren't allowed to attend any of them because of the color of their skin. Before its opening, young African-Americans in Montgomery County were faced with a choice between leaving their families behind to seek a high school education in Baltimore City or Washington, D.C., or staying at home to eke out a living as a domestic or labor on their parents' farms. Now. Rockville Colored High School, the result of aggressive determination and tireless persistence by local black leaders, became the first high school in the county for African-American boys and girls eager to continue their education. As the doors opened to a school of their own, these students could finally see the hope and opportunity that a secondary education offered. Struggling through economic, social, and transportation challenges, they journeyed towards their diplomas. The first graduating class of Rockville Colored High chose as their motto "Before Us Lies the Timber -- Let Us Build," reflecting their dreams for the future.Hill, Warrick S. is the author of 'Before Us Lies the Timber The Segregated High School of Montgomery County, Maryland, 1927-1960' with ISBN 9780910155403 and ISBN 0910155402.