C. S. Brown Cultural Arts Center

03/30/2026

On March 22, at the 140th annual Founders' Day program at the C.S. Brown Cultural Arts Center and Museum, a new historical marker was unveiled honoring the centennial of Brown Hall. Brown Hall, the home of the Center, is a 10,000 square foot auditorium and classroom building that is the center of the C.S. Brown School's historic campus. Many former students who attended classes In Brown Hall were in attendance.
Brown Hall's construction was funded in part by the community, local government and Julius Rosenwald, a Sears Roebuck executive and philanthropist. Rosenwald was a friend of Booker T. Washington who gave him the idea of providing seed money that resulted in the construction of over 5,300 school buildings in the south. It happened that Washington was a Hampton University schoolmate of Joseph Catus, the executive founder of what became the C.S. Brown School. One late student remembers the farmers who donated their time, mules and wagons to haul the hall's construction materials from the Cofield train depot to Winton.
The William G. Pomeroy Foundation of Syracuse, New York is the grantor of the Hometown Heritage Marker for Brown Hall. Chowan Discovery Group, the nominator, has now placed ten historical markers and plaques in Hertford County and seventeen in North Carolina.
Marker photo: L-r: Leanne Sibanda, Dr. Mary Ruffin-Harrell, Marvin Tupper Jones of the Chowan Discovery Group, Khloe Grayson and Dr. Dudley E Flood. Sibanda and Grayson are students at the C.S. Brown High School STEM, Dr. Harrell-Ruffin is the Executive Director of the C.S. Brown Cultural Arts Center and Museum and Dr. Dudley E. Flood (CSB class of 1950) was the Founders Day speaker.
Other photos: Brown Hall, Dr. Calvin Scott Brown, Cofield, NC rail depot.

12/24/2025

Mark your calendars and please join us for the opening of our America 250 NC exhibit "The Revolutionary Women of Hertford County" on Saturday, February 14, 2026 from 1P - 3P at The Freedom Players Youth Theatre Group, 510 South Everette Street, Ahoskie, NC. Refreshments will be served. All are welcome!

12/24/2025

12/24/2025

10/24/2025

Cultivator, Inc. Cultivator was founded in 2016 and our miss… Caroline Stephenson needs your support for Support Cultivator's monthly mobile food distribution today

09/16/2025

It came as a surprise to find so many men from the Pleasant Plains Church community who enlisted to destroy slavery during the Civil War. This fact became part of Chowan Discovery’s historical marker application for its church.
Last month, Chowan Discovery unveiled three historical markers at Pleasant Plains Baptist Church, located between Winton and Ahoskie, NC. As a church for people of color, its 1851 founding was rare and, its creation was postponed because of the reaction to the 1831 Nat Turner Rebellion in neighboring Southampton County, VA. The people of Pleasant Plains went on to start a school before the Civil War, and many of its men destroyed slavery by their service in the United States Colored Troops and Navy.
The church community fostered other churches and schools, provided leadership in education, agriculture, business, politics, healthcare, Civil Rights and family. 2026 will be Pleasant Plains Baptist Church’s 175th anniversary.
The William G. Pomeroy Foundation provided the funding and guidance for the marker.

06/04/2025

We hope you can join us as we approach another busy summer at Chowan Discovery. While we've given many lectures this year, installing four historical markers in a short time will be a new high, making our marker count at fifteen. More to come!

June 13, 12:45pm: "Katie Hart - Pioneering Librarian" lecture at the Hertford County Aging Senior Center 408 S Camp Street, Winton, NC
June 14, 10am: Unveiling of the historical marker for the Atlantic District Fairgrounds during the Juneteenth program at the Robert L. Vann Resource Center, 415 Holloman Street, Ahoskie, NC
June 14, 2pm: "Katie Hart - Pioneering Librarian" lecture at the Gathering Place, 701 Church Street, E., Ahoskie, NC
June 15,10am: "Hertford County's Soldiers of Freedom" lecture, Jordan Grove Missionary Baptist Church, 103 Hill St, Winton, NC
June 19, 6:30pm: "Juneteenth Soldiers of Northeastern North Carolina", hosted by the Sandhills Genealogical Society online; link to be determined later.
July 19, 11am: "Haiti and the Civil War" lecture, hosted by the Middle Peninsula African American Genealogical and History Society online; link to be determined later.
August - TBD: Three historical markers at Pleasant Plains Church

03/23/2025

03/23/2025

Celebrating the 139th Observance of Founder’s Day for Calvin Scott Brown!

10/23/2024

Video about Brown Auditorium, produced by Chowan Discovery:

One of the largest Rosenwald School buildings, the C.S. Brown Auditorium has been serving the Hertford County, NC community since 1926 as a school facility, ...

10/23/2024

HOBSON R. REYNOLDS graduated from Waters Training School in 1916, and spoke at CSB's 1966 graduation program upon his 50th class ruenion. He also attended the 1986 CSB Centennial Weekend. Saturday was the UNVEILING OF THE HOBSON R. REYNOLDS MARKER by his Elks at the National headquarters - Shrine - in Winton NC. I gave a short talk about Chowan Discovery's nomination of the marker, and read a letter from William G. Pomeroy whose foundation funded the marker. Natalie Rodriguez of the NC African American Heritage Commission spoke passionately about African American history and her agency's work. We want to thank the Elks' Grand Exalted Ruler, Leonard Polk, Brother Carlton Coleman and all Elks for their partnership and hospitality. Afterwards, we visited Pleasant Plains School among other Winton Triangle sites. This is Chowan Discovery's third NC Civil Rights Trail Marker and our eleventh historical marker!