The first permanent high school for Negroes in Perry County was opened in Vicco under the name of Higgins High School. It was named for George Higgins who donated the land for the school. William Gatewood was the principal in 1928.
In 1929 A.D. Puryear became the principal.
During his six years as principal the school grew from fourteen students to eighty and from a one-teacher to a three-teacher school. Forty students graduated, and fifty percent attended college.
Transportation to the school became a problem, so the high school portion was moved to Hazard. This was near the center of the county.
In 1936 a new building was erected on Liberty Street. The school was named Liberty High with Karl Walker as principal. The school served the students of Hazard and all the Black graduates of the Perry County elementary schools. Eight teachers served twelve grades. The school had a full library, auditorium, and home economic building.
School spirit was always good at Liberty with great support from the students and community. The cultural programs and athletic achievements were evident of the interest of all. The school had neither a gym nor an athletic field, yet its teams excelled in football and basketball.
Students from the school served in all trades: coal mining, military careers, education, medical, engineering, law enforcement, social service, postal work, machine operators, clerical, and other areas of employment. Sixty-three students from Liberty served in the armed forces during World War II.
In 1998, the City of Hazard, under the direction of Mayor Gorman and the Commissioners, placed a monument on the site where the school had stood. Those who attended Liberty High will always hold dear the memories of Liberty Street, Liberty High School, the teachers of Liberty, and the county teachers who got them to Liberty and Hazard, Kentucky.
Information provided from a 2000 Liberty High Reunion program and by the late Kenneth Combs, July 7, 2003.
"True leadership isn't about dominating
others. It is about making a way for others
and empowering them to rise."
- DR. GENE CATE
Liberty High School -Hazard, KY
African-American education in Southeast Kentucky has traversed various landscapes over the ages. Below is a list of schools from which various alumni have become a great success.
Higgins High School
- Located in Vicco, Kentucky
- Would later become Liberty High School in Hazard, Kentucky
Browns Fork School
- A small yet well-attended school located in Browns Fork, just outside of Hazard, Kentucky
Liberty High School
- Located in Hazard, Kentucky on Liberty Street
- Actively maintains a Reunion Association
Browns Fork School
Bertus H. Combs Liberty High School Diploma
