The birth of organized,
public education in the Simpsonville, Mauldin and Fountain Inn areas
began in the mid to late 1800’s. In Simpsonville, the first
schoolhouse was built in 1882, followed by Simpsonville High School
established in 1885. The high school was accredited in 1915 and one
year later was the first school in Greenville County to add the 11th
grade to its curriculum. By 1876 Mauldin students were attending
the first “free school” in that area. The school was located in a
pine log building near Poplar Springs Baptist Church. Students were
expected to attend for five years, three months each year, where
they learned spelling, reading and arithmetic. In that day all
schools in the area evolved around the planting and harvesting
seasons. A school for the Fountain Inn community was established in
1886.
These schools, as was the
custom of the day, were open to whites only. Under the leadership
of the Reedy River Baptist Association the Simpsonville High School
for blacks began in 1886. It was replaced by the Rosenwald School in
1923. In 1954 Bryson High School was built to replace the
deteriorating Rosenwald School. After desegregation in 1970, the
students from Bryson High School joined the enrollment at Hillcrest
High School.
In the spring of 1957, a
small group met to establish the foundation of a new high school to
accommodate the Simpsonville, Mauldin, and Fountain Inn areas. A
committee of nine, composed of three representatives from each area
school, met to decide on a name for the new school. The committee
made a community-wide request for name suggestions. The Tribune, the
local newspaper, published the 78 suggestions sent to the
committee. Among the suggestions were “Triangle,” “Southern,”
“Hillcrest,” “F.S.M. Consolidated,” and “Quil-Ma-Ville High
School.” The last suggestion was an attempt to consolidate the
three towns: “Quil” represented Robert Quillen, a famous author from
Ft. Inn, “Ma” represented the Mauldin community, and the “Ville”
was to represent Simpsonville. From that long list of names, the
committee selected the name Hillcrest submitted by Miss Daisy Stone.
The committee felt the word Hillcrest reflected the terrain of the
landscape, an impressive 84-acre knoll, chosen as the building site.
The name Hillcrest was appealing also because “of the poetic quality
of the spoken word and its beauty in writing of print.” The
committee selected red and white as the school colors, and the “Ram”
as the school mascot. Black was added as a school color in the
1970’s.
On September 3, 1957, the
school opened its doors to 1065 students from Simpsonville, Mauldin
and Fountain Inn, grades 7-12. The school was built by Triangle
Construction Company at the cost of $1,050,000. The two-acre school
building was built to serve 1400 students with 52 teaching
stations.
Mr. Henry P. Bennett earned the distinction of being
the first person to serve as principal of Hillcrest High School. The
assistant principal was Mr. B.T. Julian. This first administration
and staff faced the enormous task of uniting three communities who
had been archrivals, especially in the world of athletics. The
efforts of these adults paid off. Under the guidance of Mr.
Bennett, the transition from three communities to one student body
was successful. Mr. Bennett will long be remembered for his untiring
efforts toward this goal.
On January 26, 1958, the school was dedicated “to the
education of the young people in the community.” The principal
speaker, Dr. J.A. Barry, Jr., president of Coker College and
graduate of Fountain Inn High School, dedicated the building “to the
principles that ought and can mean the most to us tomorrow.” W.E.
Freeman, Jr., the architect, presented the keys to the building to
Thomas K. Johnstone, Jr., chairman of the school board of trustees.
In honor of this ceremony, Miss Pamela Koon, Hillcrest High School
Choral Director, borrowed poetic words written by Mr. William
Hickman, algebra teacher, about the school and set them to music.
This song, applauded enthusiastically for its beautiful tune and
stirring words, was accepted as the Hillcrest High School Alma
Mater.
On June 5, 1958, Hillcrest High School awarded its first
diplomas to 104 graduating seniors. In 1962, the school applied for
accreditation. A committee from the Southern Association of
Secondary Schools and Colleges evaluated the school. On November 27
Hillcrest High School became accredited. Hillcrest Middle School
took the sub-freshman class in 1969 and a new Mauldin High School
was built in 1972 to serve that community.
Thirty-five years later,
in 1992, a new and larger Hillcrest High School, located adjacent to
the original school, was built to accommodate overcrowding and
expected growth in the Simpsonville and Fountain Inn areas. The
former Hillcrest High School now serves as Bryson Middle School and
is the primary feeder to Hillcrest High School. An ongoing challenge
of Hillcrest High School is to serve the diverse needs and interests
of these communities while promoting commonality among the student
body. To this end the school has experienced much success.
Fountain Inn Police Chief A. Keith Morton states, “Hillcrest High
School is the beginning of teenage transformation into adulthood.
The school is a vital portion of our community and helps shape our
future leaders.” Today, the Golden Strip Community continues to
grow at an amazing pace. Hillcrest High School has already outgrown
it 1800 student capacity. The present enrollment is approximately
2300 students, making Hillcrest the largest high school in
Greenville County.
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The Ring and Seal
The senior class ring is
divided into two parts symbolizing education and history. Education
is depicted by the lamp of knowledge and the book of learning. A
banner around the emblem reads, “Honor, Truth, Loyalty.” History is
depicted by a map of Greenville County and four stars. One large
star represents Hillcrest High School and the three smaller stars
represent the three communities, Simpsonville, Mauldin and Fountain
Inn, served by the school. The work of the area, industry and
agriculture, are symbolized on either side of the map. Also
included on the ring is the state flower, the Yellow Jasmine. The
setting of the ring is red, encircled by the words “Hillcrest High
School” and the founding date of the school.
The Seal of Hillcrest symbolically represents the foundations of the
school. On the outer edge of the seal is a rope signifying school
spirit. Next are the word “Hillcrest” and the founding date of the
school. In the center is a triangle representing the three
communities served by the school. Across the triangle is a banner
that reads, “Honor, Truth, Loyalty.” In the middle of the triangle
is a picture of Hillcrest High School, the center of the three
communities.
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