Oak Ridge Military Academy

Oak Ridge was established in 1852 by local families in the surrounding community, some of them associated with the Society of Friends (Quakers). The school traces its origins to April 7, 1850, when forty-three local citizens of the northwestern Guilford County community "desirous of promoting the cause of education" contributed a total of $629 for the construction of a new schoolhouse. The school, originally conceived as Oak Ridge Male Institute, changed its name to Oak Ridge Institute prior to opening, to reflect that a limited number of females from the local community would also attend the school.

Oak Ridge Institute opened on March 3, 1853, with a classical curriculum of 18 courses and 63 students from North Carolina and Virginia. By 1856 it had 85 students, roughly three-quarters of whom were from places other than Oak Ridge. Through 1861, the school continued to evolve from a local community school to a regional boarding "finishing" school. The American Civil War closed the school from 1862 to 1866, with scores of eligible aged students (probably about 100) enlisting or conscripted into Southern units.

The school re-opened after the Civil War, but found challenges operating during Reconstruction. However, from 1875 to 1914 Oak Ridge was led by two brothers, Professors J. Allen Holt and Martin Holt. Under their leadership the Oak Ridge Institute became one of the best prep schools in North Carolina, boasting business and humanities departments, literary and debating societies, and sports teams which regularly played Wake Forest College (University), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Trinity College (later Duke University) in football and baseball. Several of the academy's baseball players went on to play in the major leagues.

In 1914, the leadership of the school transitioned to Professor Thomas E. Whitaker. After a devastating fire that destroyed the main schoolhouse and the Chapel on January 14, 1914, Professor Whitaker rebuilds Oak Ridge into a military academy. During the First World War the Junior Reserve Officer Training Program (JROTC) was admitted to the campus and in 1929 Oak Ridge officially becomes an all-male military secondary school, with a name change to Oak Ridge Military Institute. From 1929 to 1967 Oak Ridge also included a junior college program, in addition to the high school curriculum. During the Second World War 127 of the academy's alumni were awarded a Purple Heart during the conflict, while another 27 alumni earned the Silver Star. In 1972, Oak Ridge became the first military high school in the United States to admit females, which prompted a name change to Oak Ridge Academy, dropping "military" from the name as JROTC participation was optional for girls. By 1981, all students, male and female, are required to participate in JROTC, and the school name was changed to Oak Ridge Military Academy. Today, Oak Ridge is the oldest military high school in the United States still in operation[3]

The Oak Ridge Military Academy Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.[1] The district encompasses 21 contributing buildings and 1 contributing structure. They include the Queen Anne style Oakhurst (1897) designed by Frank P. Milburn (1868-1926), the home of Martin H. Holt; Maple Glade (1905), the home of J. Allen Holt; the Oakland Park Hotel (Benbow Hall, 1905, destroyed in fire in 1993); the old Donnell and Holt Store (now Cottrell Hall, c. 1900); the Alumni Building (1914); Chapel (1914); Whitaker Dormitory, Holt Dormitory, and King Gymnasium (1920s); and Infirmary (1938).[3]

Since 1972 Oak Ridge has been a private, coeducational, college-preparatory military boarding school (with a limited day student enrollment, mostly from the local community). The Academy is divided into a middle school (grades 7-8), and a high school (grades 9-12). Oak Ridge is the official military school of North Carolina, as designated by the state legislature in 1991. Oak Ridge is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), and it was first accredited by SACS in 1899. ORMA is also a member of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), the North Carolina Association of Independent Schools (NCAIS), and the Association of Military Schools and Colleges of the United States (AMSCUS). It is the only active military school to have won the National High School Drill Team Championship (1996).

• Samuel Bason — Yanceyville banker and businessman and member of the North Carolina State Senate, 1948–1956[4]
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. — race-car driver for NASCAR, has 26 NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series wins and 246 Top-10 finishes[5][6]
• Jessica Hernandez — lead singer of the Detroit-based soul and pop music band Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas
• Alvin Paul Kitchin — Democratic Party Congressman from North Carolina in the Eighty-fifth, Eighty-sixth, and Eighty-seventh Congresses
• George Parrott — officer in the United States Navy during World War I, receiving the Navy Cross, later honored for his service by his namesake on the US Navy Destroyer USS Parrott (DD-218)
• George Stephens — civic and business leader, credited with catching the first forward pass in American football in 1895

• Official website