HISTORY

RYE COVE HIGH SCHOOL

Rye Cove has long been a center of education in Scott County. In the middle nineteenth century, Washington Institute in Rye Cove was an ungraded school where in summer a "normal" school was held for prospective teachers.

In 1907, a four-room frame school was built with grades from primer through grade nine. In the summer of 1915, the school was converted to a two-story structure with the addition of two classrooms and an auditorium. The tenth grade was added to the curriculum. In the summer of 1923, two more rooms were annexed.

On May 2, 1929, the school building at Rye Cove was completely destroyed by a tornado, killing twelve students, one teacher and injuring many others. As a result, there was no school session in Rye Cove during 1929-30.

In 1930, Rye Cove Memorial High School was completed on the original site. This building served both elementary and high school students.

In 1955, Rye Cove Memorial High, Clinchport Junior High, and Fairview High Schools were consolidated and moved to a new building on a twenty-acre site near the Memorial School. The new school was officially named Rye Cove High School.