Huntington High School

This is the former site of the Collis P. Huntington High School, established in 1927. Located in the East End of Newport News, it was an African-American school during the era of segregation. William R. Walker, Jr., who was born and raised in Newport News, attended Huntington High before going to Howard University. At Howard, Walker studied civil engineering and business management and graduated magna cum laude in 1932. Walker then returned to his hometown with the hopes of finding a job in the area. However, Newport News, like much of the United States, was still recovering from the Great Depression. This economic devastation, coupled with Southern racism and discrimination, made finding a job near impossible for Walker, despite his education. He returned to his alma mater at Huntington High School and became a mathematics and chemistry teacher in 1933.​

Walker became a respected member of the faculty, with the principal, Lutrelle Palmer, becoming a close friend and mentor. Palmer had intended to groom Walker to become principal of Huntington one day. However, when an opportunity arose in 1936 for Walker to become the Community Manager of Aberdeen Gardens, a housing project in Hampton started under the New Deal, Palmer encouraged him to take it.

Lutrelle Palmer stayed a friend of Walker for many years, with both men sharing a sincere dedication to the fight for equal rights. Palmer was a strong advocate of the NAACP, which Walker would later serve as president to its Newport News chapter. In November of 1937, Palmer protested the pay gap between white and black teachers, which ultimately led the Virginia State Teachers Association to file equal-pay lawsuits with the help of the NAACP. This action questioned the legality of school segregation. In 1943, Palmer was fired as principal of Huntington in response to his activism.

Walker's time at Huntington influenced him in a number of ways. Working as a teacher in a segregated school allowed Walker to experience the inequalities and hardships faced by members of his community, which he would work actively to change. Having Palmer as his mentor provided the young Walker with a positive, activist role model that he would replicate the rest of his life. Outside of learning political activism from his own parents, Walker's story as a civil rights activist and selfless servant of the community began here at Huntington High.