The fact that Willow Hill School was established in 1874 testifies to the desire of the founding families, nine years out of slavery, to educate their children. But the existing building, built in 1954, stands as an example of then-modern schools built by the state of Georgia in a last-ditch attempt to justify segregation. "We all know it was not equal, but for the first time, African-Americans had decent school buildings supported by the state," said Jeanne Cyriaque, coordinator of African-American programs in the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' Historic Preservation Division.