Henry Martin Tupper, an ex-Union Army Chaplain of Monson, Massachusetts and his wife, Sarah B. Turner Tupper, arrived in Raleigh in October of 1865, resolved to provide educational opportunities for former slaves. In December 1865, Tupper gathered six ex-slaves in his first theology class. Ten years later Shaw University was chartered.

With $500.00 he had saved while in the army, Tupper purchased a lot on the comer of Blount and Cabarrus Streets. On this location, this structure became known as the Raleigh Institute. In 1870, the old Barringer estate was purchased and the Raleigh Institute was moved to this location-- the site of Shaw University today. The name of the school was changed in 1871 to Shaw Collegiate Institute in honor of Elijah Shaw, a New England philanthropist. The school retained that name until 1875, when it was chartered by the North Carolina Legislature as "The Shaw University." By mid-summer 1886, the university housed an enrollment of 75 students preparing for ministerial and teaching professions.

By the end of the nineteenth century, Shaw University was thriving. It was comprised of the schools of Medicine, Pharmacy, and Law, in addition to a College of Liberal Arts with a Theological Department. In 1918, the schools of Medicine, Pharmacy, and Law were dissolved because of inadequate finances; the College of Liberal Arts with a Theological Department remained.

The Theological Department conferred its first bachelor of theology degrees on four students in 1900. Following a reorganization of Shaw University in 1919, a Missionary Training School was established to prepare home and foreign missionaries, social service workers, pastors, assistants, and Sunday School leaders. However, the Theological Department also continued to provide basic ministerial training through a bachelor of theology program until 1933.

On April 15, 1933, the Board of Trustees of Shaw University established the School of Religion as a graduate school for theological education. The school was empowered by the Trustees to confer both the Bachelor of Arts and the bachelor of divinity degrees. Students enrolled in the School of Religion could earn these degrees simultaneously upon successful completion of a six-year program.

In 1961, the School of Religion became Shaw Divinity School. The combination AB-BD degree program was discontinued and replaced with a three-year graduate program leading to the bachelor of divinity (BD) degree. From its beginning, Shaw Divinity School functioned as a quasi-autonomous body under the direction of the Shaw University Board of Trustees. Eight years later, in 1969, the Shaw Divinity School was chartered as a non-stock, non-profit corporation by the Office of the Secretary of State of North Carolina. The BD degree was discontinued and the Master of Divinity was offered. The Divinity School again offered a bachelor of theology program. The three-year MDiv program offered a graduate/professional degree focused on training for ministry primarily in African American communities. The bachelor of theology program was eventually discontinued.

In February of 1988, the Shaw Divinity School moved from the campus of Shaw University to a new three and a half acre site at 509 Hilltop Drive in southeast Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hilltop campus became the central location for the Administrative Offices of the Divinity School, housed the library and provided space for the classes offered. G. Franklin Wiggins, an alumnus of Shaw University and Shaw Divinity School and a trustee of the School, along with his wife, Ida Wiggins of Peekskill, New York, purchased the Hilltop campus and leased it to Shaw Divinity School with first option to buy. The Hilltop campus was eventually named the "The Shaw-Wiggins Campus."

Between 1998 and 2000, several significant events occurred in the history of the Shaw Divinity School. First came reconsolidation. In the summer of 1998, the Shaw Divinity School reconsolidated with Shaw University. Under reconsolidation, Shaw Divinity School changed its name to Shaw University Divinity School. Also with reconsolidation came full accreditation by the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) in the United States and Canada. Shaw University Divinity School was also accredited by the Southern Association of Schools and Colleges (SACS) as the graduate school of Shaw University.

In 1999, Shaw University Divinity School was relocated to the Shaw University campus. The Divinity School was housed in the historic Estey building. In November 2000, the Shaw University Divinity School was relocated to the historic and restored Leonard Building.

Shaw University Divinity School has emerged as a leader in theological education for the African American community. Building on a tradition of quality, excellence, and relevance in theological education, Shaw University Divinity School moves proudly into the twenty- first century as the graduate school of Shaw University.