GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) – Did you know, before segregation ended, African Americans had to make due and prosper in the face of hardships and adversity for the community to thrive. Many proud black neighborhoods in North Central Florida resemble very little of it’s past pride or community makeup.
Today, Let’s learn about and honor the Bustling Black Businesses in the 5th Ave, Seminary Lane & Pleasant St. neighborhoods
In life, businesses start & fail, come and go, but few leave behind a legacy within the community they served. From providing a needed service to assisting their fellow citizens through employment, training opportunities, or leadership. Here is a quick nostalgic visit back to these neighborhoods and some of the businesses and owners that impacted Gainesville for the better. Fletcher’s Pool Room/Cocktail Lounge (Green family), Mom’s Kitchen (the Young family), Safety Cab Company (Debose & Turners), Duncan Funeral Home, YT Parkers BBQ, Wig-Wam’s Pool Room (Mr A.W. Lane), Mitchell’s Chicken Wings, Fred’s Grill, The Lincoln Theater, Maggie’s Café, Reverend Cato’s Sundry, Crip McRae’s Speak-easy, Annie McRae’s Soul Food, a fish and meat market, numerous barbershops and beauty salons, a couple furniture stores, as well as small mom & pop corner grocery stores.
Let’s scratch the surface of Duval’s Shoe Shop, Mama Lo’s Restaurant, the Cotton Club, Sarah’s Place, Chestnut Funeral Home, and Fletcher’s. Operating a successful business at the height of Jim Crow, was no easy task but many African Americans had to persevere.
Charles W. Duval was a shoemaker by trade and the owner of Duval’s Shoe Shop, which used to be located at 216 East Union Street (now SE 1st Avenue). He was an Alachua County native and, according to census records, grew up in the Pleasant Street neighborhood, married in 1906 and owned his shoe repair business by 1910 where it was known for “first-class work done always.” He was one of 5 trustee of Union Academy, the premier school for African-American students in the city; whose duty was to be the liaison between Union Academy families and the Honorable Board of Public Instruction of Alachua County. Charles Duval died in 1933 and the Duval Early Learning Academy on 8th Ave. is named in his honor.
Charles and Sarah McKnight impacted Gainesville’s music and restaurant scene. Florida natives, the McKnight’s founded two businesses that became stops on the Chitlin’ Circuit, the name for the collection of businesses in the segregated south that allowed and encouraged African-American performers and musicians to earn a living. They were not welcome to perform at white establishments throughout the South (and was even against the law in some cities and towns). Sarah’s Restaurant, located in the Pleasant Street Neighborhood, was a lunch counter by day and a music club by night. The restaurant served great food and hosted jam sessions and bands with integrated musical line-ups.
The Cotton Club building began life as one of the many barracks on Camp Blanding during World War II. After the war, it was bought by the Perryman family, who owned a grocery store on SE 7th, and turned it into the Perryman Theater, a venue for African American patrons. It closed in 1948 and was bought by the McKnight’s. The Cotton Club was opened in 1950 and played host to such well-known performers as B.B. King, Bo Diddley, James Brown and many more. University of Florida students soon discovered the Cotton Club and began integrating the audience. As a result, the county did not renew its license and the club closed in 1952. The Cotton Club building still stands today and has become the Cotton Club Museum and Cultural Center.
One of the state’s oldest continually operating Black businesses is the Chestnut Funeral Home on NW 8th Avenue. Founded in 1914 by Charles S. Chestnut, Sr. and Matthew E. Hughes as Hughes & Chestnut Funeral Home, it has provided burial services for Gainesville’s African-American community for generations. Chestnut and Hughes were founding members of the Florida Morticians Association, an organization for black morticians founded in 1924.
Former businessman and political change-maker Aaron Green has been around 5th Ave most of his life, and is qualified to provide some context here. His father, Mr. Fletcher Green, opened a pool hall on Fifth just west of Sixth Street. The businesses grew into a bigger adjoining building and became Fletcher’s Lounge — a nightspot that for over 61 years, drew customers to socialize, dance and sip affordable, specialty drinks such as the Funky Monkey & Slapper, that were talked about all over the South. Former residents like Green, share this same strong sense of pride and community when reminiscing.
Make note that many 1st, 2nd and 3rd generation free men and women became Saavy entrepreneurs filling the needs of our people. These businesses have all left unique legacies and are only a small sample of the African American-owned businesses in Gainesville’s history. They paved the way for future business leaders and chamber members of all races.
As you have just witnessed…..Black History is American History.
With the NAACP & Divine-9 Black History Month Minute…..I am Mike Powell
RELATED: Black History Month Minute: Rev. Dr. T. A. Wright
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