Artwork
Learn about the historic landmarks of Charlotte, North Carolina.
Social Spaces
The Excelsior Club
For many years it was considered the leading private Black social club in the Southeast, and musicians and entertainers like Nat “King” Cole, Louis Armstrong, James Brown, and Sam Cooke played in the wood-paneled ballroom downstairs.
the coffee cup
The original Coffee Cup restaurant on Clarkson Street in Third Ward was noted for its simple southern menu and social gathering spot – for all people. Opened in 1947, it was one of the first businesses in the city that served black and white patrons. The building was not physically impressive, but it held prominence in Charlotte as a socially inclusive place in the challenging years of desegregation.
OLD GRAND THEATRE
One of three movie houses that served the African American community during the Jim Crow era in Charlotte, the Old Grand Theater served dual purposes – as a theater on the first floor and office spaces on the second floor. Originally the first floor was a retail space and later converted to a theater. Today, the building remains as one of the oldest mixed use buildings in the Historic West End community.
Johnson C. Smith University
carnegie library
A stone’s throw away from Biddle Memorial Hall is the Old Carnegie Library Building. University leaders requested funding from philanthropist Andrew Carnegie in the early 1900s accompanied with local funding. Construction of the Neoclassical style library was completed in 1911.
BIDDLE MEMORIAL HALL
Biddle Memorial Hall was my first sketch and watercolor of Johnson C. Smith and Historic West End buildings. I pencil sketched the building on site then added color in studio. The building has a commanding presence on campus and the clock tower can be seen for miles as the campus sits at a high elevation around the center city.
carter residence hall
Behind Biddle Memorial Hall is the Carter Residence Hall, a one of kind building in Charlotte. Not only was it constructed with the help of University students in 1895, it has unique architectural details such as circular corner pavilions and a wooden cupola.
STONE ENTRY GATES
The Stone Entry Gates is a symbolic gateway to the Johnson C. Smith University campus and the Historic West End community. The original location of the gates was at the entrance to the campus on Beatties Ford Road. The structure was carefully dismantled stone by stone, each numbered, and reconstructed at its current location.
Sanctuary
Grace AME Zion Church
Gothic Revival style churches are popular in Charlotte. The former Grace A.M.E. Zion church building in the Brooklyn-Second Ward community is no exception and carries a significant place in Charlotte’s history. The original building was a one story wood structure. The general contractor and designer of the building was W.W. Smith who is regarded as the first African American architect in Charlotte. He was also a member of the church. Today, the historic landmark church building serves as a space for social gatherings and small business operations.
OLD MT. CARMEL BAPTIST CHURCH
A special feature of Old Mt. Carmel Baptist Church is how it nestles comfortably along the street of modest single family houses. Though redevelopment is changing the scale and design of residential architecture on Campus Street the historic church building retains its subtle yet prominent presence in the neighborhood. It is not difficult to envision church members and visitors walking from their homes to the neighborhood place of worship. The church building was completed in 1921.
MT ZION LUTHERAN CHURCH
The Mt. Zion Lutheran Church was constructed around 1896 and faces the central park along with the Morgan School and residences. The quaint one story chapel had served as a religious center for Cherry residents. The church was organized by William Philo Phifer, a leader in establishing black Lutheran churches in the Charlotte area. The Mt. Zion Lutheran Church building is the oldest existing structure in the Cherry community.
Garr Memorial Jesus Saves
Garr Auditorium, and later Cannon Cathedral, was famously referred to as the Jesus Saves building because of its iconic sign on the roof that was in place since the 1940s. The building was located in the Wesley Heights neighborhood and was home to several religious organizations from the 1930s to the 1980s. A one story parsonage with a stone facade was located behind the sanctuary. The church design was one of the most unique in the city with a simple hexagonal brick façade and a mix of circular, rectilinear and Gothic Revival style windows. The sign was removed in 2010 before the building was demolished.
Home
George
AND
Marie G. Davis
The Queen Anne-style house is a reminder of two educators whose mission was to provide educational equality for all. It was built in 1895 and for 55 years was the residence of the university’s first black professor, George E. Davis, and his wife, Marie G. Davis, a prominent Charlotte public school principal and teacher.
School
MORGAN SCHOOL HOUSE
The Morgan School building in Cherry is an integral part of the original plan of the neighborhood. Cherry, originally named Cherryton, is historically significant as a master planned neighborhood for working class African American residents dating back to the 1890s. The plan is a traditional village style neighborhood with the school, a church, a row of businesses and single family houses surrounding a central park.
Abstract
Midwestern Spring
Growing up in the Midwest we experienced all four seasons in major fashion. Springtime brought us sunny days and not so sunny days. The storms that rolled through were intense. Mom would turn off everything in the house and sit quietly with us as she prayed and sang until the storm passed.
Community Garden
Community Garden is an ode to the Irwin Creek Community Garden in Charlotte. While president of the Revolution Park Neighborhood Association we constructed the Garden with an awesome group of volunteers and funded through Neighborhood Matching Grant. It was truly a partnership with the Charlotte community and neighborhood residents.
