Centennial Hill in Montgomery in Montgomery County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)
The Jackson-Community House/The Montgomery City Federation of Women’s Clubs
The Jackson-Community House
In 1853, Jefferson Franklin Jackson, a native Alabamian and U.S. Attorney for the Alabama Middle District, built this two-story clapboard home originally with a dogtrot pattern. A Whig Party member, by 1862, Jackson was a wealthy land and slave owner who lived here with his wife and four children. By 1900, Jackson’s descendants had added a rear wing to the house and enclosed the back porch.
In 1943, the Montgomery City Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs, led by Mrs. Zenobia Johnson, purchased the Jackson homestead. Now known as the Community House, the facility served diverse needs of Montgomery’s segregated black population by providing kindergarten, tutors, counseling, voter registration, civic programs, social activities, and a library. As headquarters of the Montgomery City Federation of Women’s Clubs, the property has been a center of support for many women’s groups including its state organization, Girl Scouts, debutantes, needy mothers, and the Women’s Political Council, the group that launched the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott.
The Montgomery City Federation of Women’s Clubs
The Montgomery City Federation of Women’s Clubs, established in 1939 to strengthen “Colored Women’s Clubs” and youth affiliates, expanded opportunities for blacks in Montgomery, particularly when virulent racial segregation suppressed them. In 1943, the federation established headquarters here at 409 South Union Street, which it named the Community House. Prior to the founding of the MCFWC, two pre-existing clubs, the Ten Times One is Ten (1888) and the Anna M. Duncan (1897) advanced state clubwomen’s development of the Mt. Meigs facility for delinquent boys (1908) and another for girls (1919), which the State of Alabama operates today. Later, in 1939 the MCFWC, which included the Phyllis Wheatley Art and Literary Club (1928), joined forces with the sponsor of these projects, the Alabama Association of Colored Women’s Club, and its regional and national tiers. In that same year, the Agnes J. Lewis, Dora Beverly, and Les Comrades were launched. Subsequently, the Sojourner Truth (1946) and the Excelisor (1947) became federated clubs. With a motto “Lifting as We Climb”, the MCFWC and its affiliates remain in existence to further their historic tradition of community service.
Erected by Alabama Historical Commission.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Women. In addition, it is included in the Alabama Historical Commission series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1853.
Location. Marker is missing. It was located near 32° 22.406′ N, 86° 17.964′ W. Marker was in Montgomery, Alabama, in Montgomery County. It was in Centennial Hill. Marker could be reached from the intersection of Union Street and Scott Street, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker was at or near this postal address: 409 Union Street, Montgomery AL 36104, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this location. Centennial Hill (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); Black Bricklayers Hall (approx. 0.2 miles away); Charles Oscar Harris Family Home (approx. 0.2 miles away); Site of the Warren Reese House (approx. 0.2 miles away); Minister's Home / Dr. Martin Luther King (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Hon. Rufus A. Lewis (approx. 0.2 miles away); Harris House (approx. 0.2 miles away); South Jackson Street / Victor Hugo Tulane (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Montgomery.
More about this marker. House area was under construction when marker first photographed in January, 2014 and reverse side (The Montgomery City Federation of Women’s Clubs) of marker was not visible as the whole marker was sunken into the ground. Marker was behind fence. The marker was damaged long before they began working on the landscape when an Alagasco truck backed into it about 3 years ago. This replacement marker erected in 2016.
Also see . . . Jackson Community House and Museum. Alabama African American Civil Rights Heritage Sites Consortium website entry (Submitted on July 4, 2022, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 9, 2023. It was originally submitted on January 12, 2014, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,125 times since then and 82 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 28, 2016, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. 4. submitted on January 12, 2014, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. 5, 6. submitted on November 24, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. 7. submitted on May 28, 2016, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. 8. submitted on August 22, 2020, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.