Anniston in Calhoun County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)
West 15th Street Historic District
| | Anniston Civil Rights Trail | |
Photographed by Mark Hilton, August 5, 2017
1. West 15th Street Historic District Marker
This district was once the economic and social hub of Anniston's African American community. In its heyday (1940-1950), the District was a "city within a city," with businesses that catered to the black community. Grocery stores, restaurants, doctors' offices, barber and beauty shops, a hotel, and other businesses thrived. The Gem Theater showed movies and hosted celebrity entertainers such as Cab Calloway and Lewis Jordan. At the Blair Hotel, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. held strategy sessions with Rev. Nimrod Q. Reynolds and Dr. Gordon Rodgers. The District was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.
Erected 2016 by City of Anniston Historic Trails Program. (Marker Number 8.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Industry & Commerce. In addition, it is included in the Anniston Civil Rights Trail, Alabama series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1991.
Location. 33° 39.827′ N, 85° 50.116′ W. Marker is in Anniston, Alabama, in Calhoun County. It is on West 15th Street west of Walnut Avenue, on the right
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in East Alabama. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Deep South. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: 416 W. 15th Street (within shouting distance of this marker); 509 W. 15th Street (within shouting distance of this marker); 1208 Walnut Avenue (approx. Ό mile away); 1311 Gurnee Avenue (approx. 0.3 miles away); Seventeenth Street Missionary Baptist Church, Organized 1887 (approx. 0.3 miles away); 1302 Noble Street (approx. 0.4 miles away); 1230 Noble Street (approx. 0.4 miles away); 1301 Noble Street (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map
via NPS, unknown
2. West 15th Street Historic District
NPGallery Digital Asset Management System website entry
Click for more information.
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Regarding West 15th Street Historic District. In its day, there were four churches, six practicing doctors, five barber shops and four beauty shops, three shoe shops, two grocery stores, three service stations, two tailors, a music studio and a photography studio, a real-estate agent, three barbecue restaurants, two hotels, four funeral homes, a fire department, a dry cleaners, and for entertainment, the Gem Theater, the Blue Light Savoy and the Sugar Bowl.
Photographed by Mark Hilton, August 5, 2017
3. View of the former West 15th Street Historic District
The District included buildings along West 15th Street from numbers 416 to 712 inclusive. The approximately 17 buildings are part of the National Park Service National Register of Historic Places.
Photographed by Mark Hilton, August 5, 2017
4. West 15th Street Historic District Marker and "City within a City" mural.
Photographed by Mark Hilton, August 5, 2017
5. "City within a City" Mural
Credits. This page was last revised on January 27, 2022. It was originally submitted on August 6, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,507 times since then and 54 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on August 6, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. 2. submitted on January 27, 2022, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. 3, 4, 5. submitted on August 6, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.
