The Exposition's Negro Building

The Exposition's Negro Building. . Prominently located on Lake Watauga, the 1897 Tennessee Centennial Exposition's Negro Building celebrated black achievements in business, industry, arts and culture., Planning for the Negro Building occurred during an era of nationwide civil rights activism. Black leaders debated the strategy for involvement in expositions like Tennessee's, which were proliferating throughout the country. Integrationists such as Ida B. Wells argued that blacks should not participate in segregated fairs. Others, including Booker T. Washington (who ultimately spoke at the Centennial Exposition) held that even a segregated fair could present the opportunity to promote post-Emancipation progress., Eager to present an image of racial harmony in the New South, the Centennial Exposition's white planners originally proposed a few black exhibits. Richard Hill, James Napier, Preston Taylor and other influential black Nashvillians who served as the Exposition's Negro Department instead pushed for an entire building where they could control the presentation of their own exhibits., By appealing to the white leaders' sense of competition (Atlanta's 1895 fair had included a Negro Building) and fear of a rumored black boycott, Negro leaders got their building, along with funds for a statewide tour by prominent black men to promote the fair. The imposing Spanish Renaissance-style Negro Building provided jobs for 500 black Tennesseans, and Exposition organizers of both races took pains to display racial progressivism through concerts, speeches, and huge parades. Still, the Exposition remained segregated, with black visitors permitted only during occasional, special days., Centennial Park, which was subsequently developed on the Exposition grounds, was a “white” park until 1956, when all Nashville parks were finally integrated. Previously, separate parks were developed for black and white citizens. Throughout the first half of the twentieth century, African American park advocates were divided between those who worked with the Park Board to secure “Negro” parks and facilities, and those who argued for integration of all parks. Those who believed that separate parks, no matter how plentiful, were inherently unequal, ultimately won access to all parks for all citizens., Captions , (Top) Left: Interior view of the Negro Building. Center: Nineteen thousand people attended Negro Day, which began with a parade from Downtown Nashville to the Exposition grounds. (left) Souvenir Album: Tennessee Centennial Exposition; (center) Official History of the Tennessee Centennial Exposition; (right) Nashville Public Library, the Nashville Room , (Right column, top to bottom) , . Richard Hill served as chairman of the Negro Department after James Napier resigned in quiet protest over the Exposition Company's initial reluctance to include a Negro Building. Official History of the Tennessee Centennial Exposition , . The Negro Building reflected in the waters of Lake Watauga. Today, the cornerstone of the building is on display in the Franklin Library at Fisk University. Tennessee State Library and Archives , . The Negro Department's Executive Committee were: 1. Reverend T. E Crawley, 2. Dr. E A. Stewart, 3. Reverend Preston Taylor, 4. S. A. Walker, 5. W. T Hightower, 6. Reverend R. B. Vandervil and 7. Thomas Tyree. Official History of the Tennessee Centennial Exposition