Frenchtown Had It All

Frenchtown Had It All. Soul Voices Frenchtown Heritage Trail. Frenchtown is the oldest community in Tallahassee that was set aside exclusively for African Americans. When the American Civil War ended in 1865, newly freed slaves were allocated a portion of the wet, mosquito and snake-infested land. The land was previously owned by the Marquis de Lafayette, a Frenchman who was awarded 23,000 acres by President George Washington for Lafayette's service during the Revolutionary War. The area was first called “Frenchtown” during Reconstruction, when residents of the area opened bank accounts at the Freedmen's Bureau. , , The formerly enslaved people built houses, established businesses, planted crops, opened schools, organized churches, and began to bask in the rays of their newly earned freedom. Many of the more erudite men were elected to governmental office and endeavored to enact laws to make all Americans equal. Professional people moved into the area, and they brought with them new ideas and skills that enhanced the lives of the little enclave’s residents. , , The epicenter of Frenchtown's business district lay at the corner of Virginia Street and Macomb Street. Radiating from this intersection were Deluxe Cafe, Artistic Beauty and Barber Shops, Big Star Grocery Store, Your Way Barbershop, Avery Photography Studio, Gilliam Brothers Barber Shop, St. Mary Primitive Baptist Church, Capital Theater, Economy Drug Store, Quick Service Taxi Stand, and many of the jukes where people could shake their tail feathers. These streets and the businesses that lined them offered diverse and exciting flavors to this neighborhood hub. Noteworthy residents added respectability and gentility to the enclave, such as educators Margaret Yellowhair and Dorothy Tookes; butler to eight Florida governors Martin Van Tanner; and a cobbler, Reverend Cecil Skyes. However, the area gained its unique flavor from its residents as well as visitors who streamed into the area to shop and get a taste of Black culture. , , One of the primary venues for entertainment, or "Juking," was the Red Bird Café. The club was a destination on the “Chitlin Circuit,” which reached from the North into the steamy lands of the South and provided professional talent for Tallahassee music lovers. The club welcomed the likes of Louis Armstrong, Moms Mabley, Lou Rawls When he sang with Sam Cook, James Brown, and of course, the area's own, Ray Charles. , , (captions) , This view of a business-lined Macomb Street in the 1950s affords only a glimpse of the street. In addition to the businesses, this main Frenchtown thoroughfare was interspersed with several family homes and rental shotgun houses. (Courtesy of Anthon “Ann” Roberts) , , Top, left: Laws commonly referred to as Black Codes and Jim Crow prevented the mixing of races in social and public settings prior to desegregation. The Capitol Theater, owned by Ms. Margaret A. Yellowhair, was the only movie theater in Tallahassee that was built by a Black person for the exclusive enjoyment of Black people. (Courtesy of Riley Museum) , , Solomon Dennis, owner of Your Way Barbershop on Virginia Street, cutting the hair of builder Lonnie Rackley. (Courtesy of Dennis Family) , , Above, right: The Roberts Family and guests celebrate the grand opening of Economy Drugs on Macomb Street. (Courtesy of Howard and Geraldine Roberts Family) , , Red Bird Café was a premier stop on the Chitlin’ Circuit. During its heyday, it hosted famous performers like Cab Callaway, B.B. King, Cannonball Adderly, Ray Charles, and Koko Taylor. (Courtesy of State Archives of Florida)