02/26/2022
Black History in Bronzeville (The King-Lincoln District)
[From the early 1800s to the construction of Interstate 71 in the late 1950s, Bronzeville was full of Black-owned businesses and homes. In 1922, African Americans in east Columbus owned such banks as the "Adelphi Loan and Savings Company" and a mortgage granting company called "Credential". They also established a Black insurance firm entitled "Columbus Supreme life and Casualty Company" in 1919. The first African American church in Columbus was the St. Paul A.M.E erected in 1823. The 2nd Baptist church located on 17th St. was the second Black church erected in Columbus, and was a stop on the Underground Railroad. The heart of Bronzeville was along a stretch of Long Street which was a residential corridor with commercial pockets, while Mt. Vernon St. to the north was the strong center of commerce. By the 1920’s, in the Jefferson-Garfield blocks on E. Long St., there were 10 Black physicians, 6 dentists, 10 churches, 2 drug stores, 2 undertakers, and over 100 African American-owned homes.]
Source: eastpact.org
Photo Source: Columbus Metropolitan Library
