Historians create guide to Greensboro neighborhood on National Register of Historic Places
GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — Greensboro’s South Benbow district celebrated a designation on the National Register of Historic Places in December 2024.
A year later, historians are still working to learn everything there is to teach in this field.
Funds continue to assist efforts to collect oral histories from homeowners on Tuscaloosa Avenue, Broad Street, East Side Drive and elsewhere. Through oral history interviews and a collection of artifacts, historians create a guide to a neighborhood steeped in Black history and Black firsts.
Eric Woodard of Preservation Greensboro says he became interested in the area because of its mid-century modern architecture. He later learned that most of the homes were designed by Black architects and built by Black crews for Black residents.
Architect Gerard Gray has several works that stand out in the area.
Woodard says digging deeper into the neighborhood’s history shows that important civil rights figures met and lived in the houses and discussed the plans that shaped the movement.
“Just like Dr. Alvin Blount. He is part of one of the parties to the Simkins vs. Moses Cone case, which desegregated hospitals in the United States… They brought tremendous benefits to the country and the world,” Woodard said.
Benbow Road is just minutes from downtown Greensboro, where the sit-in civil rights movement was born by NC A&T State University students. Another NC A&T student, Henry Frye, spent time in the area before serving in the state legislature and being elected the first Black chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court.
“With the digital record, anyone around the world will be able to access it and they will be able to see… some of the stories of the incredible residents who are trailblazing,” Woodard said.
Woodard believes keeping these stories alive to inspire future generations is perhaps the most important part of fleshing out history.
“Some of these people became world-wide influential… If one child could be motivated to keep going and follow their dreams,… it would all be worth it,” Woodard said.
Preserving and teaching the history of the area is a top priority for the Greensboro Museum in the lower Benbow area. Glenn Perkins is curator of community history at the museum.
“There are famous figures at Benbow. There’s Henry Frye. There’s Kenneth Lee. There’s Alvin Blount… These are the people who are really important to the civil rights story in Greensboro, but the backgrounds involved in this project and what we’ve learned from further research is how they’re all woven into this web of community,” said Perkins.
As we learn more and more about the region, Perkins and Woodard agree that it is important to document and preserve the information for future generations.
“So I think it’s really helpful for students to learn this… by working with your neighbors, your friends, your fellow students… you can really make some changes where you live,” said Perkins.
“America’s history is made up of all people… We hope this information has encouraged people to think differently. I’m not asking you to completely change your mind, but at least the information will be there so you can make a more informed decision when you meet other people,” Woodard said.
Historic designation means that in the future, people living in the area can gain funds to preserve historic properties.
Woodard says historians who are still collecting stories are also working to put up signs explaining the history of the area.
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