INC NEWS - Durham Unveils Parrish Street Sculptures October 15

[Blalock, Amy]

CITY OF DURHAM

Office of Public Affairs

101 City Hall Plaza

Durham, NC 27701

 

 

News Release

 

 

For Details, Contact:

Amy Blalock

Senior Public Affairs Specialist

(919) 560-4123 x 253

(919) 475-7735 (cell)

Amy.Blalock at durhamnc.gov <mailto:Amy.Blalock at durhamnc.gov> 

 

For Immediate Release:  October 9, 2008

 

Durham Unveils Parrish Street Sculptures October 15

Permanent Sculptures to Honor the Legacy of Durham's Historic Black Wall
Street

 

Durham, N.C. - Another commemorative piece honoring Durham's rich
African American history will be unveiled next week and the entire
community is invited to participate.

 

The Parrish Street Advocacy Group and the City of Durham will unveil the
first three of six historical markers commemorating the rich history of
Parrish Street on Wednesday, October 15, 2008, from 11a.m. to 12 p.m.
The event will take place in downtown Durham on West Parrish Street
between Corcoran and Mangum Streets.  

 

The unveiling will feature stories and history by local leaders and
those with strong historical ties to Parrish Street.  This event is free
and open to the public and refreshments will be provided.

 

According to Parrish Street Project Coordinator Reginald Jones with the
City's Office of Economic and Workforce Development, these permanent
sculptures will honor a distinguished legacy of economic achievement and
opportunity that was only available to African Americans living in
Durham in the late 1800s and early 1900s.  "Success stories from the
Black Wall Street era continue to this day, with accounts of prosperity
that was unheard of for African Americans not living in Durham at that
time.  In fact, several original African-American owned institutions
have been in business for over one hundred years in this community and
still continue to flourish to this day."

 

Working through Liberty Arts, Inc., artists Michael Waller, Leah
Foushee, and Alvin Frega, along with interns from North Carolina Central
University, have been working on a series of six pedestrian-scale,
free-standing markers that will be sculptural in form and include text
and symbols to educate passer-bys about the history of Black Wall
Street.  

 

The sculptures are comprised of significant materials from Durham's
tobacco, retail, manufacturing, and transportation industries, as well
as materials such as bronze, concrete, limestone, aluminum, glass, and
steel.  Through materials and design, the artists are commemorating the
following, historically significant themes: Tobacco and E.J. Parrish
(1865-1890), Visionary Leadership in the New South (1890-1915), and A
Black Capital for the World to See (1915-1945).

 

The first three markers will be placed on West Parrish Street next week.
The remaining three markers will be placed on East Parrish Street in the
spring of 2009.

 

The City's Office of Economic and Workforce Development has received
approximately $350,000 from the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development, with assistance from U.S. Representative David E. Price, to
support the Parrish Street Revitalization and Historic Commemoration
Project. 

 

More information about this project and Black Wall Street's history,
including photographs of portions of the sculptures to be unveiled, can
be found at www.parrishstreet.org <http://www.parrishstreet.org/> .
Interested residents may also contact Reginald Jones at (919) 560-4965,
extension 207 or by e-mail at Reginald.Jones at durhamnc.gov for more
information.

 

About the Parrish Street Revitalization and Historic Commemoration
Project

The Parrish Street Revitalization and Historic Commemoration Project,
under the direction of the Durham City Council, is working to
commemorate the nationally significant history of Parrish Street, also
known as "Black Wall Street," and to spur economic revitalization for
this downtown Durham corridor.  The City and its partners are engaged in
a mission to attract new investment and pursue national heritage area
status from the United States Congress.

 

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