The Sweet Auburn Historic District is a historic

African-American neighborhood African-American neighborhoods or black neighborhoods are types of ethnic enclaves found in many cities in the United States. Generally, an African American neighborhood is one where the majority of the people who live there are African American ...

along and surrounding Auburn Avenue, east of

downtown Atlanta Downtown Atlanta is the central business district of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The largest of the city's three commercial districts (Midtown Atlanta, Midtown and Buckhead being the others), it is the location of many corporate and region ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, United States. The name Sweet Auburn was coined by John Wesley Dobbs, referring to the "richest Negro street in the world," one of the largest concentrations of African-American businesses in the United States. A

National Historic Landmark District A National Historic Landmark District (NHLD) is a geographical area that has received recognition from the United States Government that the buildings, landscapes, cultural features and archaeological resources within it are of the highest signific ...

was designated in 1976, covering of the neighborhood, significant for its history and development as a segregated area under the state's

Jim Crow laws The Jim Crow laws were U.S. state, state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, "Jim Crow (character), Ji ...

. Sweet Auburn was also added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

the same year.

Geography

Sweet Auburn is one of 242 officially recognized

neighborhoods of Atlanta : The city of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia is made up of 243 neighborhoods officially defined by the city. These neighborhoods are a mix of traditional neighborhoods, Subdivision (land), subdivisions, or groups of subdivisions. The ...

. It is bounded by: * Freedom Parkway and the

Old Fourth Ward The Old Fourth Ward, often abbreviated O4W, is an Intown Atlanta, intown neighborhood on the Eastside (Atlanta), eastside of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The neighborhood is best known as the location of the Martin Luther King Jr. National H ...

(formerly the separate Bedford Pine neighborhood) on the north *

Boulevard A boulevard is a type of broad avenue planted with rows of trees, or in parts of North America, any urban highway or wide road in a commercial district. In Europe, boulevards were originally circumferential roads following the line of former ...

and the

on the east * the MARTA east–west line and the

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

and Grant Park neighborhoods on the south, and * the

Downtown Connector In Downtown Atlanta, the Downtown Connector or 75/85 (pronounced "seventy-five eighty-five") is the concurrent section of Interstate 75 and Interstate 85 through the core of the city. Beginning at the I-85/ Langford Parkway interchang ...

and

on the west

History

The first settlement here was on land formerly occupied by Union troops and was called Shermantown for many years. It developed quickly being near the Georgia Railroad and in 1879 was at the endpoint of a newly graded road called simply

, which led from the railroad to North Avenue near Ponce de Leon Avenue and Angier Springs. The rise of Auburn Avenue as "the" black business district in Atlanta was to a great extent an outcome of the 1906 Atlanta Race Riot. Prior to this time black businesses operated largely in downtown Atlanta — a business district integrated as far as business ownership was concerned. But competition between working-class whites and blacks for jobs and housing gave rise to fears and tensions. In 1906, print media fueled these tensions with hearsay about alleged sexual assaults on white women by black men, triggering the riot, which left at least 27 people dead (25 of them black) and over 70 injured. Black businesses started to move from previously integrated business district downtown to the relative safety of the area around the

Atlanta University Center The Atlanta University Center Consortium (AUC Consortium) is a collaboration between four historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in southwest Atlanta, Georgia: Clark Atlanta University, Spelman College, Morehouse College, and the Mo ...

west of downtown, and to Auburn Avenue in the Fourth Ward east of downtown. "Sweet" Auburn Avenue became home to Alonzo Herndon's Atlanta Mutual, the city's first black-owned life insurance company, and to a celebrated concentration of black businesses, newspapers, churches, and nightclubs. In 1956, ''Fortune'' magazine called Sweet Auburn "the richest Negro street in the world", a phrase originally coined by civil rights leader John Wesley Dobbs from the poem '' The Deserted Village'' by

Oliver Goldsmith Oliver Goldsmith (10 November 1728 – 4 April 1774) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish poet, novelist, playwright, and hack writer. A prolific author of various literature, he is regarded among the most versatile writers of the Georgian e ...

. Sweet Auburn and Atlanta's black colleges formed the nexus of a prosperous

black middle class The African-American middle class consists of African-Americans who have middle-class status within the American class structure. It is a societal level within the African-American community that primarily began to develop in the early 1960s, ...

and

upper class Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status. Usually, these are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper cla ...

which arose despite enormous social and legal obstacles. Sweet Auburn was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

in 1976. and However, like so many other

inner-city The term inner city (also called the hood) has been used, especially in the United States, as a euphemism for majority-minority lower-income residential districts that often refer to rundown neighborhoods, in a downtown or city centre area. Soc ...

neighborhoods, Sweet Auburn fell victim to lack of

investment Investment is traditionally defined as the "commitment of resources into something expected to gain value over time". If an investment involves money, then it can be defined as a "commitment of money to receive more money later". From a broade ...

, heavy, widespread

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

homelessness Homelessness, also known as houselessness or being unhoused or unsheltered, is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. It includes living on the streets, moving between temporary accommodation with family or friends, liv ...

, and abandonment, compounded by construction of the

freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...

that split it in two. In 1992 the

National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 ...

recognized that it was one of America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places and, in 2005, the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation included the area in its 2006 list of ''Places in Peril''. The Historic District Development Corporation (HDDC) was formed to turn the trend around, starting with houses surrounding the birth home of Dr.

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...

, and working outward. In 2014, the city of Atlanta completed the installation of the

Atlanta Streetcar The Atlanta Streetcar (also known as the Downtown Loop) is a streetcar line in Atlanta, Georgia. Testing on the line began in summer 2014 with passenger service beginning as scheduled on December 30, 2014. In , the line had rides, or about p ...

, a line that creates a loop connecting the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park to downtown and the tourist attractions of

Centennial Olympic Park Centennial Olympic Park is a public park located in downtown Atlanta, Georgia, owned and operated by the Georgia World Congress Center Authority. It was built by the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG) as part of the infrastructur ...

. The streetcar travels east along Edgewood Avenue and west along Auburn Avenue.

Historic structures and businesses

Several

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

es located along the avenue, such as Big Bethel AME and First Congregational, helped build and maintain the heritage of the street. Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, located just off the avenue, was also a significant force as the first Black Catholic parish in the city. The Royal Peacock Club provided an elegant setting where many African Americans could perform and bring the changing styles of black popular music to Atlanta. Originally called the Top Hat Club when it opened in 1938, the club hosted local talent and national acts such as

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, sh ...

the Four Tops ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

the Tams The Tams are an United States, American list of vocal groups, vocal group from Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, who enjoyed their greatest record chart, chart success in the 1960s, but continued to chart in the 1970s, and the 1980s. Two ...

and Atlanta's own

Gladys Knight Gladys Maria Knight (born May 28, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Knight recorded hits through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s with her family group Gladys Knight & the Pips, which included her brother Merald "Bubba" Knight and cousins Will ...

. One of the many significant commercial buildings within the district is the Atlanta Life Insurance Company. The second-largest black insurance company in the United States, Atlanta Life Insurance was founded in 1905 by Alonzo Herndon, a former

slave Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

from

Walton County, Georgia Walton County is a county located in the Middle Georgia portion of the U.S. - State of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 96,673. It is located about 30 miles east of the state capital, the city of Atlanta. Monroe is the co ...

. The central building of the Atlanta Life Insurance Company complex is a Beaux Arts building facing Auburn Avenue. The district also includes the Rucker Building, Atlanta's first black-owned

office building An office is a space where the employees of an organization perform administrative work in order to support and realize the various goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific du ...

, constructed in 1904 by Henry A. Rucker, a former slave turned businessman and politician. Also located on Auburn Avenue was The ''Atlanta Daily World'', the first black-owned daily

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

, which was founded here in 1928. (The ''Atlanta Daily World'' is still the nation's longest running African American newspaper.) In 1948, the

Atlanta Police Department The Atlanta Police Department (APD) is a law enforcement agency in the city of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. The city shifted from its rural-based Marshal and Deputy Marshal model at the end of the 19th century. In 1873, ...

was integrated, hiring eight black

police officer A police officer (also called policeman or policewoman, cop, officer or constable) is a Warrant (law), warranted law employee of a police, police force. In most countries, ''police officer'' is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. ...

s, all of whom were assigned to Auburn Avenue.

List of historical churches and businesses

* APEX Museum – founded in 1985 * Atlanta Daily World – founded in 1928 * Atlanta Life Insurance – founded in 1905 * Big Bethel AME Church – founded in 1847 * Ebenezer Baptist Church – founded in 1886 * Herndon Building – opened in 1924, demolished following damage from 2008 Atlanta tornado * Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park, including: ** Dr. King's birth (January 15, 1929) home – built in 1895 ** Visitors Center – founded in 1980 * Odd Fellows Building and Auditorium – 1912–13 * Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, founded in 1912 * Prince Hall Masonic Temple- built 1937/1941 (Addition Added) * Rucker Building – constructed 1904 * Sweet Auburn Curb Market – opened in 1924 * Georgia Insurance Brokerage founded 1970

Culture

Sweet Auburn celebrates the annua
Auburn SpringFest
and in the Fall, the Sweet Auburn Heritage Festival. The Sweet Auburn Heritage Festival is an annual festival held the first weekend in October on Auburn Avenue. Civil rights leader

Hosea Williams Hosea Lorenzo Williams (January 5, 1926 – November 16, 2000) was an American American civil rights movement, civil rights leader, activist, ordained minister, businessman, philanthropist, scientist, and politician. He was considered a member ...

founded the first festival in 1984
Charles Johnson
founded the festival in 1994 as a way to celebrate the African American achievements as established on Auburn Avenue. The festival offers food, art, and entertainment throughout the day while celebrating Auburn Avenue's past and growth, and is operated by the Sweet Auburn Committee. The festival's entertainment varies from comedians to up and coming artists from diverse genres of music. The Sweet Auburn Heritage Festival searches for entertainment from cities such as Atlanta, Macon, Savannah, Augusta, Huntsville and Chattanooga in hopes to help non- established artist's path to stardom. Artist such as Usher Raymond,

Outkast Outkast (sometimes written as OutKast) was an American hip-hop duo formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1992, consisting of Big Boi (Antwan Patton) and André 3000 (André Benjamin, formerly known as Dré). Widely regarded as one of the greatest an ...

, India.Arie, and

Raven-Symoné Raven-Symoné Christina Pearman-Maday (; born December 10, 1985), also known as Raven, is an American actress, singer, and director. She has received List of awards and nominations received by Raven-Symoné, several accolades, including five ...

have started out performing on stage at the festival. Ultimately, the Sweet Auburn Heritage Festival entertainment has grown much farther than originally anticipated from its beginning stages in 1984. Edgewood Avenue which runs through the heart of Sweet Auburn has become a hotspot for viewing for street art in Atlanta. Works by international artists such as Sten Lex and local artists such as Dr. Dax and Chris Veal can be found on Edgewood Avenue and the surrounding streets. Several of the Sweet Auburn murals can be found on th
Atlanta Street Art Map
The Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture and History is an institution dedicated to preserving and highlighting African American culture and history. ''This article incorporates text from the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

website, a work of the U.S. government, and therefore in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...

.''

Gallery

File:Atlanta Life Insurance Company Building, Atlanta, GA (33598220538).jpg, Atlanta Life Insurance Company Building (2019) File:160 AUBURN AVENUE (Rucker Building, at corner of Auburn Ave. and Piedmont St.) EAST (PIEDMONT ST) ELEVATION - 126-255 Auburn Avenue (Commercial Buildings), Auburn Avenue, Atlanta, HABS GA,61-ATLA,1C-5.tif, Rucker Building (1979) File:Ebenezer Baptist Church at sunset.jpg, Sunset on Ebenezer Baptist Church (2013) File:FRONT OF ODD FELLOWS BUILDING FROM THIRD FLOOR OF HERNDON BUILDING - Odd Fellows Building and Auditorium, 228-250 Auburn Avenue, Atlanta, Fulton County, GA HABS GA,61-ATLA,1B-22 (CT).tif, Odd Fellows Building (1979, from Herndon Building) File:Odd Fellows Building and Auditorium, 228-250 Auburn Avenue, Atlanta, Fulton County, GA HABS GA,61-ATLA,1B- (sheet 8 of 9).tif, Adjoining Odd Fellows Auditorium (diagram of street front and rooftop of atrium) File:HerndonBuilding.jpg, Former Herndon Building (1979, from Odd Fellows Building) File:Atlanta Municipal Market, Atlanta, GA (40508645753).jpg, Sweet Auburn Curb Market (2019, with its

stop)

References

External links

* http://www.sweetauburn.com/
Atlanta, Georgia, a National Park Service ''Discover Our Shared Heritage'' Travel Itinerary

Photos of Sweet Auburn Springfest 2008
{{Historic Districts in Metro Atlanta National Historic Landmarks in Georgia (U.S. state) African-American history in Atlanta African-American upper class Festivals in Atlanta Bungalow architecture in Georgia (U.S. state) Old Fourth Ward Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Georgia (U.S. state) National Register of Historic Places in Atlanta