Events to jump start revival of historic black Macon neighborhood

Macon leaders are ramping up efforts to save a community that was once the black mecca of the city.

Beginning Wednesday, the Cotton Avenue Revival will be led by various black churches in the district that became the center of black commerce, education and religion for Macon. A recently formed Cotton Avenue Coalition unveiled plans Monday to commemorate the neighborhood that’s a member of the Historic Macon’s “Fading Five” list.

The revival will be held nightly at 7 p.m. Wednesday-Friday at Holsey Temple CME Church, 101 Washington Ave. Pastors from Holsey Temple, Washington Avenue Presbyterian Church, Steward Chapel AME Church and First Baptist Church will speak at the events.

Those churches are part of the district’s coalition that includes Macon-Bibb County, Historic Macon Foundation, Macon Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Ruth Hartley Mosley Memorial Women’s Center.

Some of the buildings, including historic black churches, in the neighborhood could be susceptible to encroachment, said Commissioner Elaine Lucas, who sponsored a Macon-Bibb resolution last year requesting the establishment of the Cotton Avenue Historic District.

In the past couple of years, two historically important structures — the Douglass House and Tremont Temple Baptist Church — were torn down to make way for new development.

“Let’s see what we can do together to continue that push to save and restore Cotton Avenue to the memory of what it used to be,” Lucas said.

Cotton Avenue’s boundaries include the area “that was historically known as Cotton Avenue, running from College Street and terminating at Second and Mulberry streets.”

While 2015’s other “Fading Five” structures have been saved, Cotton Avenue District remains on this year’s list. Leaders say it’s important to keep the legacy alive of the neighborhood that was once home to many black doctors, dentists, residents and more.

“I don’t think there is a better neighborhood in Macon that encompasses the contributions of African-Americans in Macon,” Historic Macon Executive Director Ethiel Garlington said. “ All the way from the name of Cotton Avenue to DT Walton (Sr.) Way to the buildings that are still there that we must protect.”

The coalition also plans to set up Cotton Avenue trolley tours during the Christmas holiday season that would highlight the churches. The black churches in that district each have a unique history with how they were formed and rare architectural designs. The churches’ leaders and congregations played roles in important civil rights actions, such as the Macon bus boycott of 1962.

The neighborhood’s legacy has been impacted by such luminaries as former Wilberforce University President William Scarborough, the nation’s second formerly trained black architect Wallace Rayfield and businessman Charles Douglass. But with a renewed interest to reach others, an area that was vital to Macon’s development can be revitalized, the Rev. Levornia Franklin Jr. of Steward Chapel said.

“I believe with this excitement we won’t worry about fading anymore,” he said. “We can be here another 100 years.”

For more information on the Cotton Avenue Revival call 478-742-6409.

This story was originally published November 14, 2016 at 6:37 PM with the headline "Events to jump start revival of historic black Macon neighborhood."