Art and commerce met on James Brown and Laney Walker boulevards in an area that was once vibrant with black-owned businesses. The art featured a mural by artist, Salonika Rhyne, honoring a group of six pioneering women who helped shape those neighborhoods.
The “Women of Empowerment” mural features the faces of Ursula Collins, Rosa Tutt, Marjorie Carter, Margaret Louise Laney, and Rosa Beard, all of whom are no longer alive. The sixth woman was Ruth Crawford, who, at age 108, attended the event and was honored by the crowd.
The artwork is part of the Golden Blocks Project, a collaboration with the Greater Augusta Arts Council, Lucy Craft Laney Museum of Black History, and the Augusta Housing and Community Development Department.
“Oftentimes, we make reference to Black Wall Street and we talk about Tulsa, Oklahoma. I often remind folks the thing about Black Wall Street is that there were hundreds of them across the country,” explained Corey Rogers, Executive Director of the museum. “So, here in Augusta at the corner of Campbell, which is James Brown and Laney Walker, at that nexus, you had black-owned businesses that kind of fanned out for blocks and blocks.”
The businesses ranged from small mom-and-pop stores to the Pilgrim Health and Life Insurance Company, Lenox Theater, and the Penny Savings Loan and Investment Company, which provided services to Augusta’s black community.
Over the years, Pilgrim, Penny Bank, and most of the small businesses closed, but that is where commerce was part of the Friday event. In addition to dedicating the mural, there was a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new neighborhood store called The Lucky Spot.
“I think today sort of speaks not only to our expression of community, but it also speaks to something bigger in my opinion, and that is the eradication of food deserts,” said Hawthorne Welcher, Jr., Director of Augusta Housing and Development. “So now, we actually have a stable unit that actually does provide fresh produce and vegetables. And we’re not stopping here.”
While an obvious benefit to the Laney Walker and Bethlehem neighborhoods, Welcher said it is a component of the overall health of Augusta-Richmond County.
“It really is. It’s about the health of Augusta-Richmond County and also to be sure that Augusta has a platform to be sure and this is a model when we talk about community economic development,” he explained.
Rogers agreed it is impactful for the neighborhoods and the county as a whole.
“I think it’s important for everyone, no matter your ethnic group, to know your history. And the reason why I say it is because, number one, everyone has a story to tell. And number two, Augusta has such a unique story to tell. Our history is so different from Savannah, Charleston, and Greenville, South Carolina, we have an exceptionally different unique history. And I get so sick and tired of people always talking about everywhere else where white here is so vibrant, and so unique and so electoral. So, I want us to know this history,” he said.
Rogers and other speakers also thanked former State Senator, Charles Walker for greenlighting the mural. Walker owns the building that houses The Lucky Spot.
