200 Years of African American History: The Pain, Plight, Progress & Promise
The history of African American owned businesses in Middle Georgia, including the counties of Bibb, Houston, Baldwin, Laurens, Jones, Monroe, Wilkinson, Twiggs, and Crawford, illustrates the perseverance and tenacity of Black business people despite enduring slavery, Jim Crow, and financial discrimination. Let’s explore the distinct phases of Black entrepreneurship in the region, comprising the era before emancipation, the Golden Age of Black Business, the Great Depression, the Civil Rights era, the emergence and assimilation of Black businesses into mainstream corporate America.
In 2023, Macon, GA celebrated its 200th anniversary as a City. During Macon’s founding, the cotton boom was already in full force. Over half of the Middle Georgia region was inhabited by African Americans, the vast majority of whom were enslaved in the cotton industry.
Cotton Avenue functioned as the route for transporting cotton from nearby plantations to boats on the Ocmulgee River, which then delivered it to various locations. In an ironic twist, this same street, later renamed D.T. Walton Sr. Way in honor of a Black dentist and Civil Rights activist, would evolve into the heart of the Macon Black business community and the focal point of its entrepreneurial endeavors.
1823 to 1865
The Humblest of Beginnings Slavery
During slavery, some African Americans found ways to earn money while in bondage managing to purchase their own freedom and open businesses in Middle Georgia before the Civil War. Some of these business leaders became instrumental in the lives of freedman after the war.
1860 (Milledgeville)
Photo from Georgia Archives
Reverend Wilkes Flagg, once a slave from Virginia, managed to buy his own freedom and worked as a blacksmith with his own shop. By 1860, he had amassed approximately $25,000 in wealth. Passionate about improving the lives of newly emancipated, individuals, he founded a Black cotton colony to create job opportunities and set up a school for their education.
1864 (Perry)
Photo from City of Perry Black History Banners
Emmanuel Collins was a boot and shoemaker. At 17, he made boots for Houston County’s confederate soldiers.
After emancipation, Collins had a shoe business, grocery store, and restaurant.
His son, grandsons, and future generations continued running the businesses for over 160 years.
1865
Civil War and The Emancipation of All African Americans
1900
In 1900, Booker T. Washington founded the National Negro Business League (NNBL) to prioritize economic development in achieving African-American equality in the U.S. The League united Black small business owners, doctors, farmers, professionals, and craftsmen across the nation. It’s first meeting took place in Boston, MA on August 23 and 24, 1900. Macon Black businesses were well-represented, with seven dedicated delegates in attendance, two of whom were speakers (W.O. Emory and Thomas Green).
This event served as a significant debut, with Macon’s delegates making powerful statements that highlighted not only the City of Macon, but also the State of Georgia as an attractive location for relocation, investments, and business opportunities.
1900 (Macon)
The NNBL’s Report of Business and Business-men of Macon, GA featured a diverse array of enterprises, including twenty-three grocery stores, tailors, dressmakers, undertakers, mattress makers, butchers, broom manufacturers, trunk makers, and various restaurants and bars. Most on Cotton Ave, but others on 4th, Green, Spring, Madison, New street, and others.
1900 (Macon)
January 27, 1900
In 1900, The Macon Sentinel, an African American-owned weekly newspaper, advertised various enterprises in the “Report of Business and Business-men of Macon, GA” from the National Negro Business League’s first National Meeting.
Late 1800s – Early 1900s
Emergence of Black-Owned Businesses in Middle GA
Middle Georgia Black Business Districts
Cotton Avenue Area in Macon — Particularly the west/southwestern sections of downtown, served as a hub for Black-owned businesses. Some of these businesses coexisted alongside White-owned establishments.
Photo from the Forsyth Convention & Visitors Bureau The Bottoms in Forsyth — A block enclosed by North Harris, North Kimball, East Adams, and East Johnston Streets, was historically recognized as a concentrated area for small African American businesses, showcasing a vibrant entrepreneurial community. The Strip in Milledgeville — Located on McIntosh Street, between Wilkinson and Wayne. This bustling area featured a variety of businesses, including a shoe repair shop, barber shop, drug store, and restaurants. Dublin — Along Highway 80 near the Dudley family, as well as close to the 1st Baptist Church and the current MLK Boulevard, were hubs for Black business. New Hope in Perry — The community boasts a range of local businesses, including land and houses, a barber shop, a beauty shop, and a unique establishment that combines a grocery store with a lunch shop. Both businesses were located in the 300 block of Broadway. These establishments were owned and managed by Charles H. Douglass. Photo from Macon (GA) Archives Wallace Augustus Rayfield, the second formally educated African American architect practicing in the United States, constructed the Knights of Pythian Temple in 1914. Later, Dr. and Mrs. Clarence Mitchell purchased the building, which was renamed “The Mitchell Building.” Fort Valley State University Alumni The “Ham and Egg Show” emerged in 1916, thanks to Otis S. O’Neal, bringing international recognition to Fort Valley State University. At the time, over 200,000 Black farmers in the nation owned more than 14 million acres of land and were encouraged to diversify their crops. This unique event allowed regional Black farmers to display their farm production achievements and later incorporated agricultural education, 
1900s (Macon)
Richard E. Hartley, Sr. — After failing in the grocery business, he moved to New York City in 1897, but returned to Macon where he became a secretary treasurer of Central City Undertaking Company, president of the Liberty Savings, and Real Estate Corporation, and treasurer of the Peoples Health and Life Insurance Company.1900s (Macon)
In 1908, the Douglass Hotel was opened, followed by the Douglass Theatre in 1912.1914 (Macon)
1916 (Fort Valley)
The Great Depression
The Great Depression brought significant challenges to Black-owned businesses, signaling the end of the Golden Age. Many closed, yet many persisted, and new entrepreneurs continued launching ventures. Even as migration to the North gained momentum, Middle Georgia’s businesspeople leveraged opportunities during WWII to open and maintain enterprises.
As the Civil Rights era approached, African American business owners played a crucial role in supporting activists and leaders. They provided meeting spaces and often took part in the movement themselves.
1936 (Dublin)
Photo from Dublin-Laurens Tourism Council, Inc., dba Visit Dublin GA
Thirty years after opening C. D. Dudley and Son, Dry Goods, Mr. Herbert Horatio Dudley opened Dudley’s Amoco Service Station on US Highway 80 with a short order counter. Dudley converted family home nearby as a “Guest House” for the traveling public.
He contracted to operate a USO (United Service Organizations) location called the “Retreat” for Black officers of the U.S. Naval Hospital. Later, he opened a restaurant featuring entertainment that included the likes of Little Richard Penniman and James Brown.
1930s-50s (Macon/Dublin/Perry)
The Negro Motorist Green Book was a guidebook for African American travelers that provided a list of Safe accommodations and other establishments throughout the country that served African Americans patrons during Jim Crow.
Above listings are from the 1941 and 1958 editions including Macon, Dublin, and Perry. Anderson’s Service Station in Macon (not pictured) was the only service station in Central Georgia on the list in 1948.
