Downtown San Diego African-American Heritage Study Centre City Development Corporation Downtown San Diego African-American Heritage Study
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Centre City Development Corporation Downtown San Diego African-American Heritage Study Centre City Development Corporation Downtown San Diego African-American Heritage Study Prepared for: Centre City Development Corporation 225 Broadway, Suite 1100 San Diego, California 92101 Prepared by: Mooney & Associates 9903 Businesspark Avenue San Diego, California 92131 Richard L. Carrico and Stacey Jordan, Ph.D. with contributions by: Jose Bodipo-Memba and Stacie Wilson June 2004 Acknowledgements Mooney & Associates would like to extend its sincere appreciation to the diverse citizens of San Diego who helped inspire, shape, and contribute to this project. In all aspects of this intriguing project, there was a sense of team work and camaraderie. As the rich history began to unfold for all of us, we genuinely shared in the anecdotes, historical surprises, personalities of the past, and the sometimes overwhelming story of cultural and community persistence and pride. Special gratitude goes to Mr. Gil Johnson, Centre City Development Corporation board member who first proposed a history of downtown African American San Diego in 1993. Thanks also go to Karen Huff of the Black Historical Society of San Diego (formerly Gaslamp Black Historical Society) for being a champion of the resources and for her early research on the African American community. Additionally, thanks go to the Centre City Development Corporation African-American Heritage Project Advisory Committee, whose support of this project and its goals has been unyielding. This committee comprised of Dr. Lynne Christenson, Gil Johnson, Murray Lee, Beverly Schroeder, Dr. Dorothy Smith, Reverend George Walker Smith, and Carol Wallace. Numerous individuals and groups aided in the successful promotion and completion of this project, including the Catfish Club, the San Diego African-American Genealogy Research Group, the Irving Jacobs Center, the San Diego Multicultural Festival, and the California Preservation Foundation. In addition, we would like to thank the many individuals who took the time to share with us their memories and stories of San Diego’s past, including James and Leila Sampson, Fred R. Taylor, Ben Cloud, Mr. and Mrs. Johnny Williams, Mr. and Mrs. Fonzi Thomas, Agin Shaheed, Moses Martin, T.A. Logan, Bethel Baptist Church Senior Group, Willie Collins, Effie Primas, the Honorable Leon Williams, Priscilla Ritchey, Diane Ritchey Andrews, Elenor Addison, Margeret Lewis, Earl Davis, and Reverend George Stevens. Mrs. Kathleen Harmon was instrumental in setting up many of these interviews and served as a wise mentor for the research team. José Bodipo-Memba served as the glue that held much of the Mooney & Associates team together in the early stages and worked tirelessly to conduct many of the oral interviews and to ensure that the African American community was an integral part of the study. Susan Bugbee and Kathleen Flanigan’s San Diego’s Historic Gaslamp Quarter: Then and Now proved invaluable as did earlier research on African-American history by Robert Carlton, Micheal Austin, Gail Madyun, Larry Malone, and Karen Huff. We would also like to thank the staff of the California Room (in particular Rick Crawford), San Diego Public Library Central Branch, the staff of the San Diego Historical Society, and the staff of the San Diego County Tax Assessor, the Gaslamp Quarter Association, the Gaslamp Quarter Historical Foundation Association, the Office of Maria Burke Lia, Dan Del Fiorentino, Curator of Museum of Making Music, and Jason Carr, old time radio collector, for their support and generous sharing of their time and resources. Table of Contents Section Page No. I. UNDERTAKING INFORMATION/INTRODUCTION ........................ I-1 A. Introduction and Project Contract Information ......................... I-1 B. Project Location ................................................. I-1 1. Rationale for Project Area Selection ........................... I-1 2. Constraints within the Project Area ............................ I-1 C. Objectives of Project ............................................. I-4 1. Examine Potential for African-American Thematic Historic District .. I-4 2. Provide African-American Historical Context for Area Redevelopment Projects ..................................... I-4 II. AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY IN DOWNTOWN SAN DIEGO ............ I-1 A. Introduction .................................................... I-1 B. Development of the African-American Community in San Diego ..........II-1 1. Spanish Colonial and Mexican-Era San Diego ...................II-1 2. Early American-Era Settlement ...............................II-2 3. African-Americans and the Early Settlement of Downtown, 1860-1880s ...............................................II-3 4. African-Americans and New San Diego, 1880s-1900s .............II-5 5. African-Americans in the Growing City, 1900s-1920s .............II-7 6. The African-American Community in Urban San Diego, 1920s to World War II ......................................II-9 7. African-Americans in Post-World War II San Diego .............II-12 C. Sketches of Persons Important in the Downtown African-American Community ....................................II-13 1. Business Leaders .........................................II-13 2. Barbers, Beauticians, and Salon Owners .......................II-30 3. Sports Figures ...........................................II-32 4. Social, Professional, and Religious Leaders ....................II-34 5. Firemen, Policemen, and Public Servants ......................II-36 6. Ordinary African-Americans in San Diego .....................II-36 III. HISTORIC CONTEXTS AND THEMES .................................. III-1 A. Description and Background of Thematic Interpretation ................. III-1 B. Local Theme and Sub-Themes .................................... III-2 1. African-American Pioneers of Downtown San Diego ............. III-3 2. African-American Entrepreneurship in Downtown San Diego ...... III-3 3. Religion, Music and Culture in Downtown San Diego’s African-American Community .............................. III-3 4. African-American Residential Life and Community Growth in Downtown San Diego ..................................... III-3 CCDC African-American History i IV. METHODS ......................................................... IV-1 A. Community Involvement and Outreach .............................. IV-1 B. Archival and Documentary Research ................................ IV-1 C. Field Research ................................................. IV-3 V. IDENTIFIED PROPERTIES ............................................ V-1 A. Contributing Resources, Proposed Downtown San Diego African-American Thematic Historic District ......................... V-1 B. African-American Associated Sites ................................ V-37 C. Potential Archaeological Sites .................................... V-78 1. Introduction ............................................ V-78 2. Areas of High to Medium Potential .......................... V-78 VI. THEMATIC DISTRICT SUMMARY AND SIGNIFICANCE EVALUATION .... VI-1 A. Proposed Downtown San Diego African-American Thematic Historic District ................................................ VI-1 B. Regulatory Context ............................................. VI-4 1. National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) & National Register Eligibility Guidelines ....................... VI-4 2. California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) California Register Eligibility Guidelines ...................... VI-5 3. City of San Diego Significance Guidelines & Historical Resources Board District Guidelines ................. VI-5 C. Evaluation of Proposed Thematic District ............................ VI-7 1. Identified Contributing Resources ............................ VI-7 2. African-American Thematic Historic District .................. VI-15 VII. RECOMMENDATIONS .............................................. VII-1 VIII. GLOSSARY .......................................................VIII-1 IX. BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................................... IX-1 X. APPENDIX ......................................................... X-1 CCDC African-American History ii Figures No. Title Page No. 1 Potentially Archaeologically Sensitive Areas in the Study Area ................ V-80 2 Proposed Thematic District ............................................. VI-2 Table No. Title Page No. 1 Standing Resources ................................................... V-1 2 Non Standing Sites ................................................... V-37 3 Identified Contributing Resources ........................................ VI-8 4 National Register-Listed African-American Historic Districts, Comparative Information for CCDC Downtown San Diego African-American Heritage Study .. VI-17 Maps No. Title Page No. 1 Regional Location Map ................................................. I-2 2 Vicinity Map ......................................................... I-3 CCDC African-American History iii Plates No. Title Page No. 1 Edward Anderson in front of Anderson Mortuary 1947 .......................II-14 2 George A. Ramsey in front of the Douglas Hotel, December 25, 1929 ............II-17 3 George A. Ramsey and local children at Elks Christmas Party, December 25, 1930 . II-18 4 Hotel Douglas Interior-George A. Ramsey, front row right, Mabel Rowe Ramsey, front center, March 15, 1930 .....................................II-19 5 Entertainers from the Creole Palace at the Douglas Hotel ......................II-21