Black Arts and Revolutionary-Afrocentric Era (1960s-1970s)
Academic
Dobyville School
One of many run down schools in the Dobyville and Bealsville communities near Tampa’s Central Avenue which was the center of black-owned businesses that hosted entertainment and performing arts. In the late 70s it was overrun by urban development.
Professional
Lincoln Theatre 1960s
One of two Negro show houses in Central Avenue, the black business district in Tampa. This theatre showcased works by black producers and filmmakers like Oscar Micheaux.
Mahaffey Theatre
Opened in 1965 in St. Petersburg, the Mahaffey was not a black owned theater but it hosted and showcased black performances by artists such as Louis Armstrong and Sarah Vaughan throughout the years.
The Blue Room 1960s-1970s
Many African-american entertainers such as BB King, Ella Fitzgerald and Ray Charles performed at the Blue Room on Central Avenue in Tampa’s downtown.
Community
Central Avenue
Tampa’s black downtown evolved from The Scrub. Among businesses on Central Avenue also included the Apollo and the Cotton Club, the businesses were named after their counterparts in Harlem. Herald as the Mecca of black owned businesses, black historian Fred Hearns says it was once “THE place to be”, it was also a stop on the Chitlin circus. Eventually it was destroyed by urban renewal in the 70s.
Churches
Lyric Theater -60s
Lyric Theater, Overtown (Phillip Pessar photo) Thenewtropic.com
Originally a movie Theatre in Overtown’s “Little Broadway” district. In the 60s, it became known as the General Assembly of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith, yet still it hosted acts like Nat King Cole and Marion Anderson. Began to deteriorate after the 60s and is now what is left is a museum.
Actors
Johnny Brown -70s
Brown is an actor and singer born in St. Petersburg in 1937. He played on the sitcom Good Times and in the Wiz in the 1970s.
Historian/Scholar
Dorothy Jenkins Fields -70s
Florida born archivist and historian. Fields established The Black Archives, History and Research Foundation, a photographic repository containing the legacies of South Florida’s black communities in 1977.
References
“After 50 Years, St. Petersburg’s Mahaffey Theater Is Getting Some Respect.” Tampa Bay, Florida News. N.p., 22 Apr. 2015. Web. 17 Nov. 2017. <http://www.tampabay.com/things-to-do/stage/after-50-years-mahaffey-theater-is-getting-some-respect/2226529>.
“Chitlin Circuit.” City of Tampa. N.p., 25 June 2016. Web. 17 Nov. 2017. <https://www.tampagov.net/art-programs/perry-harvey-sr-park/chitlin-circuit>.
Dobyville – Florida Historical Markers on Waymarking.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2017. <http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM3GR2>.
Dorothy Fields | The HistoryMakers. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2017. <http://www.thehistorymakers.org/biography/dorothy-fields-41>.
Historiclyrictheater. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2017. <https://www.bahlt.org/lyric-theater>.
“Johnny Brown.” IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2017. <http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0113900/>.
“Lincoln Theatre.” Cinema Treasures. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2017. <http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/34278>.
“From the Scrub to the Twist: A journey through Tampa’s history.” <https://nieonline.com/tbtimes/downloads/supplements/2016_FromScrub2Twist_2.pdf>