Eighteen years ago today, my partner & friend Michael died. He was kind & compassionate, funny & fun-loving, and he had a generosity of spirit that inspires me to this day. Michael had an interest in the well-being of others, and was always there to lend a hand whenever he could help a friend. He knew that life was a precious gift, and he squeezed as much out of his time with us as he could before he succumbed at the age of 32 to the disease of AIDS. He taught me a lot about grace & humility in midst of dreadful times. I can still hear his joyful laugh in my mind, and it makes me smile. God bless you, Michael!On today's tour, we'll make a short visit to a couple of Richmond's Northside district neighborhoods.
Have you ever wondered what your neighborhood or town looked like before your dwelling was there? Probably not. I'm subject to convoluted & meandering thoughts; it seems to run in the family. I could be having a normal conversation with my Grandma and she'd come out with a non-sequitor like "Have you ever wondered why God put your nose above your mouth?"
I was astounded as a little boy to learn that our house, our neighborhood, had once been farmland. Like most egocentric children, it was hard to grasp a world prior to my arrival. To prove his point, my dad gestured to an almost imperceptible ridge in our lawn that ran from the street to the backyard. "That used to be a farm road that ran between the strawberry fields," he explained.
On May 4, 1888, Richmond became the first city in America to roll out an entire system of electric streetcars. This innovation led to the development of new neighborhoods to the west, south, and north of the city boundaries. Streetcars, now gone & mostly forgotten, changed the Richmond landscape forever.
This past Sunday, when the predicted rain did not materialize, I scooped Morris up and we headed to the Brookland Park & Highland Park Plaza areas of Northside. Morris & I share an interest in local history & architecture, and I knew he would be a good guide. The neighborhoods in this quadrant were developed in the late 19th & early 20th centuries, with streetcar routes making downtown Richmond easily accessible for workers. A tall viaduct over the steep ravine of Bacon's Quarter Branch connected this previously inaccessible area to the greater city. This plateau now called Northside, though dotted with an estate or farmstead throughout, was mostly wooded and remote before the advent of the streetcar line.
These new suburban communities were for white middle-class residents only. Regulations prohibited "sale or lease to a colored person under any circumstance." Our history of uneasy race relations did not end with the Civil War. I find it curious that whites whose families had previously housed slaves in their attics & outbuildings came to a point where having black neighbors caused them to shudder. What did they fear? Equality? It is a continuing problem.
Still, it must have been a fine place to grow up. There were vacant lots for play, as well as designated parks and athletic fields. People kept chickens in backyards. Trees lined the streets. Retail blocks dotted the side streets within neighborhoods, with small grocery stores, barbers, and candy shops. A larger commercial center at Brookland Park Boulevard & North Avenue offered more services, such as a theater, churches, and a host of various shops; the streetcar ran through this retail area.
The next few pictures show what has become of the Milton Street block of neighborhood retail establishments. In 1929, in addition to the Highland Park Market, the city directory also listed the Milton Street Confectionery, Highland Park Cleaning, Milton Street Barber Shop. By 1946, this block nestled amongst the homes of Highland Park Plaza featured six shops. Take a look at what we have today...
After indulging ourselves with lunch at Roy's Big Burger, Morris & I headed back to Brookland Park to gander at a home on Edgewood Avenue. We had spotted an Open House sign earlier, and we got back to Brookland Park shortly thereafter to see the house. The home had been newly updated, and still retained the fine original wood floors and trimwork. The neighborhood is finally balancing itself to become a home for people of all colors to live side by side.
I know I will go back soon to explore more streets in the Richmond's Northside. It offers a rich & varied architectural landscape. Beginning as a white-only suburb, then swinging to a predominately black population in the mid-60's, this area's demographics continue to evolve. I hope that these neighborhoods, as well as the rest of Virginia and America, become places where we take a greater interest in the color of our neighbors' houses, and pay less attention to the color of our neighbor's skin.
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4 comments:
So glad you shared that last detail. That little market on Milton Street is too cute!
I think about what it looked like where I grew up, before I was there. I saw a photo once, on the NY Public Library site, of the street about half a block from my building circa 1895 and it was familiar yet so startlingly different, like another planet.
I love the melancholic irony of the photo of the old Sanitary Grocery. It really is intriguing to wonder what sort of variety was there back in the '20s. How painful about your partner's death. Sometimes we have to be like that streetcar, forever pressing forward as the things around us succumb to change.
As a Richmond native, I share your interest in its rich history and neighborhoods. In the 1970's my great aunt and I would ride the bus downtown to spend the day wandering through Thalheimer's and have lunch in the Tea Room at Miller & Rhoads. She told me stories about riding the street car when she was a young woman, and reading your blog brought those memories back. I was especially curious about the 5th St Viaduct - my school is only a few blocks from there, and I never really paid attention until today. I googled it for more information about its history (the naming and renaming of it was pretty interesting too). Then I made a point of riding by there this afternoon for a closer look. Thanks for writing about your adventures, I've enjoyed reading your musings. ~Beth
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