145 East Wolfe Street
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Last updated: March 25, 2024
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Directions from Peters Family Properties to site 7:
- On Elizabeth St, go to the intersection with N Federal St
- Make a right onto N Federal St
- Go one block to E Wolfe St
- Site 6 is on your right, the parking lot of the Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church
The Blue Circle 30 Club was inside the Pythian building at 145 East Wolfe Street. The Pythian building housed several African American originations and businesses. The building was renovated in 1927 to have spaces for “musical instruments, billiard tables, and other recreational facilities.” One successful business running out of the Pythian was Richmond Beneficial Insurance, Co. Harrisonburg Branch Office, run by George Newman. Another black-owned restaurant called Frank’s shared the building too and was listed in 1951 The Negro Motorist Green Book: An International Travel Guide Railroad edition.
The Blue Circle 30 Club was a black social organization that shared the building, too. The club was formed in January 1927. The club’s objective was to “promote social and athletic activities and to all behind, all worthy movements for the betterment of the colored race.” The group’s first officers were President Percy Wells, Vice President Joe Yokley, Secretary H.W. Sellers, Treasurer John P. Harper, and Advisory Counsellor Page Mitchell. They gave back and provided aid, such as raising funds to install a flag at Effinger Street School. It is unclear when the club dissolved. The Pythian building was torn down during the 1960s Urban Renewal Project. The lot is now a parking lot. |
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References
“Celebrating Simms: The Story of the Lucy F. Simms School,” James Madison University & the Shenandoah Black Heritage Center in association with Billo Harper, accessed January 23, 2024, https://omeka.lib.jmu.edu/simms/timeline.
UVA IATH, “Frank’s Restaurant,” The Architecture of The Negro Travelers’: Green Book, last modified May 2023, http://community.village.virginia.edu/greenbooks/content/franks-restaurant.
“Celebrating Simms: The Story of the Lucy F. Simms School,” James Madison University & the Shenandoah Black Heritage Center in association with Billo Harper, accessed January 23, 2024, https://omeka.lib.jmu.edu/simms/timeline.
UVA IATH, “Frank’s Restaurant,” The Architecture of The Negro Travelers’: Green Book, last modified May 2023, http://community.village.virginia.edu/greenbooks/content/franks-restaurant.