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I am often asked the question, “Was Becky and Mary’s restaurant on Washington Street the first or oldest eating house on the street?” Most people are shocked when my answer is, “Not by a long shot.”

As I have often said, we seem to have the blind leading the blind around when it comes to our local black history. This is one reason I do my own research for facts before writing or opening my mouth. When my facts prove to be incomplete or wrong then I change them.

Let’s take a look at some of the old black-owned eating houses that I have found during my research dating back to 1909. Remember that a business listed in the black community may have been white-owned and operated. Sometimes business was designated as black and other times as white.

City directories made many mistakes, especially when it came to the black community. Most times they listed blacks under “Eating Establishments” and whites under “Restaurants.”

These are some of the eating houses in black communities from 1909 to 1944:

• 1909: Washington Street, Turner Casey and Lee Flake; Hoover Street, J.B. Strickland; High Street, Wilson Williams.
• 1913: Washington Street, Lee Flake, Mary Gray, P.A. Lewis and McCarthy & McPhail; Taylor Street, Shelly Gray; East High Street, William Porter and June Robbins.
• 1915: Washington Street, M.E. Gray, Lee Flake and Belle Phelps.
• 1918: Washington Street, Lee Flake; East High Street, Chloe Baker and Myrtle Lipsey; Beamon Street, William Graves.
• 1920: Washington Street, William Bailey, Chloe Baker and Peoples Café; Leonard Street, J.M. Hasting; Fairview Street, Samuel Mobley.
• 1921: Washington Street, William Bailey, Lee Flake, Peoples Café and Chloe Baker; Fairview Street, Samuel Mobley.
• 1922: Washington Street, Ideal Café and National Café; Mangum Avenue, Johnson & Starr; Fairview Street, John Leach and Samuel Mobley; East High Street, Chloe Baker; Leonard Street, Lena Braddy.
• 1923: Washington Street, National Café and Ideal Café; Fairview Street, John Leach and Samuel Mobley; Leonard Street, Lena Braddy; Mangum Avenue, Johnson & Starr; East High Street, Chloe Baker.
• 1924: Washington Street, Lee Flake and Jones Café; Fairview Street, Samuel Mobley and C.W. Stokes; Taylor Street, Taylor Street Café; Leonard Street, Laduska Robbins; East Broad Street, East Broad Street Café, Reddie Robbins and Emmaline Taylor; East High Street, Chloe Baker.
• 1925: Washington Street, Lee Flake and Jones Café; Fairview Street, Samuel Mobley and C.W. Stokes; Taylor Street, Taylor Street Café; Leonard Street, Laduska Robbins; East Broad Street, East Broad Street Café, Reddie Robbins and Emmaline Taylor; East High Street, Chloe Baker.
• 1926: Washington Street, Ideal Café, Anna Pearl Jones, Our Coffee Shop and Pearl Boger; Hoover Street, Etta Lee; Fairview Street, Eliza Mobley and C.W. Stokes; East High Street, Reid Harris.
• 1927: Washington Street, Mamie Cureton, J.C. Curry, Mid-City Café and St. Louis Café; Hoover Street, Hoover Street Café; Fairview Street, Etta Murdock and John White.
• 1928: Washington Street, Baltimore Café, Black Cat Café, Pearl Boger, Pearl Pickett and Royal Café; Hoover Street, Hoover Street Café; Fairview Street, N.W. Johnson, Etta Murdock; Kivett Drive, Kivett Drive Tea Room.
• 1929: Washington Street, Mamie Cureton, J.C. Curry, W.M. Gray, St. Louis Café and Mid-City Café; Hoover Street, Hoover Street Café; Fairview Street, Etta Murdock, Douglas Poteat and John White.
• 1930: Washington Street, Walter Barron, Dixie Café, Royal Lunch Room, St. Louis Café and Washington Street Light Lunch; Fairview Street, Nellie Brown, Etta Murdock and William Richardson.
• 1932: Washington Street, St. Louis Café, White Way Café and Ideal lunch; Hoover Street, Hoover Street Café; Fairview Street, Margaret Boykins, Mamie Thompson and New York Lunch.
• 1934: Washington Street, East End Lunch, Eureka Café, Mid-City Café, White Way Café and St. Louis Café; Kivett Drive, Kivett Drive Café; Fairview Street, Abraham Jones.
• 1936: Washington Street, East End Lunch, Mid-City Café, St. Louis Café, Adam Harps and Fannie Shadwick; Kivett Drive, Kivett Drive Café; Fairview Street, Jennie Jones and Nelson Coffee Shop; East Street, New Moon Café.
• 1937: Washington Street, James Kinser, St. Louis Café, Fannie Shadwick, Silver Moon Barbecue, White Way Café and Lee Williams: Fairview Street, Joesph Brooks and Jennie Jones; East Street, New Moon Café; Kivett Drive, Kivett Drive Café.
• 1938: Washington Street, Andrew Johnson, James Kinser, White Way Café and Silver Moon Barbecue; Leonard Street, Lonnie Roundtree; Loflin Street, Elizabeth Davis; Fairview Street, Joseph Brooks and Jennie Jones; Taylor Street, Taylor Street Café; Vail Street, Vail Street Café; Kivett Drive, Kivett Drive Café; East Street, New Moon Lunch.
• 1939: Washington Street, Fannie Shadwick, St. Louis Café, Silver Moon Barbecue, White Way Café, James Kinser and Lee Williams; Fairview Street, Joseph Brooks and Jennie Jones; Kivett Drive, Kivett Drive Café; East Street, New Moon Lunch; Hoover Street, Belle Riven.
• 1940: Washington Street, Andrew Johnson, Sadie Jones, Silver Dollar Grill and White Way Café; Fairview Street, James Portee and Jennie Jones; East Street, New Moon Lunch; Kivett Drive, Park View Lunch and The Spot Sandwich Shop; Leonard Street, Lonnie Roundtree; Loflin Street, Herbert Steed.
• 1941: Washington Street, Andrew Johnson, Sadie Jones, Silver Dollar Grill, Williams Dining Room and White Way Café; Fairview Street, Dreame Lane Café and Jennie Jones; East Street, New Moon Lunch; Kivett Drive, Park View Lunch and The Spot Sandwich Shop; Leonard Street, Lonnie Roundtree; Loflin Street, Docia Vincent.
• 1943: Washington Street, Haygood Dining Room, James Jones Jr., L&M Café, Silver Dollar Grill and White Way Café; Hilltop Street, Talton Robbins; Kivett Drive, The Spot Sandwich Shop and Park View Lunch; Leonard Street, Charles Roundtree.
• 1944: Washington Street, Garfield Campbell, Mabel French, Haygood Dining Room, James Jones Jr., Silver Dollar Grill and Mazie Tyson; Kivett Drive, The Spot Sandwich Shop and Park View Lunch; Fairview Street, Jennie Little and Walter McCloud; East Street, New Moon Lunch; Hilltop Street, Talton Robbins; Leonard Street, Charles Roundtree.

I don’t eat out often, but, based on this information, I am left wondering if we have really progressed when it comes to black eating establishments. Your call.

Glenn Chavis researches and writes about High Point’s black history. Contact him at Storytime40@aol.com.