The Business of Pleasure
The Spot Café was a popular African American nightclub in Wilmington during the 1940s. It was located in the basement of the Royal Hotel at 703 French Street. Jazz and blues blossomed in Wilmington’s east side neighborhood during the late 1930s and early 1940s, and this photo shows members of a band playing at the club. Nightclubs like the Spot provided important venues for jazz musicians to perform, improvise, and exchange ideas.
Spot Café, Henry Szymanski, photographer, 703 French Street, Wilmington, Delaware; March 20, 1940, Silver gelatin print, Szymanski Collection, Delaware Historical Society 2003.15.228, .213, .219
The Royal Hotel and the Spot Café appeared in the 1940s Negro Motorist Green Book. These national guides listed businesses that were friendly to African Americans during the Jim Crow era, but the Spot was notable for serving both African American and white clientele. This image shows an interracial group of patrons drinking at a chrome-edge table in a space lit by glass globe lights. While the paintings in the background show dancing, customers of the Spot largely sat and listened to the bebop played by the musicians.
The first Green Book was published in 1936. It gave black travelers in the United States access to information about businesses that welcomed African Americans. The guide was so popular that subsequent editions appeared until 1966. The Green Book listed thousands of businesses, including the Royal Hotel in Wilmington, Delaware, where the Spot Café offered music and drinks to both black and white patrons.
Negro Motorist Green Book–Cover and Wilmington Business Listings, New York: Victor H. Green & Co., 1946, Hagley Museum 2018.0325
Located at 1200 Walnut Street, Elsie’s Chicken Shack was a popular restaurant owned by Elsie Justice and Richard Barry. As seen here, businesses can be more than a physical location; they can also serve as centers of a community. The images of Elsie’s business reflect owners preserving their legacy, livelihood, and property through photography.
Elsie’s Chicken Shack, Henry Szymanski, photographer, 1200 Walnut Street, Wilmington, Delaware; 1940, Silver gelatin print, Szymanski Collection, Delaware Historical Society 2003.15.283, .286
The Federal Bakery was a popular Wilmington business at 717 Market Street. When the bakery opened in 1929, an advertisement read: “A great deal of time and effort has been spent to give the public of Wilmington and vicinity the most up-to-date—complete and sanitary bake shop in the State.” The pink boxes for their baked goods were well recognized in the city and are fondly remembered today by former customers. (Federal Bakery, Arthur N. Sanborn, photographer, 717 Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware; 1940, Silver gelatin print, Sanborn Collection, Delaware Historical Society 83.13.1549)