Steele, Barbara C., 1932-2005

Hodgin, Amy

Charlotte, North Carolina

J. Murrey Atkins Library Special Collections, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

2004-04-01

1 audio file (0:26:14) : digital, MP3 + 1 transcript (12 pages : PDF)

sound recording-nonmusical

spoken word

eng

Barbara Steele was a 71-year-old woman at the time of interview, which took place at her home in Charlotte, North Carolina. She was born in Charlotte in 1932. She was educated at Second Ward High School, Johnson C. Smith, and the University of Connecticut, and was employed as a teacher.

Barbara Steele recounts her childhood and life in Brooklyn, a historic African American neighborhood in Charlotte, North Carolina, before it was torn down during urban renewal in the 1960s. She describes how close-knit and self-sufficient the community was. In particular, Mrs. Steele discusses the supportive atmosphere the teachers created at Second Ward High School, describing it as a second home. She also talks about the Queen City Classic, an annual football game between Second Ward and West Charlotte high schools that was a major social event for Charlotte's African American high school students and community. Mrs. Steele then discusses how urban renewal destroyed her neighborhood. She relates how residents fruitlessly spoke out against the project, and her family's failed legal battle with the city over adequate compensation for their homes.

MP3 access copy created on ingest from WAV preservation master. Interview originally recorded on minidisc and digitized using a Digidesign 003 rack.

Teachers

Steele, Barbara C., 1932-2005

Second Ward High School (Charlotte, N.C.)

Urban renewal
African American neighborhoods
Eminent domain
African Americans--Housing
African American families
Sports--Social aspects

North Carolina--Charlotte
North Carolina--Charlotte--Brooklyn
North Carolina--Charlotte--Second Ward
North Carolina--Charlotte--Blue Heaven

Interviews
Oral histories

1950-2010

Student project on Second Ward

Living Charlotte : the postwar development of a New South city

James Steele oral history interview, 2004 April 17, J. Murrey Atkins Library Special Collections and University Archives, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

The materials included on this web site are freely available for private study, scholarship or non-commercial research under the fair use provisions of the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, United States Code). Any use beyond the provisions of fair use, including but not limited to commercial or scholarly publication, broadcast, redistribution or mounting on another web site always require prior written permission and may also be subject to additional restrictions and fees. UNC Charlotte does not hold literary rights to all materials in its collections and the researcher is responsible for securing those rights when needed. Copyright information for specific collections is available upon request.

Digitization made possible by funding from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources.

audio/mpeg

OH-ST0397

http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.13093/uncc:338