Black Asheville: Celebrating a Community with a Rich History
Even though Asheville is best known for scenic hikes, art, hipsters, and the Biltmore, this incredible city is filled with amazing Black-owned businesses, a rich Black history, and a community of leaders and organizers that fight hard to ensure the prosperity of the Black Asheville community. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised by the city’s diversity overall. During my recent trip with Explore Asheville, I was able to support a few Black-owned businesses and learn their stories. I’m pleased to share what I’ve learned in this post (I’ll also list a few other Black-owned businesses in Asheville, even if I didn’t get the opportunity of supporting them). I hope that by the end of this post, you’ll be inspired to visit Asheville and immerse yourself in its Black community!
HOOD HUGGERS INTERNATIONAL
Hood Huggers International is an organization that is constantly fighting to protect Black Asheville and the greater “Affrilachia.” In addition to being a community organization, they also function as tourism company that offers a Black Asheville waling tour. Our first activity during our trip was this walking tour and it ended up being one of the highlights of our trip.
The tour begins at the Stephens-Lee Community Center, which sits on the former site of Stephens-Lee High School. Known as the “Castle on the Hill,” it was the only secondary school for Asheville’s Black students during segregation. Not only did it provide an excellent level of education and community enrichment for the students, but it also was the main employer of some of Asheville’s best and brightest Black educators (they even sent many of their teacher to Columbia’s Teacher College to further their training). While we were at the community center, our tour guide (who is also a major community organizer with Hood Huggers), posed a thought-provoking question: Why was Asheville’s Black community more prosperous in the mid-20th century than it is now? While my husband and I pondered that question for the rest of the day, the question itself drew attention to the ways in which Asheville’s black community thrived prior to de-segregation.
After we left the recreation center, we stopped at a number of Black historical sites. One of the first stops was the St. James AME Episcopal Church. This church was designed by Black master brickmason, James Vester Miller. Miller was so skilled as a brickmason that he attracted the attention of Asheville’s leading architects and ended up building a number of Asheville’s most beloved historical structures. In fact, Explore Asheville has put together a self-guided walking tour called the Historic James Vester Miller Trail. More information about Miller and the self-guided tour can be found here.
After visiting St. James AME, we stopped at a modern luxury apartment building that stands on the former site of where enslaved Africans were auctioned off in Asheville. Currently, there’s a public art piece on the side of the apartment building that commemorates this history and honors the people sold into bondage. Around the corner of the apartments lies Triangle Park, which was the center of The Block, Asheville’s historical Black commercial district. Eagle Street was the main thoroughfare of The Block and was home to numerous Black-owned businesses. Due to urban renewal of the 70s and 80s, only a small handful of Black-owned businesses on the Block remain (I’ll share more about some of them soon).
In addition to the stops on the walking tour, we also learned about what Hood Huggers is currently doing to protect The Block and other historical Black landmarks in Asheville. There is currently talk of a major highway project that would ultimately displace many Black Asheville residents; Hood Huggers International has been working hard to ensure that the legacy of Black Asheville remains for generations to come.
BENNE ON EAGLE
Another highlight of our trip and a must-visit while in Asheville is Benne on Eagle. Benne on Eagle is a breakfast/brunch restaurant located on Eagle Street (the main thoroughfare of The Block) that strives to preserve the spirit of the current and former Black residents that make The Block what it is.
All around the restaurant are references that pay respect to a few of Asheville’s historical Black residents as well as more globally-recognized Black figures (I personally loved the portrait of James Baldwin that they had on one of the walls — he’s one of my favorite writers and thinkers). Another driving force that’s present throughout the restaurant is Sankofa - the Andinkra symbol in Ghana that translates as "go back and get it." Sankofa embodies the importance of honoring the past as we chart our futures.
One thing in the restaurant that particularly caught my attention was a set of portraits of 4 women. This set of portraits is dubbed “The Legends” and it gives reverence to 4 women “whose culinary, professional, and personal impact on the Block in the 1960s and 1970s is still felt here today.” The Legends are Hanna Shabazz, Mary Jo Johnson, Earlene McQueen, and Mary Francis Hutchinson. More information about the Legends can be found here. As someone who loves history and enjoys honoring the people that have impacted communities, I really appreciated how Benne on Eagle chose to honor these women.
Not only is the restaurant an homage to Asheville’s Black community, but the food is ON POINT — seriously, the cheesy grits were the best I’ve ever had, and this is saying a lot as someone from Georgia. I also ordered the mushroom toast (with locally-foraged mushrooms) and also can’t recommend it enough. Drinks and service were also 10/10. I’m already hoping for another reason to be in Asheville so that I can eat there again. Add it to your Asheville itinerary and make a reservation!
OTHER BUSINESSES ON THE BLOCK
After your visit to Benne on Eagle, be sure to stop next door at the YMI Cultural Center and Noire Collective. Noire Collective is a Black-woman owned gallery, boutique, and community gathering spot.;the YMI Cultural Center (which was formerly the Young Men’s Institute) “has developed a variety of cultural programs and exhibitions of art and artifacts from Asheville to Africa preserving the heritage of African Americans in Buncombe County.”
TIGER BAY CAFE + GOOD HOT FISH
We drove to Asheville from Atlanta in the morning, and the very first stop we made was to grab breakfast. We checked out Tiger Bay Cafe, a Black-owned carryout/delivery breakfast/brunch restaurant located inside the Battle Cat Coffee Bar in West Asheville. I ordered the vegetarian breakfast bowl and it did not disappoint!
After the Hood Huggers tour, we had lunch at Good Hot Fish, another Black-owned restaurant. They recently opened this brick and mortar location and serve up delicious seafood with classic Southern side dishes.
OTHER BLACK-OWNED BUSINESSES IN ASHEVILLE
Needless to say, every destination has histories (hidden or otherwise) that are waiting to be shared. I had such a pleasurable visit to Asheville and left pleased knowing that I supported Black-owned businesses and helped spread awareness of its incredible Black history. I hope Asheville will be added to your travel list soon!
