MINNEAPOLIS — The Frances E. Thompson Digital Library for Family Research, and partners Black Arts Network and Minnesota Historical Society, are starting a monthly bus tour to highlight Black history in the Twin Cities.
"I haven't heard of anything like this before and it's really needed at this time," organizer Ralph Crowder III said.
It's called the Get on the Bus African-American History Bus Tour Experience, and Crowder says this Saturday's inaugural ride in a black luxury bus previews the monthly tours they'll start offering in late April.
"It's going to have multiple sites, multiple locations," he said.
The first tour is set to depart at 12 p.m. from the Minnesota History Center in St. Paul and will visit two historical sites, and stop for lunch, before circling back to the museum to conclude the 3-hour educational experience.
The first historical site is located where S. Edward Hall lived in St. Paul's Rondo community. In 2011, the city demolished his house in error when a commission failed to report its historic significance.
"S. Edward Hall is a very prominent African-American male from St. Paul who came in the early 1900s," Crowder said. "He was foundational to the development of the Urban League, foundational to some of the leadership in the NAACP nationally. Just a tremendous man who left a trailblazing legacy. He was also a barber in the Rondo community."
The second stop is in south Minneapolis near Sabathani Community Center. Between the 1930s and 70s, many Black businesses were established in this area, including the Associated Negro Credit Union in1937.
"The legacy of that leadership stemming right here from this neighborhood of south Minneapolis is something we need to affirm, honor and celebrate," Crowder said.
"In Minnesota, only 25% of Black folks own their own home," added Scott Redd, president and CEO of Sabathani Community Center. "This is one of the first areas in Minneapolis that you can own a home in this area, 38th Street, so it was a thriving Black community."
Redd says he plans to get on the bus.
"I love hearing the stories of our elders," he said. "I love hearing the stories about young folks, and I love seeing that lightbulb go off, especially with our young folks."
Twenty-three-year-old Odell Wilson IV interned for Crowder and helped research the sites, and interns Marquise Myles and Tyrone Fisher will be the official tour guides of this first trip back in time.
"What caught my attention was the not knowing, I guess," Wilson said. "Being here, all my life, and not knowing the significance."
"It's very important to preserve history as we keep on creating it as well," Crowder added. "Bring some young people with you."
Tickets cost $15 for youth 16 and under and $25 for adults. Seating is limited and reservations are required. Reservations can be made by emailing blackartsnetwork1@gmail.com.
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