In its heyday, what we now know as M.L. King Boulevard was Ninth Street, known as “The Big 9.” The bustling corridor was the cradle of Chattanooga’s Black culture, commerce, entertainment and entrepreneurship. Everything started with John S. Lovell’s Mahogany Hall, a three-story building that housed a brothel, restaurant, casino and saloon.
“It was the heart of the Black community,” said Elijah Cameron, the director of community relations at the Bessie Smith Cultural Center, during a 2022 interview with National Geographic.
(READ MORE: Leaders discuss past, future of Chattanooga’s Black neighborhoods)
Before she sang “Gimme a Pigfoot” and “Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl,” and before she was known the world over as the Empress of Blues, Smith performed on Ninth Street. There was the Martin Hotel, which hosted guests like legendary jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald and one of the greatest humans to ever throw a baseball, Satchel Paige. There was the La Grand Eat Shop, where Annie Conley served old-fashioned pit barbecue, country ham with hot biscuits, homemade doughnuts and steaks.