The Greenville Community where I lived and grew up as a child is symbolic of one of these communities where a lot of love and one hundred and five years of growth was destroyed by a bulldozer. I can hear my Mother's voice calling to her brothers (in the early seventies) as the men on big machines, trucks and bulldozers arrived to demolish our home, "Edgar, brother", she said "you had better get here now, the house wreckers are here!" Destroy our home! I did not want to understand! Our home at 829 Maple Street was a magical castle to me, it was a nine room, two story stucco and frame structure with a large oak door and huge front porch that could hold about twenty kids from the neighborhood on one side, for a round of circus and jackstones, while adults gathered on the other for a good round of gossip and lemonade. Our home had been built by a master builder who died before I was born, Walter N. Stevenson, Sr., my Grandfather. Walter N. Stevenson, Sr. who was born at the turn of the eighteenth century became known as an artisan, considered one of the most skilled builders and "the outstanding" plasterer and mentor to young craftsmen in the city of Charlotte.

While growing up my Mother, Frances Stevenson Sloane, who was a school teacher, often took me to see the ornate moldings my Grandfather had carved into the ceiling of the Federal Courthouse and "old" post office buildings on Trade Street. As the story goes he was working on the building with a white contractor by the name of Mr. C.W. Kirkland. One evening as they walked home from work an unfortunate tragedy occurred, Mr. Kirkland was killed by a train as he tried to run across the tracks. Thusly, my Grandfather was left to complete the work alone. He was an artisan and our home was delightfully marked with his craftsmanship in every room. He spent a lot of time teaching his sons, Walter Stevenson, Jr. and Edgar Stevenson, to care for their homes and families.

Of course, Greenville was known for beautiful homes and gardens of fresh vegetables and flowers, a few back alley ways and shotgun houses owned by absentee landlords and a special group of people interconnected by caring and concern for you especially if you were a child. "What are you doing?" "Where are you going?" "Does your Mother know where you are?" These questions were often asked by adults who felt they could give a child guidance, or a reprimand, or care, even in the absence of their parents. Greenville was a community that had become (without knowing it) a living example of the African proverb, "It takes a whole village to raise a child." And Greenville was a community of music from Blues to Rhythm and Blues heard coming off the juke box in the nightclub beneath the canopy of trees in Mr.Chris backyard to the spirituals, hymns and gospel music rising from organs and pianos of the Presbyterian, A.M.E. Zion, Baptist, House of Prayer and the Church of God churches to the tambourines, trumpets, brass cymbals and drums shouting from the storefront church on the corner of Maple and Kendrick Street. There was a piano in almost every home. The community gave birth to talented and famous musicians like the Harrison family and Wilbert Harrison who wrote " Kansas City Baby" which has become Kansas City's song, the E.D. Lock family, the famous Blues singer of national acclaim, Pervis Lee, the Maxwells and Stevensons who could perform any style of music from Big Band to Anthems, to Gospel, to Opera, who called Greenville home. Music was so important, my Grandmother, Etta Stevenson, made me spend many hours each day practicing classical vocal and piano lessons while some of my friends, roller-skating and biking down the street, stopped at intervals on the sidewalk to sing along loudly in a weak off-key first soprano imitation of "Because".

Greenville was populated with prominent families such as the Moores, the Cannons, the Jenkins, the Walkers, the Garnetts, the Griers, the Stevensons, the Alexanders, the Halls, the Jennings, the Fosters, the Grays and citizens who contributed to the improvement of African American life in Charlotte and throughout the country. For example, there was Mrs. Creola Moore (born at the turn of the eighteenth century) , a school teacher, founded the first Afro-American School in the state of North Carolina known as the Elementary Colored School in Goldston, NC. The school eventually became a Rosenwald School. Mrs. Moore or "Miss Creola" as we used to call her, later commuted from the Greenville community to a Newton, NC grammar school to teach under the administration of Rev. Dr. A.P. Corley, the pastor of Brandon Presbyterian Church located in Greenville. While teaching in Newton, Mrs. Moore became the principal.

Realizing that the students would not be able to attend the segregated high schools in or around Newton, Mrs. Moore brought students to live in her spacious Greenville home with her family, giving them the opportunity to attend Second Ward High School in the Brooklyn community. Her husband Mr.Charles A.Moore worked on the railroad for many years and owned and operated a successful limousine service, often driving professors from Johnson C Smith round trip from Charlotte to New York.

Greenville was known for successful business persons such as Mr. Romeo Alexander who owned two large restaurants and is a very successful realtor. His brother Oren Alexander became an established Bail Bondsman. And of course, many people knew Mrs. Grace Robinson and Miss Rena Blue were the preferred cosmetologists for many of the African-American women in Charlotte during the latter part of their careers, they bought a track of land and built a new beauty shop. And then there was Mr. Leroy Hall who owned a shoe shop for more than twenty years just to name a few. And Ms. Mary Cherry a retried banker who became a successful retailer. During the hundred and ten years span of the community there were more than fifty thriving (stable) businesses.

A large number of educators lived in the community (proper) and in the Fairview Homes (also a section of Greenville). One of the teachers was Mrs. Frances Stevenson Sloane, my Mother, who received numerous awards as an outstanding teacher in the state of Georgia. She later became Chairman of the English Department at J.T. Williams Jr. High School while still living in Greenville. Also Mrs. Sarah Coleman the daughter of Mrs. Creola Moore, has been recognized as one of the leading educators in the field of business. The list goes on, Mr. Kenneth Simmon, principal and administrator in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School System, and teachers Addie Foster, Abia Miller, Eutila McCullough to name a few.

Many taught at Fairview School located in Greenville where for many years Mr. W.G. Byers was principal others taught in schools throughout the CMS system. The health care professionals are numerous. Among them Mrs Ruth E. Gregory my namesake aunt) who was the head nurse when I was born at Good Samaritan, the African American Hospital that was located near uptown Charlotte where the Stadium is now located. And Mrs. Birdie Moore who was the first African American public health nurse in the city. And Mrs. Thereasea Clark Elder, the first United States Cadet Nurse for the City of Charlotte. It is also noteworthy to mention that the history, warmth and love for this community is so deeply rooted with Mrs. Elder that she has become one of the tireless, outstanding leaders of the Greenville Historical Society. And of course, last but not least there was Dr. Charles James who could be seen almost any evening traveling from his office in Brooklyn to make house calls to see his patients in Greenville( where he also attended church), during the gentle days when you could be sick at home and your doctor would come to you.

And speaking of churches, there were thirteen churches of every denomination in Greenville. On any given Sunday morning you could hear church bells ringing through the air. My Mother, Frances Sloane, said that each church's bell had its own distinctive sound. If you stopped and listened, you knew which church was calling its children to Sunday school. She also said the bells gave us an African drum system of communication. When someone in Greenville had been very ill, if a church bell rang during the night or the wee hours of the morning, we knew which bell was ringing and that the person had "passed on". We would rise from our beds to take the family food, comfort or anything they needed at the time.