A new commemorative marker was installed today in one of Charlotte’s Corridors of Opportunity. It highlights the history of places and people that helped shape the community.
A crane helped slot a 9-foot-by-2-foot marker outside Moore’s Sanctuary Ame Zion Church in the West Boulevard Corridor. The marker depicts a child reading a book about people like Charles Parker, who was born into slavery and secretly learned to read as a boy. Parker also helped form the church. William Hill, 80, is a church steward.
"This is exposing some of our church's history to the public. If you don't know a whole lot about this area, you can learn something,” Hill said. "It's very important to preserve history because this teaches or lets our younger generation know what came before them.”
Charles Parker's wife, Rachel Parker, is also commemorated on the marker. The couple bought land in the corridor along Remount Road in the 1890s and helped others purchase property. By the 1920s, the area became the center of Black home and farm ownership.
Jamil Dyair Steel, an artist from Charlotte, created the artwork for the marker. He hopes the marker sparks interest.
“Charlotte has a rich, deep African American history, and you know we need to honor that and cherish that," Steele said. "I hope people come out, they read about the people, read about the monuments, and they're able to take away a sense of pride."
To identify which people and places to commemorate, the city partnered with the West Boulevard Neighborhood Coalition and local historian Michael Moore, who provided insight into the corridor's history. Will Linville is the program manager for the city’s Urban Design Center.
“One of the biggest takeaways I hope everyone has is the realization that there's a really rich history in Charlotte that sometimes could go overlooked,” Linville said. "And I think commemorating that history through art and collaboration with the community is a really special way to celebrate the story for residents and for folks that are passing by as well.”
The city plans to install a total of 12 markers that share the history of places, people and key moments that have shaped the corridor.
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