Name: Charlestta Taylor
Date of Interview: April 16, 2021
Location: Zoom
Interviewer: Tonia O'Neal
Project: Oral History Assignment
Recording no:
H/M/S
00:02:01: Introductions
00:03:13: Favorite and earliest memories growing up.
00:03:55: Growing up with brothers.
So what was your neighborhood like?
00:04:45: What the neighborhood was like growing up, 110 Turner, which is north
of Natural Bridge, walked to school, enjoyed school, moved to the city 2530 North market.00:05:54: More information about school, went to Simmons, went to Sumner,
schools were segregated, Simmons was the closest school for African Americans at the time.00:08:27 : Favorite subject in school, like to read, history classes, drama
00:09:22: NGA approach to move the house
00:09:31: NGA didn't do that, the city of St. Louis did, city had to own the
property before they were eligible for the to be for the entity to get the NGA to come to St. Louis, protest00: 11:23: protested, for more for several years, 43 families living in actually
living in the area, the majority of them didn't want to leave their homes, elderly, didn't want to start over, a couple of churches and a few businesses, not just one or two people.00:12:52: Moved only one house.
00:13:05: Issues with installing the house at the new location, they did an
excellent job, foundation is newer than the 100 year old foundation, electrical improved00:14:12: moving day, was a spectacle, if I could sit on the front porch and
ride with it, was told no, on Sunday. They had to notify the neighbors there was going to be going on, take down some wires or block traffic on Jefferson, photographers, people came from out of town, really cold.00:15:43: took a week to move, it sat in 22nd Street, street was blocked at St.
Louis avenue for at least a week.00:16:38: visit the original location, under construction, see all the
construction, new neighbors on St. Louis Avenue00:17:44: happy with the choices that they made, regrets about selling the property,
happy because she got a newer place
00:19:19: Working with the NGA, my grandkids
00:19:58: Elementary school, Simmons elementary is still there, the building is
still there, it is not in use, the Board of Education is closing a lot of buildings right now, it must have served as a college00:21:17: Family members on the board, a cousin that was on the board, Eddie Davis
00:22:32: concerns during that brief period where the public school district was unaccredited,
member of oasis in their tutoring program, I found out that individual schools
can be accredited, there are a number of buildings in the area that are just vacant.00:24:30: Homer g Phillips hospital, assisted living now, brothers were born
there, St. Louis maternity, Barnes- Jewish complex, segregation, wonderful reputation, nursing school, senior citizen complex.00:28:00: school system was segregated, other types of legal segregation,
theaters, amusement parks, the highlands00:29:34: Areas not segregated, parks, most everything was segregated,
neighborhoods, North Market, dry goods store, Cardinals, the Fox was segregated, Forest Park was not segregated00:33:03: How did you meet your husband, through a classmate, he was older and
had a car, His name is Eugene, He's deceased, married 48 years, favorite spot in the old neighborhood00:34:14: Street West of us was Jefferson, our corner, Cornell took buildings
out, North market, Jefferson, our church00: 35:46: Community temple, part of the churches of God in Christ, been a
member there 50 years.00:36:29: Carr square village, Pruitt Igoe, grandparents lived in Carr Square,
two story units, one family per house00:38:20: Buildings have been maintained, originally much bigger
00:38:51: Anything else you wanted to share with us or that you wanted us to know.
00:39:01: the neighborhood leaving that it started a long time before nga. The
city had come up with all kinds of proposals that threatened the neighbors that lived in that area, golf course, antebellum dress00:40:05: Closing statements start, thank you and good bye.
