View complete article and references at Commemorative Landscapes of North Carolina at: https://docsouth.unc.edu/commland/monument/188

Description: This pedestrian-scale bronze sculpture is the third in a series of six monuments documenting "Black Wall Street" in Durham. The sculpture highlights how institutions such as North Carolina Mutual Life and North Carolina College (now, North Carolina Central University) worked to facilitate black entrepreneurship in the Durham area.

Nickname: The Parrish Street Sculptures

Inscription:
A Black Capital for the World to See The North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company, Mechanics and Farmers Bank, the Mutual Building and Loan Association and North Carolina College were model financial and educational institutions devoted to entrepreneurship and self-help in Durham.1910-1945

Image of the plaque

Dedication date: 10/15/2009

Creator: Leah Foushee, Sculptor Alvin Frega, Sculptor Michael Waller, Sculptor

Materials & Techniques: Bronze

Sponsor: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Funds granted with the assistance of Representative David E. Price.

Cost: $350,000

Post dedication use: This monument, and the entire series of Parrish Street sculptures, is part of a larger revitalization effort by the city of Durham.

Subject notes: This sculpture honors the contributions of four key institutions in spurring black entrepreneurship in the Durham area. Those four institutions are the North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company, Mechanics and Farmers Bank, the Mutual Building and Loan Association, and North Carolina College. N.C. Mutual Life was the first black-owned insurance company in the United States. North Carolina College, which would later become North Carolina Central University, was the first public liberal arts university to support black students.

Location: The sculpture sits on historic Parrish Street, which is better known as "Black Wall Street." It is part of a series of six sculptures each commemorating important pieces of Durham's history.

Former Locations: None

Landscape: This sculpture is in downtown Durham. There are a few trees close to the monument.

City: Durham

County: Durham

Subjects: Historic African American Figures,Industry