Exhibitions

A COMMUNITY CALLED ORANGE MOUND

Morgan Cares Senior Center / 850 Hanley St. April 12, 2019 - April 12, 2019

WKNO and JUICE Orange Mound present a FREE screening event of A Community Called Orange Mound at Morgan Cares Senior Center.

A Community Called Orange Mound is the story of a southeast Memphis neighborhood with a surprising legacy. While the name may be familiar, few outside its boundaries know anything about Orange Mound. With roots going back to the time of plantations and slavery, Orange Mound grew at the end of the nineteenth century out of the remains of that defunct way of life. Established on the grounds of the former Deaderick plantation, it was one of the first communities in the United States to be built entirely by and for African Americans. At a time when Jim Crow laws made property ownership out of reach to most black southerners, white real estate developer Elzy Eugene Meachem purchased a portion of the plantation on the eastern fringes of Memphis owned by the once-prominent Deaderick family.

Despite the primitive and sometimes harsh conditions that marked its early years, the self-contained community that emerged attracted not only laborers and domestic workers, but also doctors, lawyers, businessmen, and teachers, all of whom were proud to call Orange Mound home. 

"One of the closest-knit groups in Memphis, the residents of Orange Mound are still intensely loyal to the neighborhood that has been home to many families for generations,"" said producer Jay Killingsworth. "And they all say the same thing: even though they can live elsewhere and have had opportunities to do so, Orange Mound is home and that is where they intend to stay."