Farish Street Neighborhood Historic District, Historic Black business district in Jackson, United States.
Farish Street Neighborhood Historic District is a historic district in Jackson, Mississippi, named for a family that lived and ran businesses on the street for four generations. Most of its properties were built between 1890 and 1930, and it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. It was the largest economically independent Black community in Mississippi at the time of listing.
The district developed as an economically independent Black community after legal segregation took hold, with Black business owners controlling hundreds of properties in the area. This became the largest surviving Black commercial district in Mississippi and represented a period of strong economic control by the Black community.
The street's name comes from a family that lived and ran businesses there for four generations. Farish Street held Trumpet Records, Ace Records and the Speir Phonograph Company, so recordings by local musicians were made on the block. Jackson State University stood at the corner of Farish and Griffith for about a year before moving to its present site.
The district is best explored on foot, as the buildings are tightly grouped and details reveal themselves as you walk slowly through the streets. Visitors should allow enough time to observe the old facades, window styles, and architectural details from different periods.
Sidney Dillon Redmond (1871–1948) reportedly owned some 300 rental homes in the district, a figure that shows how far Black property ownership reached in Jackson. By 1908 a third of Jackson's area was Black-owned and half of Black families owned their homes. Jackson State University stood at Farish and Griffith for about a year before moving.
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