"I would take you back in time, if I could do it. I would let you have the Jonesville experience. My grandchildren...at 14, 15, they're not really sick of hearing my stories. They say, 'We want to hear you tell some more."

- Connie Gatewood Jones

Connie, Rachel Jackson, and Maxine Hines Taylor outside of Rachel's house. Date unknown.

Jonesville was a vibrant, prosperous African American community in Bowling Green. The earliest land deed dates to 1881, but the community likely began earlier. At its height, Jonesville had 85 houses and was home to many families who worked, attended school, and worshipped at church, and lived as a community.

"We had no keys to houses. We didn't have to lock up cars. It was a very respectable neighborhood, and people respected you."

- Rev. Porter W. Bailey

In 1963, the City of Bowling Green directed a campaign of "urban renewal" that demolished Jonesville and removed its people. The land was sold to WKU. Although the buildings are gone and many residents have passed on, Jonesville's stories live on through former residents and their descendants. 

Families

Jonesville was comprised of tightly-knit families that formed a community. While this list is not complete, here are many of the families who lived and worked in Jonesville.

E. Alexander

M. Alexander

Alma

Austin

Baker

Bailey

Blewett

Bradley

Buford

Butts

Alene Doyle (mother), Verlie, Ferrell, William James, Will (father), and Henriette Taylor.

Caldwell

Dover

Edison

Ennis

Freeman

Hadin

Hartsel

Holson

Lightfoot

Lovett

James Sr., Gladys, James Jr., and Nancy Bailey.

Potter

Ragland

Ray

Sanders

Sweatt

Taylor

Walton

Woods

Schools

Education was important to the community. Children attended segregated schools.

"Our parents and grandparents and all were smart enough to know that knowledge is power and we would need that knowledge to survive in the world today." - Maxine Ray

Jonesville Elementary was the only school located in the community, but it closed in the early 20th century. Students then attended H.D. Carpenter/Delafield Elementary School, a Rosenwald School that had two classrooms with grades 1-4 on one side and grades 4-8 on the other. The cafeteria served as a third classroom and the library. Staff included Principal Clara Cole, teachers Mrs. E.T. Dorsey and Mrs. Hutchinson, and caretaker Mr. Kirby, who lit two wood-burning stoves every morning to warm the building.

James Bailey Jr. and Nancy Bailey, graduation from Delafield Elementary.

High Street High School Band.

Bowling Green Academy was a Presbyterian boarding school at the corner of 3rd and State Streets, attended by African American students from Jonesville and surrounding counties. Many worked for white families in exchange for tuition, room, and board, often in the early morning or evenings as servers, cookes, and cleaners.

State Street High School was the primary high school for Jonesville students and boasted successful basketball, football, and track teams. It was later replaced by High Street High School.

Harry Taylor, a musician who could play a variety of instruments. In an interview, his niece, Angela Townsend, stated, "On a clear day, you could hear him all over Jonesville."

Marilyn Ellen, Corrine Bailey, Mary Austin, Hershel Austin Jr., James Bailey Jr., and Nancy Bailey relaxing outside Virgil Bailey's home.

Gonzela Simons, Will Simons, and Maggie Woodson in flower (left) and vegetable (forefront) gardens.

A Community Centered Around Church

"And we had everything at church because the church was the center of our extracurricular activities. [...] The church is where the ladies taught young girls how to be ladies. The men and the boys were taught the same: manners, how to treat a lady, how to hold a chair to seat her. There was a lot out back behind the church where we could play baseball. We had the weenie roasts and our pastor would tell us ghost stories on Halloween night, we would all be scared to death. We just learned life there. The church was everything to us." - Maxine Ray

Mt. Zion Baptist Church

Rev. Stewart and churchgoers talking after service.

Founded in 1886, Mount Zion Baptist Church was the main house of worship in Jonesville. The pastor was the moderator, a kind of leader, of the Union district representing 30 to 45 churches in the area. After Mt. Zion was razed, the congregation was allowed by WKU to meet at the place where it stood: Diddle Arena. Eventually, Mt. Zion was rebuilt at 175 Graham Drive.

AME Salters Chapel was another church located in Jonesville, but moved to 3rd and Park in the Shake Rag neighborhood before WKU sought to purchase Jonesville.

Resistance

Residents of Jonesville did not willingly give up their property, and with it, their livelihood. They resisted by writing letters, protesting at meetings, and waiting as long as they could to move. The Committee for the Protection of Property Rights was formed to fight the decision. Aaron Overfelt was the committee's attorney and Rev. J. H. Taylor was the chairman. Rev. Taylor was a major force in organizing resistance and voicing opposition through letters to local newspapers. A petition was circulated throughout the city to rally support to stop the urban renewal project.

"They made known their intentions to buy our homes, whether we wanted to sell or not, and stated publicly that they have no intentions of paying us enough to buy or build without incurring indebtedness." - Rev. J. H. Taylor

Others made public appeals. White resident M.M. Blewett pointed out that the College had many old buildings in poor condition that could be replaced. At the City's final decision meeting, 300 Jonesville residents attended in overflow to protest the decision.

Rev. J.H. Taylor

Demolition

For a property to be approved for urban renewal, it must be deemed "blighted" - a vague defiinition. In the case of Jonesville, homes were deemed blighted for issues as minor as lacking sufficient off-street parking. On December 2, 1963, the City gave final approval for the project. Two months later, WKU declared its intentions to build sports stadiums and other facilites on the land. By 1967, the last building in Jonesville - Mt. Zion Baptist Church - was bought and razed. The church's destruction marked the end of Jonesville.

"Like most people say, 'negro removal,' that's what it boils down to and that was probably what was the theme. When you think about the whole process, it was just a system that was devised to take property from Black folks when they wanted it." - Alice Gatewood Waddell

The Bailey Family

In 1965, 16-year-old Connie Gatewood Jones calculated each family member's portion from their property's sale. The property sold for $20,300. The profits were split among eight relatives, as shown in Connie's letter to Daddie Edgar (at right).

"Why don't we have a whole building dedicated to the Jonesville community with historical artifacts and history and all that and not something just tucked off in the corner, you know? Because tucked off in the corner is what we've been getting for years."

- Tremayne Taylor

"I do have hopes that it will make everybody aware of what happened. And when I say everybody, I mean everybody, the whole Bowling Green, the whole world."

- Wathetta Buford

"I hope that something can be done that will be tangible. Not just looking at a marker.... Something that will encourage people to not go backward. [...] Something big enough to make a statement that 'we're sorry, that that took place'...to make the descendants of those people have comfort and know that somebody cares."

- Alice Gatewood Waddell