Before & After ~ The Dr. John Banks House in Natchez, MS, was built in the Queen Anne style about 1892 and remodeled in the Colonial Revival style c. 1905.
Dr. Banks, the first Black doctor in the city, began practicing in Natchez in 1889. He also served as President of the only African American-owned bank in the city. Booker T. Washington stayed here during his trips to Natchez. The Banks House was the headquarters for the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) during the Civil Rights Movement.
Mississippi NAACP Field Director, Charles Evers, used the house as a hub for the Natchez movement. The house was the home of NAACP President George Metcalfe, who suffered serious injuries when the Ku Klux Klan bombed his car in 1965. The same year “night riders” who committed acts of violence at night intent on inspiring terror fired shots through a window of the house.
In 1997, Dr. John Banks’ grandson, Frank Robinson, restored the home, which had fallen into disrepair. Since 2011, it has operated as a historic house museum. In 2022, the house was added to the Mississippi Freedom Trail.
Restoration methods and materials used by museums are included among the approaches presented in “Restoring Your Historic House, The Comprehensive Guide for Homeowners.”
Signed and personalized copies of the award-winning and bestselling 720-page hardcover book are available from the author in our shop at YourHistoricHouse.com/shop/.
© Scott T. Hanson 2024.
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