In 1947, Dr. A.H. McCoy, a prominent Jackson dentist, opened the Grand Theater in the 900 block of John R. Lynch Street. The opening of this theater was in fact a milestone since there were only 6 other African American-owned & operated movie theaters in the country.  Even greater is the fact that Dr. McCoy also owned a movie theater on Farish Street named the Ritz. This means that 2 of the 7 African American-owned & operated movie theaters in the U.S. existed right here in Jackson!

In 1949, Dr. McCoy sold the Grand Theater to the owner of a local grocery store, thus removing the designation of the Grand as an African-American owned & operated establishment.  The Grand ceased operations in the late 1950s and was resurrected as the Ebony Theater for a few years before it closed permanently.  A shell of this establishment still remains on John R. Lynch Street.

There have been several theaters in West Jackson including one near Poindexter Park, one on West Jackson Blvd, and a drive-in theater on Highway 80.  If you have some time, read the research paper by Dr. Jerry Dallas entitled Movie Theaters in 20th Century Jackson, Mississippi.  That is what I used as my source for the trivia.

Thanks for participating in this week’s WESTerday Trivia!

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