Columbia’s “Black Wall Street” highlighted in new documentary, premiere part of two-day event

COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — Columbia’s Historic Black Business District is being highlighted in a new documentary — set to premiere this Wednesday.

The new documentary titled “Did You Know? Columbia’s Black Wall Street” chronicles the Black businesses that were thriving in the city during the 1920’s and 1930’s.

According to the Director of the City of Columbia’s Office of Business Opportunities, Ayesha Driggers, the film is produced by 7Sunday and the City of Columbia, and created by Johnsonville native and Iraqi War Veteran Deon Generette.

“Deon Generette met with the former Director of Business Opportunities and they were just having a casual conversation about the Black Business District. And he didn’t realize it existed at that time, and that’s why the film is called “Did you know?” because a lot of people here didn’t know there was a Black Business District. A very thriving district. And so we really wanna honor that history that we have at the City of Columbia,” Driggers says.

Included in the film is an interview with the late Elise Martin who owned a beauty shop on Washington Street, and was 108-years-old at the time of filming.

City officials say Martin was the first Black woman in Columbia to own a business downtown.

Driggers says the premiere of “Did You Know?” is part of a two-day Juneteenth Extravaganza, beginning Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. with an entrepreneurial summit at 1208 Washington Place.

Wednesday will feature a children’s event at the Nickelodeon Theater starting at noon and will include talks by Coaches Dawn Staley and Shane Beamer.

“And then that evening on Wednesday will be the big premiere of the documentary “Did you know?” And we’ll have that at The Nickelodeon, and we’ll have a fireside chat at 5:30 and then the premiere is at 6 o’clock. Then after the premiere will be the red carpet gala right here at the Columbia Museum of Art — where we’ll have some entertainment, Kenny Latimore and Susan Carol will be performing as well as the 7Sunday band,” says Driggers.

To register for any of the events, including the film’s free premiere, click here.

“The creative space is so important to the City of Columbia, and making sure that those in television, film, our artists, are all celebrated. And this gives us a great opportunity to bring everyone together,” she says, adding if you’d like to start a small business but have questions — reach out by clicking here.

Driggers says they’re here to help you.