02/13/2025
We appreciate the recognition and give thanks for the City of Spartanburg, SC’s efforts to highlight “figures and places” featured in the Hub City Writers Project’s, “North of Main!”
We love our community and recognize that our ability to sustain is thanks to each and everyone who trusts and supports us. ❤️
Happy Black History Month!
All this month, we'll be spotlighting important local figures and places featured in the new history title from Hub City Writers Project, "North of Main."
The neighborhood across Church Street from Wofford College, including homes along College Street, Howard Street, and Magnolia Street, housed formerly enslaved people primarily in rental homes and boarding homes. Three families owned over 20 acres in the area, namely the Bomar family, the Farrow family, and the Aden family. In 1920, the widowed Carrie Bomar Perry opened Provident Hospital in her home at the corner of Howard and Arch Streets. The hospital served Black residents and was staffed by both Black and White physicians until 1930. In 1946, the home was sold and became the current site of the JW Woodward Funeral Home, Inc.
J.W. Woodward Funeral Home was founded in 1916 and remains the oldest Black-owned business in Spartanburg, where it continues to be family-owned and operated. After the founder, John Woodward, passed away in 1947, his son, John Stinson Woodward took over operations for the next 75 years as a South Carolina state licensed funeral director and embalmer. In addition to funeral services, John Stinson Woodward provided services to the Black community not previously available, including laundry services and loan services. After John Stinson Woodward passed away in 2002, his daughter, Kay Elizabeth Woodward, took over the role of President and Owner of the mortuary, and she continues to serve in that role to date.
Purchase your copy of "North of Main" at the Hub City Bookshop, 186 W Main St. in downtown Spartanburg!
