Charlotte Mecklenburg Library

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African American Album Volume 2

1960 - "Stay" goes to the top of the charts

November 21, 1960 - "Stay" goes to the top of the charts.

  • Charlotte’s Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs record this classic hit in Columbia, SC.
  • It is later recorded by the Four Seasons, Jackson Browne, and the Hollies.
  • Earlier in his career, Williams’ song "Little Darlin’" had been performed by white quartet the Diamonds. Pop radio stations of the 1950s often air the "white" version of a song recorded by black artists.
Date of Event:
November 21, 1960

1960 - Greensboro sit-in sparks protests that spread across the South

February 1, 1960: Charlotte's Franklin McCain and three other North Carolina A & T students are refused service at the F.W. Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, NC. They begin a sit-in that spreads to eight other cities in the state, and finally, to every state in the South. 

Date of Event:
February, 1960

1960 - Bishop C.M. "Daddy" Grace Dies

January 18, 1960 - Bishop C.M. "Daddy" Grace dies. Brought by train, his casket arrives in Charlotte to be viewed by thousands of his grief-stricken followers.

Date of Event:
January 18, 1960

1960 - City and County Schools Combine

January 1960 - Charlotte's city and county schools are combined into a single large district, becoming one of the largest in the nation.

  • Schools are still divided by race.
  • However, this move later makes integration possible because it makes white flight from the school system difficult.
  • White families cannot find other nearby segregated school systems.
Date of Event:
January, 1960

1959 - Charlotte Expands

December 31, 1959 - Charlotte city limits are greatly expanded and the city's population passes 200,000.

Date of Event:
December 31, 1959

1959 - Bishop C.M. "Daddy" Grace visits Charlotte

September 1959 - Bishop C.M. "Daddy" Grace visits Charlotte.

  • Known to his followers as "Daddy" Grace, he is the founder of the national evangelical church, the United House of Prayer for all People. 
  • He came to Charlotte's Second Ward to set up churches here in the 1920s. 
  • "Daddy" Grace accompanied by members of his congregation in the last parade he attends before his death.
Date of Event:
September, 1959

1959 - Wilbert Harrison, "Kansas City"

May 18, 1959 - Wilbert Harrison's "Kansas City" is number one on the pop charts.

  • The rock 'n' roll classic "Kansas City" was written by famous songwriters Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and recorded by several different artists.
  • However, Wilbert Harrison's version is the top pick and spends two weeks at the top of the charts. Harrison's song is also the first song to enter the charts at the low position of 100 and go all the way to number one.
  • Part of a large family of Charlotte musicians, Harrison attended West Charlotte High School.
Date of Event:
May 18, 1959

1958 - KKK members arrested

February 15, 1958 - KKK members are arrested on their way to bomb a Charlotte school.

Date of Event:
February 15, 1958

1957 - Charlie Sifford

November 10, 1957 - Charlie Sifford becomes the first black member of the PGA tour.

Date of Event:
November 10, 1957

1958 - KKK pickets Visulite Theater

1957 - KKK pickets Charlotte's Visualite Theater for showing “Island in the Sun.”

  • The movie is a romantic melodrama about problems on a West Indian island.
  • Its integrated cast includes Harry Belafonte, Dorothy Dandridge, and Joan Collins.
  • The Visualite Theater is on Elizabeth Ave. in central Charlotte.
  • Charlotte's police chief talks to a Klan member.
Date of Event:
September 1, 1957