people &places 1
2
3
4
Royal Reunion
BY RENEE AMBROSO | PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN MICHAEL SIMPSON
Sixty-four years after a group of African American men and women walked into the Royal Ice Cream Parlor on the corner of Roxboro and Dowd streets and asked to be served, two living participants exchanged memories of the historic sit-in. “I was never nervous,” says Virginia Williams, who was in her early 20s when she walked in through the back door of the ice cream shop with six others, plus the Rev. Douglas Moore. They didn’t stop at the counter where Black customers were supposed to stand and wait for their order. Instead, Virginia says, “We went over there and sat down, refused to get up, which is what we promised we would do.” Another participant, Mary Clyburn Hooks, remembers asking for a banana split that day. The owner of the parlor refused to serve them. The group that came to be known as the “Royal Seven” were arrested, charged with trespassing and later fined. Now, one of two known remaining signs from the ice cream shop hangs in the Museum of Durham History alongside an exhibit detailing the sit-in that occurred on June 23, 1957 – a few years before the protests at the Woolworth’s in Greensboro made national news. The museum hosted an event on the anniversary of the pivotal moment in Durham’s history, marking the installation of the sign as a permanent display. In addition to Virginia and Mary, Floyd McKissick Jr. and William A. “Drew” Marsh III also spoke at the commemoration, describing the experience of their fathers as the lawyers who fought for the Royal Seven in court. The sign was donated by Alice Sharpe in honor of her parents, Raymond Sharpe Sr. and Rosalee Sharpe Starnes. 14
|
durhammag.com
|
SEPTEMBER 2021
5
1 Virginia Williams and C.V. Porcelli, a descendant of the owner of Royal Ice Cream, speak with Mary Clyburn Hooks. 2 Donna Frederick and MoDH board member Alice Sharpe. 3 Former MoDH board members Carlton Wilson, Jerry Gershenhorn and Lew Myers. 4 Douglas Henderson-James, Esther Swim-Wright, David Scheidt, Alice Alexander and Mary Kralj. 5 Rachel Hardy, Peggy Hardy and Floyd Hardy.