National Negro Opera Company

The National Negro Opera Company (1941–1962) was the first African-American opera company in the United States.

National Negro Opera Company

Pennsylvania Historical Marker
City of Pittsburgh Historic Structure
The National Negro Opera Company House
Location of the National Negro Opera Company in Pittsburgh
Location	7101 Apple Street, Homewood West neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Coordinates	40.4642°N 79.89571°W
Built/founded	House: 1908 Company: 1941
Architectural style(s)	Queen Anne style
Governing body/owner	Jonnet Solomon-Nowlin & Miriam White
PHMC dedicated	September 25, 1994
CPHD designated	May 20, 2008

Organized in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, under the direction of Mary Cardwell Dawson,[1] the company was launched with a performance at the local Syria Mosque. The star was La Julia Rhea, and other members included Minto Cato, Carol Brice, Robert McFerrin, and Lillian Evanti. During its 21-year run, NNOC also mounted productions in Washington D.C., New York City, and Chicago.

The company disbanded in 1962 upon Dawson's death.[2]

Although the company toured nationally, its offices and studios were housed in a three-story Queen Anne-style house at 7101 Apple Street in Pittsburgh's Homewood neighborhood. Constructed as a private residence, it was purchased by William A. "Woogie" Harris (brother of the famous photographer Charles "Teenie" Harris) in the 1930s. The NNOC moved to Washington, D.C. in 1942, but the company continued to use the third floor as a local guild office and studios until the company disbanded.[3][4]

After the Opera departed, the building transitioned into a social hub and boarding house known as Mystery Manor, often hosting visiting celebrities and athletes who were excluded from the local segregated hotels.[2][4][5]

In 1994 the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission designated the NNOC's house on Apple Street a historic structure; it became a Pittsburgh City Historic Landmark in 2008.[5] In 2003 and again in 2013, the Young Preservationists of Pittsburgh included the building on their "Top 10" preservation opportunities.

Purchased in 2000 by Pittsburgh residents Jonnet Solomon and Miriam White, after years of plans to transform the historic building into a museum and arts center, it remains dilapidated.[2][6][5] [4]

In 2020, the National Trust for Historic Preservation added the building to its annual list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places.[7][2]

References

1. Ralph P. Locke; Cyrilla Barr (1 January 1997). Cultivating Music in America: Women Patrons and Activists Since 1860. University of California Press. p. 225. ISBN 978-0-520-08395-0.
2. O'Donnell, Bill (2020-09-28). "Black Opera Company's Historic Pittsburgh Headquarters Called 'Endangered' By National Group". WESA FM. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
3. "YPA Top 10 Preservation Opportunities for a Brighter Future" (PDF). Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh. July 16, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
4. Sisson, Patrick (2016-05-03). "The Preservation Puzzle of Mystery Manor, an Oasis of Black Culture in Pittsburgh". Curbed. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
5. Sherman, Jerome L. (2008-11-30). "Effort to save historic opera building". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
6. Nelson Jones, Diana (2007-05-02). "Preservationists hope plaque is first step toward rebirth of storied Homewood house". Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Retrieved 2016-01-04.
7. Houser, Mark (2020-09-24). "National Negro Opera Co. Birthplace on Endangered List: National Trust recognizes importance of Homewood historic house". Pittsburgh Magazine. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Retrieved 2020-09-28.

Further reading

• Altman, Susan (1997). Encyclopedia African-American Heritage. New York: Facts on File. ISBN 0-8160-3289-0.
• Negro Opera Company Documentary on WQED