New Civil Rights Window Display Unveiled at Woolworth Theatre

Next time you're walking up Rep. John Lewis Way North, take a minute to look in the new window display at 221. On Monday, the owners of the new Woolworth Theatre unveiled a miniature museum exhibit in the building’s southernmost window. It includes several stools that once sat at the historic lunch counter, a trench coat similar to the iconic one that late civil rights icon John Lewis once wore, plus a backpack like he used to carry, copies of his March book trilogy, art from his graphic novel, and a screen where informational displays about the fight for civil rights will be displayed. 

The new window display is the first of what Woolworth's owners say will be ongoing efforts to educate the public about the sit-ins that took place at this spot in the 1960s, and also preserve the historic building. The future of the Woolworth Building has been on the minds of lots of Nashvillians. It was named to Historic Nashville Inc.’s 2021 Nashville Nine list, the annual plea regarding spaces that ought to be preserved.

Sixty-two years ago, a group of students held sit-ins at Nashville’s lunch counters, looking to integrate the city's downtown spaces. Their methods were nonviolent, although the counterprotests they endured were not. It was the first place that Rep. Lewis was arrested, and sparked similar sit-ins around the country.

In February 2018, Tom Morales of TomKats Hospitality opened Woolworth on 5th, a restaurant inside the historic building. The space had been shuttered for years, but some original details, such as the original terrazzo floors, remained. The restaurant re-created the lunch counter and offered some programming and outreach about the sit-ins, but closed during the pandemic. 

Next for the building is the 400-seat new theater, which will host long-run productions planned to be different from what else is available downtown. More details will be announced soon, but first the ownership team wanted to unveil the window. In the process, they're underscoring their intent to work with the Tennessee State Museum, the Nashville Public Library (which runs the informative Civil Rights Room on its second floor) and others to tell and preserve the civil rights story from the site. One of Lewis’ nephews and one of his cousins were on hand for the unveiling, providing detailed lore such as the typical contents of Lewis’ backpack (an apple, an orange and a toothbrush).

“When we first started this project, we never had the intention of caring for a historical building,” says Keval Sheth, CEO of the Woolworth Theatre. “However, once we found the Woolworth we were excited to be in such a special space. Our team wanted to make sure we pay homage to the history by utilizing this main street side window to display the significance of the building for years to come.”

The Woolworth Building is one of a number of sites in the state where the fight for civil rights took place. The state’s tourism body is working to make more of these places available to visitors and to better explain their significance.

“What happened in Tennessee changed the world,” said Mark Ezell, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development and secretary/treasurer of the U.S. Civil Rights Trail Marketing Alliance, in a statement earlier this year. Ezell noted that there are now 14 Tennessee stops on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail. “Our state’s history and heritage shine a light on the triumphant and impactful stories at these destinations.”

Sheth says the team plans to reach out to other Woolworth locations to find period artifacts that may be used in future exhibitions and in creating more permanent displays with the nearby Tennessee State Museum.