The Carver Inn

Q-53

The Carver Inn (ca. 1947) on this site was among the few lodging places in Charlottesville where African Americans could stay during segregation. Featuring fine dining, a private social club, and a beauty salon, the inn was host to famous guests including Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Thurgood Marshall. Gregory Swanson, the first African American to attend the University of Virginia, resided here after his successful lawsuit to gain admission to the graduate law program. The Carver Inn was listed in the Green Book, a national guide to facilities that served African American travelers. It was demolished in the mid-1970s during a road-widening project that razed several Black-owned properties.

Department of Historic Resources, 2024

See a problem? Report it to HighwayMarkers@dhr.virginia.gov.

DHR could use your help! We don't have a recent image of this marker. If you have one that you'd like to submit for inclusion on this site, please send it to HighwayMarkers@dhr.virginia.gov.

References/Bibliographic Citation:

Negro Travelers’ Green Book, various editions. Charlottesville Daily Progress, 8 June 1962, 20 Oct. 1962, 21 Nov. 1971, 24 Feb. 1969, 4 May 1986. Richmond News Leader, 20 Sept. 1950. Richmond Times-Dispatch, 16 Sept. 1950. Charlottesville Observer, 4 Feb. 1993. Norfolk Journal and Guide, 8 March 1969. Baltimore Afro-American, 31 May 1958. The Architecture of the Negro Travelers’ Green Book, UVA: https://community.village.virginia.edu/greenbooks/content/carver-inn/ Charlottesville City Directories, 1950, 1955, 1959.