A new free exhibit which pays homage to Chattanooga’s historic Black business district is being hosted at Ruby Falls now until Nov. 6, 2025.
“Building the Big Nine: A Legacy of Black Excellence,” was curated by historian, Dr. Stefanie Haire, Ph.D. The exhibit tells the story about the Big Nine District, a vibrant center of Black commerce, culture and community shaped by determination and vision of Black individuals in the late 1800s through the mid-20th century.
“Chattanooga’s Big Nine District was comparable to the Garden District in New Orleans, or even Beale Street,” Dr. Haire said. “But it was more than just the clubs and the music scene.”
Dr. Haire said the Big Nine had private hospitals, Black owned beauty stores, restaurants and the first preschool in the city.
“It’s much more than just East 9th Street or even Westside,” Dr. Haire said. “It includes all the connecting streets and major thoroughfares. That’s why I use the word district, to encompass the whole area.”
Dr. Haire said the exhibit honors the legacy of the Black entrepreneurs and business owners who forged their path to success during the Jim Crow era, prior to the Civil Rights Act. She said she used Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, census records and city directories for her research.
“People who visit the exhibit will get to see some data that I’ve extracted from those city directories,” she said. “Segregation permeated all aspects of life, including when you looked up a service in the phone book. People of color would be denoted with a C next to their name. It was usually in parentheses or something, and it’s a moniker. It’s a moniker of the time period, and as wrong as that was, I was able to at least compile a database of every Black-owned business from roughly 1899 to 1960.”
Her research for the Big Nine stemmed from an earlier exhibit, also hosted at Ruby Falls in 2023.
“A few years ago, I was in a Ph.D., program focused on Horace Brazelton for my dissertation,” she said. “He was Chattanooga’s first Black professional portrait photographer with a studio on East Ninth Street. Brazelton was my conduit for this research. And all the names I kept seeing, his business associates like G.W. Franklin, like Manson Flowers; all these figures who were quite literally the builders of Chattanooga. These are the men and women who built Chattanooga from the time when enslaved and newly freed people were building the railroad all the way up through to about the 1960s. I do this research because we stand on the shoulders of our ancestors collectively. And we owe a great deal to those who came before us.”
Ruby Falls PR Specialist Jaclyn Lewis said Ruby Falls appreciated the research Dr. Haire did for her first exhibit and is excited to offer another view of Chattanooga’s history.
“This is our third year having a history exhibit,” Lewis said. “There is a lot of Chattanooga history that folks may not know about, especially those visiting from other places. We hope to continue having exhibits that focus on lesser-known local histories, and we are thrilled to share them with so many visitors.”
Dr. Haire said the Big Nine District was erased over the course of several years due to several urban renewal programs. These programs displaced many residents and businesses. The construction of Highway 27 further divided the area.
“My exhibit is a broad overview of what the Big Nine was,” Dr. Haire said. She said visitors are encouraged to get more in-depth information about the Big Nine District by also visiting the Bessie Smith Cultural Center and Chattanooga African American Museum on M.L.K. Blvd.
“That building itself sits on the same site that the Martin Hotel was located and the Martin Hotel is discussed in the exhibit,” she said. “It was the largest Black-owned and operated hotel in Tennessee and possibly in all the southeast.”
Lewis said Dr. Haire’s research will reach thousands of visitors that visit Ruby Falls.
“A lot of people, not just locally, but guests from all over the world, come and visit Ruby Falls,” she said. “Last year, guests from 44 U.S. states and 42 countries visited. We expect approximately 170,000 visitors to see the exhibition. Also, it’s free. It’s open to everyone. You do not have to buy a ticket. You do not have to go into the cave or see the waterfall.”
The exhibit is housed inside the above-ground venue that connects to the historic Ruby Falls Castle. Ruby Falls is open seven days a week, typically from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m.
The Bessie Smith Cultural Center and Chattanooga African American Museum is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.
Visit their website here: www.bessiesmithcc.org
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