Bloodsworth St. Tourist Home

Bloodworth Street Tourist Home was listed in the Green Book as “Bloodsworth [sic] St. Tourist Home—424 So. Bloodsworth [sic] St.” in Raleigh in 1957 and from 1959-1967.¹

Kathryn L. Young operated a tourist home at 424 S. Bloodworth Street from the 1950s through the 1960s. She didn’t intend to run a tourist home at first; 424 S. Bloodworth was listed for sale in 1947 as a “colored property” that was “ideal for veterans.” The property did not sell and Kathryn L. Young opened a taxi stand there in 1948. She then successfully petitioned the City of Raleigh to rezone her property from residential to business in 1949. Young attempted to sell the property again in 1951.²

Kathryn L. Young married James A. Shepard a few weeks after her property was listed for sale. Following their marriage, Kathryn took out a building permit to make repairs and began operating a tourist home as early as 1955. James A. Shepard operated a real estate business and advertised Justice of the Peace services from the home as well. Katherine worked as a teacher in addition to running the tourist home.³

The tourist home advertised clean, comfortable rooms, radio, and television. Kathryn Young Shepard ran the tourist home until at least the early 1960s, when she was named Elementary Supervisor for Harnett County Schools. Kathryn had a long and impressive career as an educator, including positions as an elementary teacher, special education teacher, psychological examiner, and visiting professor at Florida A&M University. She became an Associate Professor of Education at Shaw University in 1965.⁴

Kathryn Lucille Young Shepard passed away in 1996. Though no longer owned by Kathryn Young Shepard, 424 S. Bloodworth Street was still utilized as a rooming house through the 1970s. The City of Raleigh, as of November 2024, owns the property and has plans to sell it to Habitat for Humanity.⁵

Essay by Brandie K. Ragghianti, 2024 

Notes

1.  Victor Green, 1957 Green Book, 47; Green, 1959 Green Book, 52; Green, 1960 Green Book, 73; Green, 1961 Green Book, 69; Green, 1962 Green Book, 74; Green, 1963-1964 Green Book, 58; Green, 1966-1967 Green Book, 58.
2. Hill’s Raleigh City Directories, 1946-1963, alphabetical listing, street listing; “Real Estate for Sale,” The News and Observer, January 26, 1947, accessed from www.newspapers.com; “Council to Honor Late City Clerk,” The News and Observer, August 15, 1948, p. 44, accessed from www.newspapers.com; “Two Acres to be Re-Zoned,” The News and Observer, January 26, 1949, p. 3, accessed from www.newspapers.com; “City May Re-Name Streets,” The News and Observer, January 20, 1949, p. 17, accessed from www.newspapers.com; “Building Permits,” The News and Observer, March 24, 1949, p. 17, accessed from www.newspapers.com; “Business Places for Rent,” The News and Observer, September 20, 1951, p. 26, accessed from www.newspapers.com.
3. “Kathryn L. Young and James A. Shepard, October 13, 1951, Wake County, North Carolina, US Marriage Records, 1741-2011, accessed from www.ancestry.com; “Building Permits,” The News and Observer, March 24, 1949, p. 17, accessed from www.newspapers.com; Hill’s Raleigh City Directory, 1951-1963, alphabetical listing.
4. “Bloodworth Street Tourist Home Newspaper Advertisement,” The Carolinian, December 15, 1956, p, 10, accessed from North Carolina Newspapers/DigitalNC, http://newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn80008926/1956-12-15/ed-1/seq-10; (“Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., Raleigh,” The Carolinian, January 21, 1956, p. 8, accessed from https://newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn80008926/1956-01-21/ed-1/seq-8/…; “Mrs. Kathryn Y. Shepard Accepts Supervisory Position in Harnett.” The Carolinian, July 20, 1963, p. 5, accessed from https://newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn80008926/1963-07-20/ed-1/seq-5/; “Local Native to Teach at Shaw U.,” The Wake Weekly and Youngsville-Rolesville Record (Wake Forest, NC), July 23, 1965, p. 6, accessed from https://newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/2022240429/1965-07-23/ed-1/seq-6/…;
5. “Kathryn Lucille Young,” SSN 579344129, US Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007, accessed from www.ancestry.com); It is not clear when Mrs. Young Shepard sold the tourist home, though she began advertising it for sale in 1960 (see: “For Sale: Tourist Home for colored,” The News and Observer, December 3, 1960, p. 16, accessed from www.newspapers.com); “Family, Police seek woman,” The News and Observer, September 28, 1979, p. 40, accessed from www.newspapers.com; (“Request for Proposals Demolition,” The News and Observer, July 4, 1991, p. 72, accessed from www.newspapers.com; “Public Notice,” The News and Observer, October 1, 2024, p. B5, accessed from www.ancestry.com.