Dove's Auto Service
Dove’s Service Station was listed as “Dave’s - 205 E. South St.” under “Service Stations” in Kingston, North Carolina. Both the name of the business and the city name were spelled incorrectly.1
Dove’s Auto Service, also known as Dove’s Garage, is located at 205 E. South Street. The garage was established by Milton Beckett Dove, Sr. in 1946. Dove, who was also a real estate investor, operated the business from 1946 until his death in 2017. The business sponsored Black entertainers who performed in Kinston during the Jim Crow era; among Dove’s most prominent clients was Maceo Parker.2
Milton Beckett Dove, Sr., who was born in Woodington, lived in Lenoir County his entire life. He graduated from Adkin High School in 1941 and was the class valedictorian. He married his wife, Mary Frances Mills, in 1942. The couple first lived in Mitchell Wooten Housing projects, later moving to Lincoln City and then to a home on Beech Avenue. They raised five children together.3
Dove’s primary focus and passion was community service. He was active in Big Brothers and Sisters, the Black Artist Guild, the Greater Kinston Credit Union, and the PTA. He continued to serve on the local elementary school PTA even after his children no longer attended.4
Dove is also well known as a local civil rights leader. His work included efforts to end school segregation and employment discrimination, and to promote voter registration. He successfully sued to desegregate the local school system; his daughters were among the first Black students to attend Northwest Elementary and Grainger High School. Dove attended the March on Washington in 1963 and later served as president of the Lenoir County Branch of the NAACP (1976). He was an NAACP Golden Heritage Lifetime Member.5
Milton Beckett Dove, Sr. passed away in 2017. His son, Milton Beckett Dove, Jr., continues to operate the business today under the name Dove and Son’s Auto Service.6
Essay by Brandie K. Ragghianti, 2022
Oral History
Notes
1. Victor Green, 1950 Green Book, 63; Green, 1951 Green Book, 54; Green, 1952 Green Book, 54; Green, 1953 Green Book, 54; Green, 1954 Green Book, 53; Green, 1955 Green Book, 53.
2. “Milton B. Dove,” Kingston, North Carolina, City Directory, 1953, p. 110 (alphabetical directory); Milton B. Dove Sr., obituary, Kinston Free Press (Kinston, NC), October 31, 2017, accessed from https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/kinston/name/milton-dove-sr-obitua…; Garry L. Jones, “Grandson of Civil Rights Leader, Milton Dove Sr., Recounts the Success of His Father’s Historical ‘Green Book’ Listed 73 Yr. Old Business,” VMH Magazine, http://vmhmagazine.com/grandson-of-civil-rights-leader-milton-dove-sr-r…; Email correspondence from Clementine “Tina” Bryant (Kinston Resident) to Lisa R. Withers on February 21, 2019.
3. Milton B. Dove Sr., obituary, Kinston Free Press (Kinston, NC), October 31, 2017, accessed from https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/kinston/name/milton-dove-sr-obitua…; Email correspondence from Clementine “Tina” Bryant (Kinston Resident) to Lisa R. Withers on February 21, 2019.
4. Milton B. Dove Sr., obituary, Kinston Free Press (Kinston, NC), October 31, 2017, accessed from https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/kinston/name/milton-dove-sr-obitua….
5. Milton B. Dove Sr., obituary, Kinston Free Press (Kinston, NC), October 31, 2017, accessed from https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/kinston/name/milton-dove-sr-obitua….
6. Garry L. Jones, “Grandson of Civil Rights Leader, Milton Dove Sr., Recounts the Success of His Father’s Historical ‘Green Book’ Listed 73 Yr. Old Business,” VMH Magazine, http://vmhmagazine.com/grandson-of-civil-rights-leader-milton-dove-sr-r…; Milton Bickett Dove Dr., U.S. Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current, accessed from www.ancestry.com.
Did you know?
- Misspelled as Dave’s, this Green Book entry was Dove’s Garage located at 205 E. South Street in Kinston, NC. The business opened in 1946/1947 by Milton B. Dove, Sr. and is still operated by Mr. Dove’s son, Milton Dove, Jr.
- The Green Book lists the location as Kingston rather than Kinston, North Carolina.
