Frank's Grill
Frank’s Grill was advertised in the Green Book from 1961-1967. In 1961 it was listed with an advertisement: “Phone: TR 3-7918, Opens 6 A.M. to 12 P.M., Frank’s Grill, Hot Plate Lunches, Home Cooked Meals, Tasty Sandwiches, Ice Cream, and Milkshakes, Located on Hiway [sic] 21, Convenient to Hiway [sic] 64, 70, and 158, ½ block off Southern Railroad Station, 640 S. Center St., Statesville, N.C., Frank Feimster, Prop.” From 1962-1967 the grill was listed as “Frank’s Grill — 604 S. Center Street, Best of Foods — Phone 873-9250.” 1
Frank’s Grill, a cafe and private dining room, was owned and operated by Frank Fred Feimster and his wife, Josephine Cecelia Williams Feimster. The grill first opened in the early 1950s and was in operation for over a decade before it first appeared in the Green Book. The restaurant was offered for sale in 1960 but was still owned by Feimster through at least 1963.2
Frank Feimster, raised in Iredell County, began working as a cook in a cafe as a young man. His brother and sister-in-law were also cooks. Josephine Williams Feimster was born in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The couple married in the 1940s.3
Frank Feimster passed away in Charlotte, North Carolina in 1985. Josephine Feimster passed away in Greensboro, North Carolina in 2001.4
Essay by Brandie K. Ragghianti, 2022
Notes
1. Victor Green, 1961 Green Book, 70; Victor Green, 1962 Green Book, 75; Green, 1963-1964 Green Book, 59; Green, 1966-1967 Green Book, 59. Note to researchers: there is more than one person with the name Frank Feimster living in Statesville during this time period.
2. “Will Sell Well-established Cafe,” The Carolina Times, August 27, 1960, 4, accessed from https://newspapers.digitalnc.org; “Food Handlers to Get Certificates,” Statesville Record and Landmark (Statesville, NC), February 1, 1961, digital p. 2, accessed from www.newspapers.com; Josephine Cecelia Williams, January 19, 2001, U.S. Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007, accessed from www.ancestry.com; Miller’s Statesville, NC City Directory, 1952-1953, 178 (alphabetical directory); Miller’s Statesville, NC City Directory, 1956-1957, 186 (alphabetical directory); Miller’s Statesville, NC City Directory, 1958-1959, 189 (alphabetical directory); Miller’s Statesville, NC City Directory, 1960-1961, 198 (alphabetical directory); Miller’s Statesville, NC City Directory, 1962-1963, 199 (alphabetical directory); not listed in 1948-1949 Miller’s Statesville, NC City Directory; 1950 United States Federal Census, Statesville, Iredell County, digital image s.v. “Frank Feimster,” “Josephine Feimster,” accessed from www.ancestry.com.
3. 1940 United States Federal Census, Statesville, Iredell County, North Carolina, digital image s.v. “Frank Feimster,” accessed from www.ancestry.com; 1950 United States Federal Census, Statesville, Iredell County, digital image s.v. “Frank Feimster,” “Josephine Feimster,” accessed from www.ancestry.com.
4. Frank Feimster, Iredell Memorial Gardens, September 24, 1985, U.S. Find a Grave Index, 1600s - Current, accessed from www.ancestry.com; Frank F. Feimster, September 24, 1985, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, U.S. Death Index, 1922-2012, accessed from www.ancestry.com; Josephine Williams Feimster, January 19, 2001, Greensboro, Guilford County, North Carolina, U.S. Death Indexes, 1908 - 2004, accessed from www.ancestry.com.
Did you know?
- Entry listed in multiple ways in various Green Book editions:
- 1961: Listed with an advertisement: “Phone: TR 3-7918, Open 6 A.M. to 12 P.M., Frank’s Grill, Hot Plate Lunches, Home Cooked Meals, Tasty Sandwiches, Ice Cream, and Milkshakes, Located on Hiway [sic] 21, Convenient to Hiway [sic] 64, 70 and 158, ½ block of Southern Railroad Station, 640 S. Center St., Statesville, N.C., Frank Feimster, Prop.”
- 1962-1967: Listed as “Frank’s Grill---604 S. Center Street, Best of Foods--Phone 873-9250” on two lines, bold, and bigger font.
