Photography & Ephemera

[AFRICAN AMERICAN--CHURCHES]. Photograph of a grocery storefront. Philadelphia, ca. 1900s. Silver print photograph of a corner grocery store operated by Saints of Christ, with two men in aprons, an officer, two children, and a seated man outside. 6 x 8”. Hand-stamp of P-J Press Bureau (Philadelphia). This grocery is believed to have been affiliated with the Church of God and Saints of Christ, established by William S. Crowdy, who is regarded as the founder of the Black Hebrew Israelite movement, believing that “Blacks were the descendants of the twelve lost tribes of Israel.” Crowdy started the church in 1896, headquartered in Philadelphia. We could locate no photographs of the store, but contemporary newspaper reports indicate that the church operated a grocery store and several other businesses on Fitzwater Street.