Community members are fighting to stop The Boyd House— an 82-year-old home on Fisk University’s campus in Nashville, Tennessee— from being torn down.
The home was owned by Dr. Henry Allen Boyd and Georgia Bradford Boyd in 1938. The married couple was active in the Nashville community, where Dr. Boyd served as president of Citizen's Bank, the oldest operated Black bank in the United States, and later as a Fisk Trustee, and Mrs. Boyd fought for gender and racial equality.
According to Metro Nashville Council Member Freddie O'Connell, the city spoke with the Boyd family a few years ago about restoring the home but did not reach an agreement. O'Connell said he plans to talk to the Historically Black College/ University this week to see if there's time to raise money from private donors.
The university was granted a demolition permit in early August and has hired a company to carry it out. It’s not confirmed when the project will happen, but petitioners worry the teardown could happen as soon as Monday (August 31).
The Boyd Home, which is across the street from a building that made last year's shortlist of historic properties endangered by demolition, neglect, or development, has been on Metro Historical Commission’s list and is showing deterioration.
Property records appraise the two-story brick home and its quarter-acre corner lot at $400,600.
To sign the petition and save the home, click here.
Photo: Google Maps