An American Success Story: The Pope House of Raleigh, NC (Teaching with Historic Places)

This lesson is part of the National Park Service’s Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) program.


On a busy street corner in downtown Raleigh, in the shadow of looming skyscrapers, sits a lonely, unassuming brick house. Built in 1901, this was the home of Dr. Manassa T. Pope, his wife Delia, and their two daughters, Ruth and Evelyn. Use this lesson plan to learn more about the Pope House. Click the photo for the full lesson plan.

Essential Question

What was life like for a black middle class family in the early 20th century?

Objective

1. To list some of the values and objectives of the black middle class at the beginning of the 20th century;
2. To outline efforts made by Dr. Pope and other African Americans to gain civil rights in the years before the modern Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s;
3. To identify the attributes that helped Dr. M.T. Pope succeed as an African-American entrepreneur and citizen;
4. To research how race relations shaped their community, past and present.

Background

Time Period: 1880-1920
Topics: This lesson could be used in teaching units on African-American history--including themes on segregation, the Jim Crow era, the growth of the black middle class, and the beginning of the movement for civil rights in the early 20th century.

Full Lesson Plan