501 Morgan St. / Miller-Hurst

The remainder of the south side of the 500 block of Morgan St. evolved from a primarily residential area during the late 1800s to a commercial strip by the late 1920s.

The block face, aside from the Jones Warehouse, contained a residence and the Gospel Tabernacle in the early 1920s

Looking west from Trust building - Gospel Tabernacle is the white frame building on the southwest corner of Morris (foreground) and Morgan (to the right, running east-west).

The Gospel Tabernacle congregation was established in 1889 and constructed the building at 501 Morgan St. between 1898 and 1900. The congregation was located here until 1927, when it moved to the northwest corner of Lamond and North Gregson Sts.. The corner was redeveloped as the Miller-Hurst Service Station.

With the growth of Five Points as a primary retail center, the residential area between the former Tabernacle site and the Jones Warehouse developed into a commercial area, featuring a number of eating establishments and commercial services by the 1960s.

501 Morgan, with the Jones Warehouse in the background, during a city sanitation worker strike, 02.16.48
(Courtesy The Herald-Sun)

501-509 Morgan, 09.18.52
(Courtesy the Herald-Sun)

501 Morgan - the southeast corner of Morgan and Morris. The Piedmont (flatiron) Building and Snow Building are visible in the background at Five Points. The modernist structure at 301 West Main is under construction and a partial shot of City Hall (now the Arts Council) is to the left.
(Courtesy Duke Archives)

These buildings were all demolished by Urban Renewal in the late 1960s. The entire block is now occupied by the SouthBank building and copious parking.

From the north side of Morgan, facing south, 2007.