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National Park Service to Hold Public Meeting in Brownsville on Sunshine Laundry Site
Summary
Council was told the National Park Service has reopened consideration of the Sunshine Laundry building and local partners seek to create an interpretive center associated with the lynching of Williams; a public meeting is scheduled March 5 from 5–7 p.m. at the Ivory Allison gymnasium in the Garba Building to solicit input.
A city official told the Brownsville City Council the National Park Service has reopened consideration of the Sunshine Laundry building for preservation and that local groups are pursuing an interpretive center linked to the lynching of Williams.
The speaker said the National Park Service had previously examined multiple sites across West Tennessee and that the local group is raising funds for engineering, soil and roof scans, and other preparatory work. The council was told the city has engaged an architect and that representatives from both the National Park Service and the interpretive-center team have visited Brownsville.
A public meeting to solicit local input was announced for March 5 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Ivory Allison gymnasium in the Garba Building; the speaker said National Park Service staff will be in town that day to meet the public. The transcript contains inconsistent spellings of related names (see audit): the transcript refers to the subject both as 'Alvin Williams' and 'Albert Williams' in different lines and gives multiple variants for the gymnasium name; the council or project partners should confirm official spellings in future notices.
Organizers said they are encouraged by the Emmett Till Center's example and continue fundraising and technical assessments before any formal National Park Service designation or construction work.
