Mims House circa 1970.

Eugene’s Black residents worked hard to create safe spaces for their community.

The Skinner Butte  neighborhood holds a history of resistance and welcoming for the Black Community. The Mims were the first Black family in Eugene to own their own home in the city limits. Their house became a center for Eugene’s Black community acting as a safe place to stay for visiting Black athletes, entertainers, and travelers, as well as an office for Eugene’s chapter of the NAACP.

To learn more about the history of the Mims House’s and C.B. and Annie Mims,please visit the Mims House website.

Community member Eric Richardson shares the history of the Mims House and the communities Black neighborhoods.  

If you can't access the audio, the transcript is available here.
C.B. and Annie Mims, owners of the Mim's House. Circa 1950. Photo owned by the University of Oregon.
Willey Griffon stands in front of the mule-pulled trolley he drove between Eugene and Springfield. Mr. Griffon lived in the Skinner Butte neighborhood. Photo owned by the University of Oregon.
The Footnotes on the Butte project was funded in part by:
Bloomberg Connects
National Endowment for the Humanities
Shelton McMurphey Johnson House