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The Friends of the Latimore Tourist Home is set to host a pancake breakfast at Stoby’s on Sunday, Feb. 25 in celebration of Black History Month. The breakfast will serve as one stop on the way to the full restoration of the original Latimore Tourist Home.
The Latimore Tourist Home is a foundational piece of Russellville tourism history. The home served as a waypoint for African American travelers in and out of the Russellville area between the mid 1930s and mid 1970s. During the Jim Crow era of American history, the Latimores welcomed countless guests into their home. The home was listed in the 1939 edition of “The Green Book”, a travel guide created for African American travelers, listing areas in the United States that were guaranteed refuge during a time in which a guarantee was not often granted. Eugene and Cora Latimore, the original owners of the home, worked as a team until Eugene’s death in the summer of 1980, well after the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
In April of 2023, the home was transferred from its original setting to its permanent resting place across from James School Park in Russellville.
The Friends of the Latimore Tourist Home is a 501 (c) (3) registered non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the original history of the home and ensuring that the legacy of the Latimore’s generosity and ferocity for protection is never forgotten in the Russellville community. The organization is currently working on a plan to restore the building to its original composition through government grants and civic donations.
Their upcoming pancake breakfast will serve as the first step in the direction of restoration, preservation, and breakthrough on a project that affects so many Russellville community members. The breakfast will begin at 9:00 a.m. and conclude at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 25 at Stoby’s, 405 W. Parkway Drive. Tickets will be sold at the door by members of the organization for $5.
