Georgette's Tea Room House

Georgette’s Tea Room House (also referred to as Georgette’s Tea House and Georgette’s Tea Room) is a former boarding house in Brownsville, Miami, Florida, opened in 1940 by Georgette Scott Campbell.[1] It catered to African American patrons during segregation in the American South.[2] It would serve breakfast, lunch, tea and boarding to visitors and guests. It is located in the Brownsville section of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida.

The tea room received a historic designation in 1990. The tea room is one of the properties owned by Bethany Seventh-day Adventist Church in Brownsville, Miami.[2] Since 2023, the church has been trying to raise money to restore the tea room house.[2]

Notable guests

Singer Billie Holiday

Due to segregation laws many African-Americans were not allowed to stay at most hotels. This included famous African-American performers. Even when they were paid to perform at those hotels they were often not allowed to stay at them.[1]

  • Billie Holiday stayed at Georgette's Tea Room House during her performances in the 1940s because she was not allowed to stay in the hotels she performed at.[3]
  • Nat King Cole stayed at Georgette's Tea Room House while performing in Miami.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Georgette's Tea Room: A historic meeting place for Miami's Black arts community". The New Tropic Creative Studio. 2019-06-20. Retrieved 2023-02-10.
  2. ^ a b c Cohen, Howard; Small II, C. Isaiah (February 5, 2023). "'We gotta wake this community up.' The battle to preserve, restore Miami's Black landmarks". Miami Herald.
  3. ^ "Group Tries to Keep Georgette's Tea Room House Alive". NBC 6.

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