Arminta Foushee - On the founding families of the church (clip)
Interviewed by Kathryn Wall on June 23, 2022
Arminta Foushee (AF): This is actually the – one of the founding families. So, Hargraves Center.
Kathryn Wall (KW): Mhm.
AF: Billy Hargraves, William Hargraves Center. But we called him Billy, he was a good friend of my mom’s. They were in school together, they were both jazz aficionados, they just loved – Billy would come over, I remember our kids. Why I love jazz so much. Because he, and my mamma, and my godmother, they would just sit and play jazz albums over, and over, and over, and pop their fingers. And, at that time, smoke their cigarettes, and look like cool cats. But this is William Hargraves’ family, and they were one of the founding families of the church… so yeah, Luther Hargraves. And – in the bottom row center then, these are his siblings and they are the children of St. Paul’s founder, Jerry Hargraves. So Jerry was the founder, and then these are his children.
AF: How long have you been in Chapel Hill? A long time?
KW: Since ‘88.
AF: Since ‘88. So you remember Ms. Francis Hargraves?
KW: Yes.
AF: So Ms. Francis was a member of St. Paul, and Billy was her son, William Hargraves. And actually he passed in a car accident when I was a teenager… yeah that was really devastating. But it’s one of the founding families. And then Reverend Upshaw, he’s the one in that picture. And let’s see, the founders…the Cordell family, the Hargraves family, the Merritt family, and the Craig family. And then there was one Mr. Jones. And I don't think he had any descendants that actually attended the church, but you still have members of the founding families that attend the church today. And when I was talking about the churches being community…
