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Hollywood Cab Service and Carolina Cab

"Then on Franklin Street back in the 50s, from across from McDonalds all the way up to where they're building the Carolina Ale Shop, there was a Black restaurant called the Hollywood Grill. [Where 411 West is.] That was a Black restaurant. And next door to that in the same building was a cab company called the Hollywood Cab. We had our own cab company."

- Clayton Weaver

Carolina Cab and Hollywood Cab were owned by Thurman Atkins who started his taxi business from a phone booth on West Franklin Street. Eventually he bought the property across the street, turning it into the Hollywood Restaurant with rooms to rent on the upper floor and an addition for the cab business. He purchased the white-owned Carolina Cab and combined it with his Hollywood Cab business to better serve the community. Mr. Atkins later owned a trucking company and built affordable housing in the community. The building that housed his cab company is now the location of 411 West Italian Cafe.

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Citation: “Hollywood Cab Service and Carolina Cab,” From the Rock Wall, accessed December 21, 2024, https://fromtherockwall.org/places/hollywood-cab-and-carolina-cab.

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