By Cormac Parker

Every Sunday morning in Memphis, pastors step to the pulpit and deliver sermons. Throughout the week, Memphians can see them giving back to the community, from feeding the homeless to counseling struggling individuals.

For Kenneth Whalum Jr., pastor of the New Olivet Baptist Church, his words are shared in the pulpit as well as politics. He is a candidate for Shelby County mayor.

Whalum is extremely proud to be a Memphian. He will unashamedly tell you that he is Memphis born, Memphis bred and when he dies, he will be Memphis dead.

This passion for his city is one of the many reasons he is running for office. Giving attention to the children of the city is what Whalum said is the base of changing the community for the better.

By Charles Gray

Shortly after the West Tennessee Normal School broke ground in the farmlands on the outskirts of the city of Memphis, development in the area began to expand past residential properties. One road that ran north to south just west of the school began to host small stores and markets. 

"Initially, it was just a few stores—a grocery store, a bakery, just essentials for people at the time," said historian Jimmy Ogle. "But after World War II and a large amount of people moving to the area,  [South] Highland Avenue really took off."

Though it began as an early place near the school to do some light shopping for essentials, it wouldn't take long for the stretch of road to develop its own identity. After the district was annexed in 1929, the university grew in size, the neighborhood expanded greatly and the storefronts along South Highland grew in number and variety.

With the increasing population of university students in the 1950s and 1960s, more bars and restaurants opened in the area.

"The First Danver's was on the strip," said former Memphis State University student Rebecca Feaster. "They use to wear conductor hats because it was so close to the railroad. It was a fun place."

By Charles Gray

Immediately south of the main campus at the University of Memphis sits a railroad line that serves as a way to port goods from the country's longest river to the nation’s capital.

Although most students might complain about the inconvenience it causes seemingly anytime they are running late for class, its history is rooted in being an integral part of the development of the city.

'The railroad track has enough importance of its own,” said Memphis historian Jimmy Ogle. “That track was the first to connect the Mississippi to the east coast. It was over 780 miles long at a time when most railroad were short tracks, usually only 100 miles at most.”

The railroad tracks were originally built in 1857. They connected the Mississippi to the Atlantic Ocean and were primarily used to haul inland cotton to the coast for trade with European countries.  As the area developed due to the growth of the city and the presence of the West Tennessee Normal School, passenger cars became more abundant on the line.

“People used to use the passenger trains quite a bit,” said retired Norfolk Railroad employee Pete Craft. “I remember when the first diesel engine trains used that railroad. They were so fast and new people nicknamed them ‘Streamliners.’”

Along with streetcars that traced the streets, the railroad was the main form of transportation in the area. Shortly after World War II, the use of cars began to trump that of streetcars and train lines resulting in the once great passenger train not being needed in the same way.

“People during the war had made more money than in their entire lives,” said Memphis historian Wayne Dowdy. “They wanted to buy a car and a house so this area really developed.”

In 1949, Normal Station went out of service and was destroyed. After it no longer served passengers, the railway became a dedicated goods rail.  The land in which the station stood still holds visual cues from its past.  North of the tracks and south of U of M buildings Ellington Hall and Smith Hall, the outline for the old stop can still be seen.

Even though many would lob petty complaints at the train's location, it has been a huge catalyst for development both in the area and the city.

“Nowadays most people tend to think that it’s in their way,” Ogle said. “But it’s been there longer than Memphis, so really, we’re in its way.”

By Charles Gray

A little more than 100 years ago, a budding city in west Tennessee won a state-legislated bid within the region to bring a teacher's college to the outskirts of the city.

Memphis, Tenn., known as the River City, was given the opportunity to house The West Tennessee Normal School in 1909. The school was a portion of a state-wide grant that also developed universities in Johnson City and Murfreesboro, respectively.

The West Tennessee Normal School was initially constructed on land that was previously used as a sweet potato farm, but its opportunistic location and proximity to the country's largest railway made it the ideal choice for the upcoming school.

'The railroad was hugely important and had a major influence on the decision on where to build the college," said Memphis historian Jimmy Ogle. "During its hayday, the railroad had three different stops in the district and was used to both carry goods and people alike... easily helping Memphis get the school."    

Initially, the school was limited to a teaching degree and was contained within a few buildings. It was built on an 80 acre tract of land and serviced a total of 200 students. Though the current campus has far outgrown its initial state and demolished much of the original architecture, Minders Hall and the Administration Building both stand as monuments to the initial 1912 construction, Ogle said.

According to Memphis Heritage, the land became annexed into the city of Memphis in 1929 as the school developed an identity and integrated with the Bluff City. Only 30 years after the University broke ground, it had expanded in size with an enrollment of 1100 students in 11 buildings. In 1941, the school changed its name to Memphis State College.  

As the school expanded, so did the area. Farming land turned into residential neighborhoods, commercial space was built and occupied and students, veterans and families gave life to the blossoming University District.