West Side Recreation Club
1415 W. Washington, South Bend
Club History
On South Bend’s West Washington Street, a vacant commercial building offers little clue of its legacy as a political and social hub for South Bend’s Black community in the early twentieth century.
Built c.1912 as a dry goods store, the building became the West Side Recreation Club in 1929. In an era of segregation, it quickly became a gathering space for many African American social clubs, as well as a place where Black professionals could socialize and rent office space. The club housed offices for attorney and politician J. Chester Allen, attorney Zilford Carter, and dentist Dr. Bernard Streets, all leaders in efforts to desegregate the nearby Engman Public Natatorium. The West Side Recreation Club stopped meeting at the location in the 1980s, and the building later served briefly as a food pantry before becoming vacant. A repeat entry on Indiana Landmarks’ 10 Most Endangered list, it is one of the last commercial remnants of a once-thriving Black business district.
Water continues to infiltrate the building through holes in the roof, damaging masonry and compromising the structure. Members of an Indiana Landmarks Black Heritage Preservation Program task force in South Bend are collaborating with the owner in developing a vision for the site’s reuse. In the meantime, without swift action to repair the roof and flashings, the building’s upper walls are at risk of collapse, putting the notable Black landmark in imminent jeopardy.
Todd Zeiger
Director
Indiana Landmarks Northern Regional Office
574-232-4534
tzeiger@indianalandmarks.org
George Garner
Assistant Director
Civil Rights Heritage Center, Indiana University South Bend
574-520-4474
gwgarner@iu.edu
Saving threatened buildings takes teamwork. You can be a part of that team. Reach out to local leaders. Let them know these buildings are important to you. And support state and local preservation groups.