Exhibits & Memory Sites
The MCAAHA has researched numerous landmark buildings and sites of African American significance in Madison County. We are actively engaged in the preservation of some of these historical sites, such as the 19th-century Odd Fellows Lodge Hall on Main Street and the Red Rooster Juke Joint in Elly. We also have curated collections available for viewing at the Lodge Hall Museum at 700 South Main Street, including a display of early 20th-century African American schools in the county, a tribute to Black soldiers from the county who served during the Civil War, and historic memorabilia from several Black families. The MCAAHA has also partnered with the University of Virginia Special Collections Library in the stewardship of several historic documents and artifacts from the local chapter of the Grand United Order of Odd Fellows.
Special Announcement: the MCAAHA is currently researching the history of our segregation-era African American schools for a new exhibition entitled Striving for Excellence: A Century of African American Schools in Madison County. If you attended one of these schools prior to integration in the 1960s, we want to hear from you!
The Red Rooster Juke Joint in the Elly neighborhood was well known for its food and music. Now owned by Nancy Garnett Williams, MCAAHA’s founder, the building has been saved and is being restored.
The Madison Friendship Lodge #2121 is located at 700 South Main Street. Built in 1880 by formerly enslaved men, the structure has been used as the home of the Grand Order of Odd Fellows in Madison, and as a dance hall, pool room, and auto body shop. The building now serves as the MCAAHA’s headquarters and museum.
African American artifacts, including historic items found in the 19th-century Odd Fellows Lodge Hall are on display in the Lodge Hall Museum on South Main Street.
The Lodge Hall features a unique collection of hair care equipment once owned by Mrs. Ellen Stewart, one of the successful agents of Madame C.J. Walker’s hair products.
Mrs. Ellen Stewart was a prominent entrepreneur and member of the Madison Community. In addition to her thriving hair care business, she owned the popular Red Rooster Juke Joint. MCAAHA founder Nancy Garnett Williams’ uncle, William “Buster” Garnett was the proprieter.