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Drive down Historic Saint Catherine Street and on your right, just across from the beautiful Holy Family Church, you will see a stately Queen Anne historic home, yellow in color with an iconic silver metal roof.

Built in 1892, the Dr. John Bowman Banks House is indeed one of our city’s most historic properties. And it needs our help!

On Wednesday, April 9, at 3 p.m., we will do two things. We will celebrate the 140th anniversary of a spectacular moment in both the history of Natchez and of Mississippi. And we will also kick off a campaign to save a house integral to the telling of that story.

On April 9, 1885, Dr. John Bowman Banks received his medical license from the Mississippi State Board of Health and became the very first black doctor in not only Natchez but the entire State of Mississippi.

Born on Valentines Day 1862, in rural Louisiana and raised in Summit, Mississippi, just north of McComb, John Banks knew he was destined for more than anyone could imagine. He was blessed with a brilliant mind. Excelling in his early schooling, by age 15 he was already enrolled at Leland University in New Orleans.

His quest for higher education was almost ended by a yellow fever pandemic that swept the college, but he persevered, eventually graduating from Meharry Medical College, a private historically black medical school in Nashville. After receiving his medical license, he was recruited by Dr. Albert Woods Dumas to move to Natchez. Dr. Dumas would go on to become the Bluff City’s second black physician.

Dr. Banks and his wife Sarah began construction on their beautiful home in 1892. They lived happy lives there, raising a daughter, Alberta Beatrice Banks, and a son, Oliver M. Banks.

Dr. and Mrs. Banks were pillars of the community. They attended Zion Chapel A.M.E. Church, the same church where former US Senator Hyram Revels was once pastor, and they immersed themselves in the community and in public service, for both black and white.

Dr. Banks was vital in the founding of Natchez’ first and only black-owned financial institution, the Bluff City Savings Bank, serving as its President alongside other founders and officers, Albert Woods Dumas, Walton A. Barland, S.H. Owens, G.W. Brumfield, and J.R. Ross. Among his many friends Dr. Banks also counted the legendary leader Booker T. Washington, who was a guest in his home during a visit to Natchez in the early 1900s.

Sadly Dr. Banks passed away in 1911 of a brain hemorrhage. He was only 49. But his legacy lived on. His daughter Alberta taught at the Union School, an institution Dr. and Mrs. Banks supported to help black citizens receive an education, and his son Oliver followed in his father’s footsteps as a physician.

Eventually, the Dr. Banks House would become the home of another great leader of Natchez, Goerge Metcalfe, who was born ironically the very year Dr. Banks passed away. A World War II Veteran and President of the Natchez Chapter of the NAACP during the American Civil Rights Movement, Mr. Metcalfe’s service, and near-death experience as a result, continue to inspire all who cherish freedom and equality. His home served as NAACP headquarters during this tumultuous time and even housed volunteers from other parts of the country during Freedom Summer of 1964. In the aftermath of the killing of Natchez Civil Rights Leader Wharlest Jackson Sr., Charles Evers, brother of Medgar Evers and State Field Director of the NAACP, made a historic visit to the Dr. Banks House, an occasion famously preserved in historic photographs.

In 2011, upon the death of Dr. Banks’ grandson Frank Robinson Jr., ownership of the house transferred by inheritance to Rose Hill Missionary Baptist Church, the oldest Black Baptist church in Mississippi. It was officially designated as the Dr. John Bowman Banks Museum in 2020. As a non-profit, the museum conducts tours and is actively working to preserve this important place of history.

Now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and our city’s first site to be listed on both the American Civil Rights Trail and Mississippi Freedom Trail in 2023, the Dr. Banks House needs our help. Still graced with its iconic metal roof that appears in many of its historic photographs, this beautiful structure is currently threatened by leaks and water intrusion. Fortunately, we have a roofer ready to make the repairs while preserving the historic roof. But as is always the case, it will take money.

Please join us on the front steps of the Dr. Banks House next Wednesday. And bring your checkbooks! We have anonymous donors ready to match donations, but time is of essence. Spring showers aren’t waiting, and repairs must commence soon. It is important that we do all we can to both tell our Natchez story and preserve it. We need to make sure this landmark continues to stand the test of time. Because Natchez Deserves More.

To make a contribution, please make checks payable to the Dr. John Bowman Banks Museum, P.O. Box 501, Natchez, MS 39121

For historic information, visit https://natchez.org/education/historic-natchez/dr-john-banks-house

For tour information, visit https://visitnatchez.org/listing/dr-john-bowman-banks-house/

For a link to the brochure, visit https://visitnatchez.org/wp-content/uploads/Brochure-Dr.-John-Banks-House.pdf

Dan M. Gibson is mayor of Natchez.