First published in 1936 by Victor Green, the Negro Motorist Green Book was a compilation of restaurants, over-night accommodations, gas stations, and other public services for people of color traversing a white-only landscape during segregation. LaVilla was a major Florida destination featured in the document.

Owned and operated by Alice Kilpatrick, the Richmond Hotel was Jacksonville’s finest Green Book hotel. Built in 1909, the Richmond featured 48 upper floor rooms and a 65-seat restaurant.

James “Charlie Edd” Craddock’s Little Blue Chip Club operated on the first floor. Craddock’s clubs, bars, and taverns were said to be protected by the local police and were hotbeds for bolita. Bolita (Spanish for “little ball”) was a type of illegal lottery popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Cuba and among Florida’s working-class Hispanic, Italian, and black populations.

Many musicians would stand on the hotel’s balcony to woo the crowds that came to see their performances. Famous guests included Chitlin Circuit-era musicians: Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald, and Billie Holiday.

Other surviving LaVilla Green Book sites include: the Fiesta Hotel, Sunrise Restaurant (Odd Fellows Hall), and Hotel Sanders (Wynn Hotel).