PHOTO GALLERY: Photos from then and now show how Columbia's black community has changed over time

July 13, 2012 | 6:00 a.m. CDT

Growing up together in Columbia's tight-knit black community of the 1950s and '60s, some of the first students to integrate Columbia Public Schools continue to nurture their deep-rooted connection to each other. Their experiences tell a story of how race and community in Columbia have — and haven't — changed over time.

Left: A picture of graduates was taken in front of Douglass High School in 1960. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: The stairs in front of Douglass High School shown in 2012. | Carrie Durkee

Left: The cover of Jo Ann Herndon's 1960 Douglassonian Yearbook cover shows the front of Douglass High School. Photograph courtesy of Anna Boiko-Weyrauch. Right: The front of Douglass High School in 2012. | Anna Boiko-Weyrauch, Carrie Durkee

Left: Wynna Faye Tapp is shown when she was a senior at Douglass High School Senior in 1960. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri Right: Wynna Faye (Tapp) Elbert is chief organizer of "Silver and Gold." | Carrie Durkee

Left: Children play outside the Blind Boone Center in 1963. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: The Blind Boone Center located at 301 N. Providence Road is shown in 2012. | Carrie Durkee

Left: Jo Ann Herndon was Douglass High School's May Queen in 1960. The photo was published in the Douglassonian Yearbook. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: Jo Ann Herndon, a member of the "Silver and Gold" group, is pictured in 2012. | Anna Boiko-Weyrauch

Left: St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church at 501 Park Ave. is shown in a photo taken around 1958 to 1963. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church is shown in 2012. | Carrie Durkee

Left: Barbra Horrell models spring fashion in support of the Richard D. Pipes kidney fund in 1975. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: Barbra Horrell, pictured in 2012, gathers with other women who grew up in north central Columbia in the 1950s and 1960s. | Carrie Durkee

Left: Boone Apartments is pictured in April 1962 when it was a new public housing project. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: A blanket hangs on laundry lines outside of the public housing on Unity Drive in 2012. These apartments are some of the oldest public housing in Columbia. | Carrie Durkee

Left: Madeline “Matty” Rolley, center, is pictured in the yearbook when she was a senior at Hickman High School in 1974. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: Madeline “Matty” Rolley is pictured in 2012. | Carrie Durkee

Left: Garth and Allen streets are shown from 306 N. Garth St., around 1958 to 1963. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: The same view of Garth and Allen streets is shown in 2012. | Carrie Durkee

Left: Evelyn Jackson, center, is pictured as a seventh-grader at Douglass Middle School. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: Evelyn (Jackson) Talton is pictured in 2012. | Carrie Durkee

Left: Workers build public housing located near the intersection of Allen Street and Bryant Street in May 1962. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: A photo take in 2012 looks west on Allen Street from the intersection of Bryant Street. | Carrie Durkee

Left: Teresa Tapp is shown in a yearbook photo in 1975. Teresa transferred to Benton Elementary from Douglass Elementary for third grade. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: Teresa (Tapp) Lankford is pictured in 2012. | Carrie Durkee

Left: A house at 20 Switzler St. was Horrell’s Beauty Shop when this pictured was taken around 1958 to 1963. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: In 2012, the address of the house is 12 Switzler St. | Carrie Durkee

Left: Tiger Theatre at Fifth Street between Walnut and Ash streets is shown in March 1962. Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri. Right: Tribune Publishing now stands at the former location of Tiger Theatre. Members of Columbia's black community are still concerned that gathering places such as Tiger Theatre or clubs that many of them frequent are disappearing, leaving few places that they consider their own. | Carrie Durkee

Some of the Silver and Gold Ladies pose together outside of St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church before an outing to Amish stores in 2012. | Carrie Durkee

The yearbook staff for Douglass High School's Douglassonian is shown in 1960. | Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri

Members of the Douglass High School pep squad pose for a picture in 1960. | Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri

Douglass High School students participate in a typing class in 1960. | Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri

The Columbia Board of Education poses for a picture in 1960. | Courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri