Home of Mesa’s first black doctor earns historic status
Jul 3, 2012, 7:55 AM | Updated: 7:56 am
MESA, Ariz. — Racial tensions in the late 1920s forced minorities in Mesa to live at the city’s northern boundary, just outside the then-city limits.
Because of this, many were denied basic services, such as doctor visits. That was until Dr. Lucius Alston moved into a home near Center Street and University Avenue.
“He was the first African-American doctor to live in Mesa, who saw mainly African-American, Hispanic, and Native American patients,” said John Goodie, a founding member of the Mesa Martin Luther King Committee.
Nearly 100 years later, the old house has been restored and is on the national historic register. The Alston House stands as a symbol of a man who changed the lives of hundreds, if not thousands living in that area in a time where racial segregation was the norm. And by September, it will offer something Alston offered: a chance to get help.
“We’re going to offer free legal consultation and advice, how to obtain scholarships for your kids, how to find a job, all kinds of services for free,” said Phil Austin, president of the Mesa Association of Hispanic Citizens and a local attorney.
Both Goodie and Austin, along with their groups, are trying to dig up photos or relics from that time related to Alston to fill the museum.