The latest on Columbus' new Black history museum
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One of two remaining Poindexter Village buildings, at 290 N. Champion Ave. Photos: Alissa Widman Neese/Axios
Surrounded by blocks of matching, modern apartments, two historic brick buildings on Champion Avenue stand as anchors to another era.
Why it matters: They're the last remnants of Poindexter Village, one of the country's first public housing projects and a cornerstone of the local Black community.
- They'll soon house the Poindexter Village African American Museum, preserving the structures and an important story of community and hope in King-Lincoln Bronzeville.
The latest: Progress remains on schedule for a May 6 museum groundbreaking, Ohio History Connection spokesperson Neil Thompson tells Axios.
Catch up quick: President Franklin D. Roosevelt came to town to dedicate the once-sprawling Poindexter Village federal housing project in 1940.
- It was named for the Rev. James Preston Poindexter, a prominent local abolitionist and longtime pastor of Second Baptist Church in King-Lincoln Bronzeville.
- The site once housed 35 buildings, but the area suffered from disinvestment.
- Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority demolished most beginning in 2013 and replaced them with contemporary housing.

Friction point: Preservationists wanted more buildings saved, but to manage costs, the authority ultimately settled on two connected by a courtyard.
Follow the money: The Ohio History Connection acquired them in 2017 and began planning the $25.9 million museum with the James Preston Poindexter Foundation.
- Last year, they hired local architect Moody Nolan, the country's largest Black-owned firm, to design it.
Zoom in: Specifics will be revealed in May, but plans include a recreated 1940s apartment, interactive exhibits and community gathering spaces.
- The museum is also expected to connect to the adjacent Union Grove Baptist Church, which Poindexter helped organize in 1888.
- Ultimately, the goal is to "link the national history of public housing and Black heritage to Ohio," per a history connection statement.
What they're saying: "It really helped shape the city, and especially those neighborhoods on the Near East Side, after the 1940s," Thompson says.
- "It provided stability, it provided community — for the residents of that time and then for generations of residents thereafter."
What's next: The museum is expected to open in early 2028 as the Ohio History Connection's 59th historic site statewide.



