1213 Fayetteville Street – Harris-Ingram House

From the Stokesdale National Historic District Nomination:

This one-story, side-gabled bungalow is three bays wide and four-pile with a full-width rear gable and a gabled front dormer. The house has a painted brick foundation, vinyl siding, and an exterior end brick chimney on the north elevation. It retains four-over-one, double-hung Craftsman-style wood sash windows and original fifteen-light French doors, one with a matching sidelight. There is an inset porch on the left end of the façade that has had its original supports removed and has been enclosed with glass. The porch is accessed by a painted brick stair with brick knee wall. The gabled, front dormer has a pair of louvered vents. County tax records date the building to 1920; the earliest known occupant is Connie A. Harris (driver) in 1925. Harris was the proprietor of a billiard parlor in the 700 block of Fayetteville Street. According to the Ingram family, who occupied the house later, the house is a Sears, Roebuck and Company mail order design.

Garage, c. 1960 – One-and-a-half story, front-gabled, frame, one-car garage with vinyl siding, a metal overhead door, and a six-light window at the second-floor level.

From the Preservation Durham Historic Plaque Application:

The first long-term occupants of 1213 Fayetteville were Connie A. and Eulalia Harris. They lived in the home for nearly twenty years and are likely the first residents of the home. Connie is listed as a cleaner and presser at 117 ½ Mangum in numerous Hill Directories. 

1213 Fayetteville was also the family home of C.J. and Bernice Ingram. C.J. created Dunbar Realty, which managed hundreds of rental homes, largely to a moderate-low income, African-American clientele. C.J. died early into the beginnings of the business, and Bernice took it over, going on to turn their home, 1213 Fayetteville, into offices for the company. Bernice is also said to have been the first Black registrar in Durham. 

C.J. and Bernice Ingram were parents of local civil rights activist Dr. Lavonia Allison. Dr. Allison grew up in 1213 Fayetteville before it was turned into the Dunbar offices. She also helped run the business with her mother starting in the 1950s while working part-time as a teacher at Whitted High School and North Carolina Central University. Dr. Allison is known for her many accomplishments fighting for civil rights, notably as the first woman to chair the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People in 1998. She was also involved with the Democratic National Convention, as a delegate and working in multiple leadership positions. 

Dr. Allison fought to improve school and health care for African Americans. She directed the NC Manpower Development Program, where she advocated to ensure more African Americans and Native Americans became health care professionals. She also fought the then-majority white Durham school board to dedicate more funding to Black students.

Allison passed away on January 7th, 2025. Her passing was met with an outpouring of love for her civil rights advocacy from many politicians, civil rights leaders, and Durham community members. 

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