Diving into summer
Orange Mound pool offers relief from heat
Young men and women get relief from the summer heat, swimming at the Orange Mound swimming pool in this undated photograph. According to many, Orange Mound was the first residential area in the South open to African-Americans after the Civil War. It stands on the site of the former John George Deadrick plantation. In its early days, Orange Mound was billed as the second-largest concentration of African-Americans in the United States, behind only Harlem in New York City. It was a relatively self- contained community and a huge source of pride for its residents, who were a rich blend of professionals including businessmen and lawyers.