Asheville Highlights Black History in Free February Events for 250th

Asheville Parks & Recreation will center Black history in a slate of free February events tied to the nation’s Semiquincentennial, positioning neighborhood cultural programming at the forefront of local commemoration. The series aims to make Black heritage visible in city-run celebrations through neighborhood-based exhibits, meals, music, history talks, and hands-on urban agriculture.

The schedule includes an opening reception for "Black History Month Through the Eyes of Art" on Feb. 11 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Dr. Wesley Grant Sr. Southside Community Center; the accompanying exhibit will run through Feb. 28. Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center will host "Shades of Red: Our Black History is Love" on Feb. 14 from 1 to 4 p.m., focusing on the Shiloh neighborhood heritage. Stephens-Lee Community Center will hold a Soul Food Supper on Feb. 19 from 6 to 8 p.m., and on Feb. 20 from 2:30 to 5 p.m. it will stage the Dr. George Washington Carver Edible Park Work & Learn Day, an event that combines garden work with education about Asheville’s community food forest. On Feb. 20 from 6 to 8 p.m. Tempie Avery Montford Community Center will present Montford Melodies & Legacy Celebration, featuring local music and a short film, and Burton Street Community Center will host a Burton Street History event on Feb. 21 from 6 to 8 p.m., focusing on neighborhood history and the legacy of Edward W. Pearson.

These events are free and open to the public, with advance registration recommended through Asheville Parks & Recreation program guides and registration resources. By programming across multiple community centers that serve historically Black neighborhoods and institutions, the city is directing municipal resources into sites of local memory and daily civic life.

The institutional decision to foreground Black stories during the 250th has practical community implications. Free programming and neighborhood locations reduce economic and transportation barriers to participation and create opportunities for intergenerational learning, cultural visibility, and civic connection. The garden work day links cultural commemoration to food access and environmental stewardship, while the Burton Street and Shiloh events explicitly connect present-day residents to the city’s Black civic leaders and neighborhood histories.

For Buncombe County residents, these events provide accessible ways to engage with local history and to shape how the city frames the Semiquincentennial. Those interested in attending should consult Asheville Parks & Recreation program guides for registration details and consider participating early, since the city recommends advance sign-up to secure space and help organizers plan neighborhood-based offerings.