Late Night Meals at Atlanta University
Bob Cole, James Weldon Johnson and J. Rosamond Johnson, circa 1900, Courtesy of New York Public Library
Harlem Renaissance writer James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938) was from Jacksonville, Florida. He attended Atlanta University (a Historical Black College and University (HBCU)) in Atlanta, Georgia at age sixteen and graduated in 1894. Sometime after Johnson arrived on campus he became in his words, “the acknowledged fifth member of a combination made up of two Juniors, a Sophomore, and D” known on campus as the “Big Four.” He goes on to say, “we borrowed each other’s money, generally for the purpose of paying for a late supper” because like many undergrads today, they were always on the hunt for something good to eat in the evening. “The meals in the dining room were never stinted [small], but we were always ready for a late, clandestine supper,” recalls Johnson. “There was an old man named Watson, whose job it was to tend the fine herd of cows owned by the school. He and his wife lived in a little house on the campus. We called this house ‘Little Delmonico’ because the good woman, who was also a good cook, furnished on short notice a supper of fried chicken, hot biscuits, and all the milk we could drink for fifteen cents.” He adds, “Whenever we had the money, we were ready to run the gantlet after lights were out for one of these suppers. Terms were cash, but we paid willingly; and without seeking to know whence came the milk—or the chickens either.”
