Back in 1949, Louise and Arthur Gist were the first African Americans to own property on Gorrell Street in Greensboro.

They opened a 14-room motel that hosted entertainers and musicians, very well known.

75 years later, the Historic Magnolia House stands and I decided to experience it for myself.

Let's take a look.

They call it the house that soul built.

[lively music] Each of the rooms at the Historic Magnolia is styled in captivating character and bold colors, modeled after the personalities and legacies of people who once stayed here.

- The Carlotta.

[gasps] This is prettier than I expected.

Let's go explore a little bit.

[lively music continues] - Good morning, how are you?

- You must be Natalie.

- Yes.

- It's so nice to meet you.

- You too.

[Deborah laughs] How are you?

- Had a fun time talking to you on the phone, getting everything set up.

- Yes.

- I'm delighted to be here.

- Same.

Oh, welcome home.

- [Deborah] Thank you so much.

I feel like I'm at home already.

Tell me a little bit about some of these items.

Are they directly related to the Magnolia?

- The Historic Magnolia House is a 1949 Green Book hotel.

And so for those that are not familiar with the Green Book, it is what we like to call the Yellow Pages for African American or Black Americans when they were traveling during Jim Crow.

So what we have here is what we call our Negro Travelers Toolkit.

The chauffeur's hat was extremely important.

Having the chauffeur hat, not only in the car, but hanging up in the backseat, actually keeps them safe from being pulled over by the police, and not only in the backseat, but hung up in the window, allows them to portray themselves as the driver of the car or the chauffeur.

- [Deborah] They had to be so clever.

- You wanna join me at the table?

I'm a little hungry and we can talk over food, I know that's how Mama Gist did it now.

- Look, we can talk over food.

- Okay, let's do.

[laughs] [comfortable music] - This is a really beautiful room.

- Thank you.

- Good morning.

- We have bacon, and we also have sausage links.

- I can move that over here.

Oh, my goodness.

- And Chef has pancakes.

- Hey, chef!

- And strawberries.

- Good.

- Are you Mama Nicole?

- I am Mama Nicole.

- Now, see, I thought Mama Nicole, I was kind of expecting like a little old lady.

[all laugh] - Oh no.

- Well, I am.

By heart, by heart.

By heart.

In my heart.

- You take care of people.

- Yes.

That title is because I guess that's what I love.

That's what makes me feel good.

That's what makes me feel fulfilled.

- These are delicious.

[laughs] - Aww.

- I love these.

- [Natalie] I'm a sucker for crispy edges and so I'm looking- - I love the crispy edges too.

I'm loving like how brown they are, but moist on the inside.

- Mm-hmm!

- Louis Armstrong, one of our extended stayers, you know, he'd stay with us for like two and three weeks at a time, and he would sit over in this window over here in the ballroom and just clean the trumpet while Mama Gist, i.e.

Mama Nicole, would come and feed him biscuits.

Now, he ain't like bacon, [Deborah laughs] but I don't know that he didn't like bacon, but it was molasses and ham- - Ooh, yes.

- for him.

- You have a very close relationship with this place.

- Mm-hmm.

Oh, yeah.

Oh, yeah.

When dad purchased the house from the Gist family, he purchased it with the intentions of keeping it from being demolished.

I said, "Dad, how are things going?"

And, you know, he was just like, "You know, Nat, you know, I've been at this for a long time.

I'm working every day back and forth in Durham, so it's just getting really tough."

So I said, "Well, you know, why don't we do this?

What do you think if I come in and let's try this for a couple years.

Let's see how things go.

And if we need to sit down and have a conversation again, we'll sit down and have the conversation again."

- You were open.

- And so that's literally how it started.

Fast forward to here we are today over pancakes and I ain't having that conversation anymore.

- Here's to daughters building legacy.

- A blessing, indeed.

Cheers to that.

Yes.

[gentle music] - Natalie's mission doesn't stop at providing a beautiful, welcoming bed and breakfast for visitors.

She wants to be intentional about preserving Black historic sites, reconnecting them to their communities, and using the space to educate others.

That's why she established the Magnolia House Foundation to offer education programs like a shoebox lunch, where participants are served a lunch in a shoebox as they learn the history of "The Negro Motorist Green Book."

As I explore the halls and colorful rooms throughout the historic Magnolia, it's warm and familiar.

I think about the greats who've experienced her comfort and freedom well enough to think, to laugh, sit down to a warm meal, dance a turn, or just rest easy.

And I see why, still today, those who visit will feel welcomed home.

The historic Magnolia House is at 442 Gorrell Street in Greensboro.

To plan your stay, give them a call at [336] 617-3382 or visit them online at thehistoricmagnoliahouse.org.