RICHMOND, Va. — A celebration was held Saturday to mark 51 years of a statue in Richmond’s historic Jackson Ward neighborhood dedicated to an iconic African American tap dancer and actor.
Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, who was born in Richmond in 1878, was one of the most famous and highest-paid African American entertainers of the 20th century.
He also paid for a stoplight to be installed on Adams and Chamberlayne Parkway to keep the kids who walked to school safe.
FULL INTERVIEW: All about iconic entertainer and Richmond native Bill 'Bojangles' Robinson
Richmonders gathered at the site of the statue, which was unveiled in 1973, to honor Robinson's legacy.
“But back in the 30s, African American kids who went to school here did not have any traffic control. So they were getting hit by cars. “So he went to city council and got it approved,” Keith Hicks, a statue celebration committee member, said. “So he took it upon himself to pay for this traffic light all on his own. So we wanted to celebrate Mr. Bill 'Bojangles' for that."
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