William Gillmore Enloe
1902-1972
Mayor of Raleigh, NC 1957-1963
Was a district manager for Wilby-Kincey's (NC Theaters Inc.) movie theaters which included Raleigh's Ambassador and Varsity. Opening in 1938, the Ambassador was named in reference to Josephus Daniels - another Wake School naming honoree, then Ambassador to Mexico. Enloe managed the Ambassador at its opening and was still affiliated with it during his term as Mayor. The Ambassador had been designed to accomodate Jim Crow era segregation (with separate entrances and seating arrangements) and became a target of integration efforts in the early 1960's. Although Enloe resisted the efforts to integrate the Ambassador, he was viewed at the time as moderate on race relations.






See also: http://docsouth.unc.edu/gtts/learn/commentary/Stillwell_Ambassador_Raleigh.html

[BACK]