Liberty Night Club

Status: Closed

Parish: Ouachita

Location: Monroe

From Sepia Socialite, May 1942:

Liberty Night Club First and Biggest in North-East Louisiana 

“Twenty-one years ago, Mr. Frank D. Thompson, better known to his friends as “Son” Thompson, was a mere bootblack among the hundreds of bootblacks in Louisiana. At the expiration of the twenty-one years, Mr. Thompson built and i snow operating one of the largest and most colorful night clubs in Monroe that is recognized as a night club in Northeast Louisiana. His club,  which takes up more than one-fourth of a square, has the patronage of some 3,000 customers a week.
The thirty-five cents that Mr. Thompson invested in the bootblack business has perpetuated itself into a $10,000 business. His club was the first night club to be opened in Monroe by white or Negro. Since that time, numerous clubs have followed.
The opening night of the club was picturesque and will live in the minds o fNortheast Louisiana as a treat of a lifetime.
The history of Mr. Thompson and the club of which he proudly boasts is intervened with the history of pleasure and good times in Monroe. A brief excerpt of Mr. Thompson’s history tells of the time when he was down to a mere eight dollars with family assets amounting to only ten dollars. This meager amount, which Mr. Thompson invested in a confectionary during a church conference gave him his second foothold in business. His experience during that conference is most interesting. After his money in the investment of the confectionery had been exhausted, Mr. Thompson accumulated more than $200 from his initial investment. He did not sleep with the $200 but immediately invested it in a cafe which now amounts to a $10,000 business.
The Liberty Night Club, located at 901-905 Adams Street, is the last word in modern refrigeration, lighting, service and streamlined comfort.
The club offers bar service where one may get the personal service of Mr. Thompson. A huge dance section (bottom picture) where one may dance to the tunes of the best bands. There are tables and booths for the comfort of its hundreds of patrons.
Mr. Thompson plays an important part in civic and social activities of Monroe and Northeast Louisiana. He was elected Mayor of Little Harlem in Monroe. He is the state inner guard of the Elks, a member of the NAACP, a sponsor of the Tuxedo Boys Club and was the first Negro to serve on the Federal Grand Jury in Louisiana since reconstruction.
Mr. Thompson is married to Mrs. Auburnia Thompson and has one daughter, Mrs. Juanita Duty, who operates the Duty Service Station.”

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Photo Credit: Sepia Socialite, May 1942