The Historic Saluda Committee’s next program in the “Step Back in History” series will be Saturday, May 11, 2019 at 10:00 a.m. at the Saluda Center. This program will be presented by Maxine Wilkerson and will feature the legacy of Madam Pheobia Cheek Sullivan, a healer, herbalist, mystic, prophet, and leader in Saluda’s black community in the early to mid twentieth century. Madam Sullivan’s greatest claim to fame was founding Sullivan’s Temple in 1948. The Temple was the site of many grand gatherings including an annual “dinner on the grounds” where all races came together to celebrate Madam Sullivan’s birthday, and musical festivities that once hosted legendary gospel singers including Mahalia Jackson, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and perhaps Sam Cooke’s Soul Stirrers, plus numerous other groups. Town lore is that bus loads of admirers came from all over the United States to seek Madame Sullivan’s healing powers.  

You are invited to come learn more about Madam Sullivan’s legacy and the plans that the Saluda Community Land Trust and Historic Saluda Committee have for the property that once housed the Temple. The Saluda Center is located at 64 Greenville Street, Saluda, NC. This program is free and open to the public. 

For more information about the Historic Saluda Committee go to www.historicsaluda.org or contact us at historicsaluda@gmail.com.  

– Submitted by Cindy Stephenson Tuttle