BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) – Opening in 1899, Davenport and Harris Funeral Homes is celebrating 125 years of serving the Birmingham area and being the oldest Black-owned business in the state of Alabama.
Descendants of the Harris family and current president of the funeral home, Marion Sterling, says the business was created to meet a need in the community.
“My great-grandfather Charles Morgan Harris and his sister Hattie Davenport started the business,” Sterling said. “At that time, there was not one institution that would touch the deceased body of a Black man, woman, or child, so there was truly a need [for funeral services].”…