KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — A father and son teamed up to create a new mural at the Cal Johnson Recreation Center in Knoxville, which captures the impact Johnson had as he became one of the state’s wealthiest African-American businessmen.
The City of Knoxville shared a video of the mural artists Adam Henry “The Elder” and Adam Henry “The Younger” alongside their work at the Cal Johnson recreation Center.
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“A friend of mine told me about the opportunity for a mural here at Cal Johnson Rec Center. We did research on it, of course, to kind of get like the imagery, and we wanted to show something that actually, you know, spoke specifically about Cal Johnson. He was a giver. Like he gave back to his community,” the elder Henry said.
Throughout the piece, the father and son captured parts of Johnson’s history. From a photo of Johnson printed on a business card from the 1800s, to images of Johnson’s race track, Cal Johnson Park, and a tree that was outside a saloon he owned.
“There was a tree outside of one of the saloons, and it died, but he never cut it down; it meant something special to him, and so the tree there in the image is that tree now grown. And it symbolizes him planting roots here in Knoxville, and the roots of the tree actually go across the mural itself. Then they’re like a timeline feel,” Henry “The Elder” explained.
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The mural also includes a map of Speedway Circle, where Johnson’s horse racing track was. The track was also where the first plane took off or landed in Knoxville, Rev. Renee Kesler told 6 News in 2023. She added that the plane belonged to the Wright brothers…