Mr. Joe White Avenue is a
boulevard in
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Myrtle Beach is a resort city on the east coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is located in the center of a long and continuous stretch of beach known as "The Grand Strand" in the northeastern part of the state. Its y ...
, named for "Mr. Joe", a
shoeshine man
"Shoeshine Man" is a song written and recorded by American country music artist Tom T. Hall. It was released in March 1970 as the fourth and final single from the album, ''Homecoming''. The song peaked at number 8 on the U.S. country singles chart ...
in
Georgetown County, South Carolina, and later Myrtle Beach. Along with
U.S. Route 501
U.S. Route 501 (US 501) is a spur of U.S. Route 1. It runs 355 miles (571 km) from Buena Vista, Virginia at U.S. Route 60 to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina at U.S. Route 17 Business.
It passes through the states of Virginia, North Carolina a ...
,
Farrow Parkway,
Harrelson Boulevard and 21st Avenue North, the upgraded road is one of five major entrances into Myrtle Beach.
History of the road
In 1997, the city heard a presentation of a plan to attract people downtown by making 11th Avenue North "a wide, landscaped boulevard ending in a city park at the beach". In a project that started in July 2001, 10th Avenue North was widened west of downtown Myrtle Beach, with a new connector to 11th Avenue North near Kings Highway. Also in 2001, 11th Avenue North was to be upgraded at a cost of $1.5 million with "wider, brick-paved sidewalks, street surfaces lined with pavers, street lights, underground utilities, trees and flower beds".
[ At the Ocean Boulevard end, a park was planned.][
Toward the end of 2001, options for the road's new name were considered. If it was called 10th Avenue North for its entire length, streets from 11th Avenue North to 52nd Avenue North would have to be renamed, causing thousands of addresses to be changed. One idea was Mr. Joe White Avenue. The Myrtle Beach city planning commission approved that name in January 2002, but the city council objected after complaints from business owners. So did ]Horry County
Horry County ( ) is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 351,029. It is the fourth-most populous county in South Carolina. The county seat is Conway.
Horry County is the central ...
Council, which was responsible for a section of the road west of the Myrtle Beach city limits.[
City planning commissioners revisited the idea of keeping the old name for the upgraded sections of 10th and 11th Avenues. One plan called for naming the road 10th Avenue west of a particular location and 11th Avenue east of it. Another suggested renaming only the new section of the road. But once again, the decision to rename the entire road stood.][David Klepper, "Panel Makes Decision on Road," ''The Sun News'', March 20, 2002, p. A1.] The section of 10th Avenue North from Dunbar Street to Broadway kept its name, and the short section between Broadway and Kings Highway closed in March 2002.
The road opened April 7, 2002, with the intersection of Broadway and Kings Highway closing.[David Klepper, "Street Revamp Nearly Finished," ''The Sun News'', March 29, 2002, p. C1.]["In Our Towns," ''The Sun News'', April 7, 2002, p. C2.] The park at Ocean Boulevard and Mr. Joe White Avenue was dedicated to the Justin Plyler, co-founder of Gay Dolphin Gift Cove
The Gay Dolphin Gift Cove is located at 916 North Ocean Boulevard in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, United States, and calls itself "the nation's largest gift shop". As of 2011, the Gay Dolphin had and store owner Justin "Buz" Plyler said the sto ...
, at the Sun Fun Festival on June 3, 2005.Myrtle Beach Boardwalk
The Myrtle Beach Boardwalk & Promenade, located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, runs along the oceanfront from the Pier 14 at 14th Avenue North to the 2nd Avenue Pier at 2nd Avenue North. The promenade officially opened in May 2010 at a cost of n ...
in 2010, Plyler Park
The Gay Dolphin Gift Cove is located at 916 North Ocean Boulevard in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, United States, and calls itself "the nation's largest gift shop". As of 2011, the Gay Dolphin had and store owner Justin "Buz" Plyler said the st ...
became the location of a concert series called "Hot Summer Nights".
Mr. Joe
Julius W. "Joe" White Sr. was born in 1910[ (another source says he charged 5 cents in the sixth grade][ where he worked in numerous barber shops][ as well as at the ]Ocean Forest Hotel
The Ocean Forest Hotel was one of the first major hotels in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, U.S.A. The Ocean Forest and the adjoining Ocean Forest Country Club and Golf Course were the vision of John T. Woodside, a textile magnate from Greenville, ...
.[ Woody Elvis said White worked at Woody's Barber Shop for more than 30 years.][ White also had a window washing business that was a going concern. White was also a leader in Shield's Chapel Fire Baptized Holiness Church. He was married to his wife Louise for 66 years. White died December 23, 1997, at age 87 and was highly regarded by Myrtle Beach residents of all races and backgrounds.][Johanna D. Wilson, "Panel to Discuss Street Name Honor for Shoe Stylist 'Mr. Joe'," ''The Sun News'', December 23, 2001, p. C1] The street he lived on, White Street, was also named for him, according to Elvis.[
]
Major intersections
References
External links
Plyler Park web site
Photo of Mr. Joe White
{{Grand Strand transportation
Roads in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina