ABOUT US



WE LOVE WHAT WE DO
African American History & Culture

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By W. James Taylor
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Who We Are

The Beck Cultural Exchange Center, named in honor of James G. & Ethel B. Beck, is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization established in 1975 as a result of Knoxville’s Urban Renewal projects. The projects relocated and displaced many black families, churches and businesses. Absent of the establishment of Beck, these places and the people may never have existed. Beck is the storehouse of African American history and culture and is designated by the state as a primary repository of Black history and culture in East Tennessee. 

Mission | Vision

The Mission of Beck is to be the place where Black history and culture are preserved, nurtured, taught, & continued.




The Vision of Beck is to be the desired place that people go to learn, discover and experience the rich legacy of African Americans inside a vibrant Cultural Corridor, the Beck Cultural Corridor.

Our Plan

Beck is crafting a Cultural Corridor that will recognize African American related historical and cultural monuments that are located throughout the greater community including the area demolished by Urban Renewal. A vibrant part of the Beck Cultural Corridor will be the only remaining ancestral home of one of the greatest modern painters of the twentieth century, Beauford Delaney. Beck is restoring this extraordinary piece of Knoxville history as the future Delaney Museum at Beck.
The Beck Cultural Corridor, history reclaimed.