James Edward Hemphill (1886-1959)
James E. Hemphill worked in Charlotte from 1917 to 1959. Besides Henry Hayden, he is the only known black photographer in Charlotte prior to 1925. He was born in Blackstock, South Carolina in 1886. Hemphill was the son of James and Frances Hemphill. (1) He firsts appears in the Charlotte City Directory in 1912. Hemphill and Jonathan S.J. Byers ran a restaurant called Hemphill and Byers. Two years later, the men operated the Epicurin Lunch at 500 Mint Street. (2) Starting in 1917, Hemphill worked as a photographer.