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Building My Charlotte: The Queen City and its Architects

S&W

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Photograph courtesy North Carolina State University Digital Archives

The S&W Cafeterias were a chain of restaurants started in the heart of Charlotte. Martin Boyer designed and created the first S&W in 1920; the exterior is displayed here, at 100 W. Trade Street. The function of the S&W Cafeterias was to supply the Charlotte community with inexpensive southern style food. The S&Ws were generally located near downtown populated areas where the consumers could enjoy southern food and a large area complete with tables fit for a long discussion or quick bite to eat. The S&Ws in the Charlotte area existed until the middle of the 1970s and the company was finally shut down during the 190s. (1)

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Photograph courtesy North Carolina State University Digital Archives

Displayed here is the interior of the original S&W Cafeteria. Boyer stuck to his revival style, as shown by the Neoclassic simple symmetrical design. Boyer was the designer for most of the S&Ws throughout the southeast, from Washington, D.C. to Atlanta. Boyer helped spread the Southern culture by designing architectural structures that promoted inexpensive southern food, culture, and conversation. (2)

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1. North Carolina State Archives, http://d.lib.ncsu.edu/collections.

2. Ibid.