02/23/2026
| Thank you Columbus Metropolitan Library for sharing the history of The Plaza Hotel where Equitas Health King-Lincoln now stands. Black history is American history.
As folks in the original comment section have pointed out, it’s not the full story. Like many other historically Black neighborhoods in America, interstate and city planners intentionally carved highways through the King-Lincoln Bronzeville neighborhood.
This was combined with redlining, the practice of denying home loans and other resources to Black neighborhoods during segregation. It caused long-lasting economic and cultural destruction of neighborhoods that were once thriving.
When Equitas Health King-Lincoln opened in 2017, the neighborhood lacked healthcare facilities. At Equitas Health, you can get affirming and affordable healthcare, including low/no-cost HIV & STI testing, dental, pharmacy, primary care, and more.
We are proud to serve King-Lincoln Bronzeville alongside our neighbors The Lincoln Theatre, Los Potosinos Mexican Food Truck of Columbus., and more. Make sure to grab a delicious meal at Lincoln Café, located in the same building as Equitas Health.
Thank you for having us, King-Lincoln Bronzeville. 💜
📸 Pictured: The Plaza Hotel (c. 1960), photographed by acclaimed Columbus photographer Kojo Kamau. Credit: Pepper Johnson
When Black travelers were not welcome downtown, The Plaza Hotel stood in defiance – becoming one of the city’s finest ➡️
The building went up around 1884, featuring a saloon, barber shop, and grocery store on the first floor, with lodging upstairs. Many businesses rotated through its doors until the 1920s, when it became The Plaza Hotel.
In the 1940s, the hotel found a new leader: a Black man named Frank Drungold.
He resented his previous employer, Kresge’s Five-and-Dime Store, where Black customers were refused service at the counter. So, he built his own businesses on Long Street – before the hotel, he operated a pool room, restaurant, and tavern in the same Bronzeville neighborhood.
Drungold was a complicated, notable figure in Columbus. To some, he was known for his role in a large-scale gambling enterprise – but to others, for his vast community impact. He sponsored churches, sports leagues, community organizations, and individuals. A 1977 article noted that he “may very well be the only person in the NAACP with two lifetime memberships.”
Under Drungold’s leadership, the Plaza became “one of the most outstanding black hotels in the country”, as reviewed by the Columbus Call and Post.
In 1948, after renovations, the hotel began appearing in “The Negro Motorist Green Book”, a road guide for Black travelers who faced a variety of dangers during the Jim Crow era. The book was published each year from 1936–1966, listing the lodging, businesses, and gas stations that would serve Black travelers on road trips.
In the 1960s, freeway construction cut the neighborhood off from downtown. The Plaza Hotel remained in service until the 1970s, but the building no longer stands.
In 2005, the King Lincoln Gateway Building opened as a part of a neighborhood redevelopment effort. Today, the building houses Equitas Health’s King-Lincoln Health Center.
📸 Pictured: The Plaza Hotel (c. 1960), photographed by acclaimed Columbus photographer Kojo Kamau. Credit: Pepper Johnson
📍 750 E. Long St.
