Albany recognizes Black History Month, Albany businessman with Wednesday ceremony

ALBANY – Albany Mayor Bo Dorough issued proclamations on Wednesday morning honoring the Albany Movement that fought for equality during the civil rights era and an Albany man whose family has been in the shoe business in the city for six decades.

Tony Williams, the third in his family to hold the “Rabbitman” moniker, which started with his grandfather, discussed the next chapter for Rabbitman’s Footwear following the presentation ceremony.

The store is moving from its current location at 125 College Drive to 334 W. Broad Ave. later this year. Williams also is training a nephew as the third generation, following himself and his father, to run the business, and the new location will allow for in-store purchases of the company’s shoe brand.

“We are going to be designing and making our own shoes,” he said. “We’ll have them in-house when we move. They’re available on the internet now.”

Rabbitman’s was started in the 1960s in Albany’s Harlem District as a shoeshine location.

“My brother, Johnny and I, we kind of expanded to a shoe repair shop,” he said. “It started out with just shining and expanded to service and sales, and now it’s expanding to design.”

The store currently has four employees, all family members, and each of the shoes in the company’s line is named for a family member.

The business was started by the brothers’ father, Elijah Williams Sr., a cobbler, as the Shoeshine Parlor located initially in Harlem and later at several other locations during the 1970s and 1980s. Tony Williams went to work with his father in 1986, the same year the name was changed to Rabbitman’s Footwear.

“I think it’s super super good,” he said of the recognition. “It’s good to know people appreciate what we do. We love what we do. We love Albany being part of our upbringing and giving back to the people who have helped us over the years. I think it was an honor.”

The Black History Month proclamation recognized the Albany Movement, a coalition formed by local black leaders, ministers, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and the NAACP.

The group advocated for the end of segregation and for voting rights in Albany and southwest Georgia.

Staff Photo: Alan MauldinAlanMauldin[email protected]
Staff Photo: Alan MauldinAlanMauldin[email protected]