IL HR0858

Recognizes John Briggs (1894-1959) as the first Black hotel owner in Rockford, Illinois, who operated the Briggs Hotel at 629 Court Street from 1938 to 1959

The Briggs Hotel served as the first home for many African Americans migrating from the South and was listed in The Negro Motorist Green-Book, a guidebook helping Black travelers find safe accommodations during the Jim Crow era

John Briggs was a World War I U.S. Army veteran born in Augusta, Georgia, who also owned The Briggs Mounds resort in Wisconsin and Club Morocco at Briggs Farms in Rockford

The City of Rockford previously proclaimed April 2021 as John Briggs Month and renamed a portion of Court Street as John Briggs Way in February 2024

The Illinois House of Representatives formally recognizes Briggs' contributions to the African-American community and his historical significance to Rockford