Operating as a movie house, the Carver Theatre opened in 1935 as a hub for nightlife in Birmingham’s Black Business District. The theatre was one of the few movie houses screening first-run films for African American audiences in the Jim Crow era.

The Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame, a nonprofit created in 1978 to promote Alabama’s jazz legacy, took over operations of the Carver Theatre in the 1990s. A jazz museum was installed, along with a refurbished performance hall that could show movies and host stage performances. The theatre and museum continue to draw tourists from around the globe.