Juke joint

Juke joint (also jukejoint, jook house, jook, or juke) is the African American vernacular term for an informal establishment featuring music, dancing, gambling, and drinking, primarily operated by African Americans in the southeastern United States. A juke joint may also be called a "barrelhouse". The Jook was the first secular cultural arena to emerge among African American freedmen.

Classic Jooks, found for example at rural crossroads, catered to the rural work force that began to emerge after emancipation.^[1] Plantation workers and sharecroppers needed a place to relax and socialize following a hard week, particularly since they were barred from most white establishments by Jim Crow laws.

Set up on the outskirts of town, often in ramshackle, abandoned buildings or private houses — never in newly-constructed buildings — juke joints offered food, drink, dancing, and gambling for weary workers.^[2] Owners made extra money selling groceries or moonshine to patrons, or providing cheap room and board.