ɪnðə lˈeɪt nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd twˈɛnti z, ðɛɹwˌɜː fˈoːɹɾi blˈækˈoʊnd bˈɪznəsᵻz ɪn ˌɪndᵻpˈɛndəns hˈaɪts ðeɪ ɪŋklˈuːdᵻd: ɡɹˈoʊsɚɹi stˈoːɹz, ɹˈɛstɹɑːnts, ɐ lˈʌmbɚ kˈʌmpəni, ɐ wˈɑːtʃ ɹᵻpˈɛɹ ʃˈɑːp, ˈaɪs kɹˈiːm pˈɑːɹlɚz, ɐ klˈiːnɪŋ ænd pɹˈɛsɪŋ ʃˈɑːp, ɐ dɹˈʌɡ stˈoːɹ, ɐ blˈæk smˈɪθ ʃˈɑːp, lˈɔː ˈɑːfɪsᵻz ænd ɐn ᵻlˈɛktɹɪkəl ʃˈɑːp.
In the late 1920s, there were 40 black-owned businesses in Independence Heights they included: grocery stores, restaurants, a lumber company, a watch repair shop, ice cream parlors, a cleaning and pressing shop, a drug store, a black smith shop, law offices and an electrical shop.