I remember an old ‘American Experience’ documentary about Asian-American performers who were from CA mostly, and making a tour of the South in the Jim Crow era. Ah, here it is, ‘Forbidden City’ from 1989. Anyway, one of them remembered a tour of the Jim Crow-era South where she was totally flumoxed by segregation and had no idea whether she was ‘white’ or ‘colored’. She’d used the black facilities, thinking it’d be safer, but if used the white places nobody blinked an eye (aside from those who stared since they’d never seen a real-live Asian before).
Interesting tidbit, FWIW, asked me mom aboot said “signs,” and she said she’d never seen one growing up in west GA, Rome, Cedartown, Rockmart, Aragon region. Mebbe more of an urban thing? Always assumed was all over, but mebbe not?