Calvin Esau Lightner (March 31, 1878 – May 21, 1960) was an American architect, building contractor, and mortician. He was born in South Carolina and moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, to study architectural design at Shaw University. After graduation he took industrial courses at Hampton Institute and studied embalming in Tennessee. He and his brother established the C. E. Lightner and Brothers construction company and built numerous homes for members of Raleigh's black middle class.
Lightner established the first funeral home for black customers in Raleigh along East Hargett Street. He proceeded to construct numerous commercial buildings along the road, thus sparking a shift in the concentration of Raleigh's black-owned businesses to East Hargett, which became known as the city's "Black Main Street." In 1919 he and two other black men launched a political campaign for municipal offices with the goal of arousing political interest in the black community. Lightner sought the post of Commissioner of Public Works. Jim Crow restrictions prevented most black men from voting and all three lost their elections, though Lightner earned 142 votes. In 1921 he built the Mechanics and Farmers Bank Building in Durham and the Lightner Arcade and Hotel in Raleigh. The latter quickly became a center of social activity for Raleigh's black community and hosted musicians Cab Calloway, Count Basie, and Duke Ellington. Lightner sold his hotel in 1925 and in 1959 turned over his funeral business to his son, Clarence. Lightner died the following year. Clarence was elected as the first black Mayor of Raleigh in 1973. Most of Lightner's building projects no longer exist.