"OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE" : "THE BLACK BI-CENTENNIAL COMMITTEE"

"Black Americans have made major strides in spite of oppression and injustice. This Bi-Centennial Booklet is a tribute to Black and White Americans" - Bernie Dayton Robinson Before he died, "Mr. B.D. Robinson" assembled A Black Bi-Centennial Committee to put together A Booklet On the History of Blacks in Ouachita Parish & Monroe, Louisiana. The Booklet is Called,"Contributors of Ouachita Parish, A History of Blacks To Commemorate the Bi-Centennial of the United States of America." A copy of the Booklet is available as a Reference Book, "meaning that the book cannot be checked out or leave the library," in the Genealogy Department, at the Main Branch of The Ouachita Parish Library on Stubb's Avenue, in Monroe. Somehow, I'm hoping that his daughter, "Lasandre Robinson Starks," and others will work together and get copies of this Bi-Centennial Booklet into the hands of "Black Churches, Black Fraternities & Black Sororities, and other Black Civic Organizations," here in Monroe.You see, it took the Bi-Centennial Committee hours and hours to put this Booklet together, and I really believe that Mr. B.D. Robinson wanted more people in Monroe & Ouachita Parish to learn & know about the Black People who helped paved the way for the Black People living in Monroe, Louisiana today! Also, I feel that in times like these, our Black Children in Monroe need to know more about "OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE!" Well, the main people who worked along with Mr. B.D. Robinson on the Bi-Centennial Committee included, Rosa Wilbert, Helen Smith, Joe Ella Burton, Ollie H. Burns, Cleventine S. Peevy, Mrs. Willie Bell Taylor, Mrs. Louise Breaux, Agnes W. Brass, and Rebecca Bose. Some of the Black Families mentioned in the Bi-Centennial Booklet included, The Maryland Brooks Family who had one of the first meat & butcher stores in Monroe ; The Medlock Family who owned and operated The Acme Funeral Home, which was bought and merged with Miller Funeral Home in Monroe, Louisiana, in the 1970s ; The Morris Henry Carroll Family who owned several Businesses and Real-estate properties, in Monroe ; The Richard Barrington Family who founded the Wisner School, one of the first Schools for Colored Children in Monroe ; The Issac Burnett Family who owned and operated a local grocery store at 2800 Jackson Street, for over 30 years ; The Herman Henry Marbles Family who owned and operated Marbles Barbeque Stand & Restaurant at 1000 Breard Street in Monroe ; The Raymond O. Pierce Family who owned The Pierce Drugstore, his daughter was Mrs. Frances Pierce Reddix, and his other daughter, Mrs. Arnetta Pierce W. Amin was the first Black female Pharmacist in Monroe ; and his granddaughter is Dr. Ollibeth Reddix, just to name a few. By the way, some of the Black Pioneers mentioned in the Bi-Centennial Booklet included persons such as, Dr. Arthur Hebert Johnson, one of the first and best Black doctors in Monroe ; Businessman and Black leader, Berg Jones, for which "Burg Jones Lane Elementary School" is named for ; Charlie Ballard Sr. who was one of the first Black persons to own land at "Bristle Ridge" in Monroe, an area now known as "Pine Bayou." ; A Wealthy Black Tailor by the name of Ibra January, better known as,"January The Tailor!" ; Joseph Pendleton who owned and operated Pendleton's Texaco Service Station that was located at 1111 Desiard Street in Monroe ; and Columbus Dunn who owned and operated Dunn's Skelly Service Station as well as Dunn's Sandwich Shop that was located at 2000 Texas Avenue in Monroe. Additionally, names of local football players are in the booklet as well as other pertinent information regarding the History of the Black People of Ouachita Parish & Monroe. In closing, it is my sincerest hope that more Black People in Monroe, Louisiana would make sure that our Black Children learn & know more about "OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE," here in Ouachita Parish & Monroe, Louisiana!

"OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE" : FORGOTTEN LOUISIANA "HBCU" SCHOOLS - GILBERT ACADEMY, NEW ORLEANS UNIVERSITY, and STRAIGHT UNIVERSITY

Today, it seems that while many Black People in Louisiana are familiar with "DILLARD UNIVERSITY, located in New Orleans, Louisiana, but some of them do not know that the original students for Dillard came from 3 schools that were closed to form Dillard University. PLEASE NOTE : The merger took place between 1930 - 1934. The first school, "Gilbert Academy," was named for "William L. Gilbert, a Wealthy Planter and Philanthropist" who gave the school $5,000 to rebuild the school's campus. He later contributed another $5,000 for a building that was named Gilbert Hall, and in his will, he set up a Trust with $40,000 to the school. Interestingly, the orphanage was founded in 1863, during the American Civil War, as a school for orphaned Colored Children. A lady by the name of Louise De Mortie, a Free Woman of Color from Virginia, relocated to New Orleans to run the school. Sadly, due to financial difficulties and a hurricane that hit the school in the late 1870s, the original school had to close. However, thanks to a donation from William L. Gilbert, the school was rebuilt and reopened as Gilbert Academy. Later, the school would function as a private college preparatory school for Colored Children as well as serve as an auxillary school for New Orleans University ; The second school, "New Orleans University," opened in 1869, as "The Union Normal School." It was founded by the Freedmen's Aid Society with funds from the Methodist Episcopal Church. Sometime before 1900, the school's name was changed to New Orleans University. In 1919, New Orleans University formed an administrative merger with Gilbert Academy, but the two institutions remained in their respective locations ; The third school, "Straight University," was founded by the American Missionary Association of the Congregational Church on June 12,1868. Going along with the traditional custom of the day, Straight University received its name as recognition for "Seymour Straight, a Wealthy Cheese Manufacturer," who gave a large financial contribution to the school. Additionally, around 1915, for some unknown reason, the school's name was changed to Straight College. By the way, Notable Alumni from Gilbert Academy included Lolis Edward Elie, a Louisiana Civil Rights Lawyer, Margaret Walker, Ellis Marsalis Jr., and Robert Frederick Collins, a United States District Judge ; Notable Graduates of New Orleans University included Andrew Young, a former United Nations Ambassador, John Louis Wilson, an American Architect, Audrey “Mickey” Patterson, an Olympic Medalist, and William Talbot Handy, an American Methodist Minister ; Notable Graduates of Straight University included B.D. Robinson of Monroe, Louisiana, Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchback, Louisiana's "FIRST and ONLY" Black Governor, Fannie C. Williams, Valena C.M.Jones, Alfred Lawless, Theodore K. Lawless, Alice Dunbar Nelson, and Mary Booze, the first Negro woman to sit on the Republican National Committee.

"OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE" : MARY FRANCES ROBINSON GOINS

Well, this week's Black Pioneer hails from a family of distinguished Black Educators residing in Monroe, Louisiana. Beginning first with her parents Solomon Lee Robinson and Josephine Parks Robinson. You know, it's puzzling to me as to why some Black People in Monroe still don't know that Robinson Elementary School in Monroe, Louisiana was named for her father, Solomon Lee Robinson. Oh well, next their was her sister, Mrs. Zettie Robinson Beckwith, who was a teacher at Richwood High School for many years. Finally, there was her brother Bernie Dayton Robinson, who was a former principal of J.S. Clark School in Monroe, Louisiana, from 1953 to 1974. Along with his wife Emily Parker Robinson and their daughter, Lasandre Robinson Starks, they ran Robinson Business College for decades, in Monroe. Now, let me tell you a little more about this week's Black Pioneer, Mrs. Mary Frances Robinson Goins. She was born and raised in Richwood, Louisiana, and she attended Richwood Elementary School.After graduating from Richwood Elementary, Mary Frances enrolled at North Louisiana Industrial School, also known as Monroe Academy, which was a private school that was located near Texas Ave. & South 9th Street, in Monroe Louisiana. The school was built by the Tenth District Baptist Association to help educate local Colored Children in Monroe. From there, Mary Frances attended Monroe Colored High, and from there she went on to attend several other colleges, including Leland College and Southern University. Mary Frances's first teaching assignment was at the Old St. James School that was located on Old Columbia Road, in Ouachita Parish. Within a year or two, she moved on to teach at Cuba Elementary School in Boscoe, Louisiana. After teaching a few years at Cuba Elementary School, she became the principal of the school. From there, Mary Frances transferred to Richwood High School, and became the principal of Richwood High School. In case you all didn't already know, Mary Frances is the woman who was responsible for hiring a football coach for the Richwood football team. History proved that she made a great choice in selecting "Louisiana coaching legend & Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Coach Mackie Freeze" as the head coach of Richwood High School, back in 1954! Even though her career in education began in 1930, Mary Frances worked well into the 1950s, when she retired in 1958. Oh how fitting it was for Mary Frances to end her career as principal of Robinson Elementary School, the school named after her father, Solomon Lee Robinson! By the way, in 1959, Mary Frances organized the Monroe Branch of the National Association of University Women, where she Served as President of the organization for 3 years. Additionally, some of the other community organizations that Mary Frances worked with included The Sickle-Cell Anemia Foundation, the organization which her sister, Mrs. Vivian O. Hester, was President for many years ; the Ouachita Parish League of Women Voters ; the Monroe Chapter of the NAACP ; the #35 Order of The Eastern Star Organization ; and the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Organization, just to name a few. Sadly, after decades of championing Equal Education for her people, and fighting for Civil Rights in the State of Louisiana, Mary Frances Robinson Goins passed away on December 8, 2002. NOTE : A few years ago when the town of Richwood, Louisiana had it's New Park built that's located at 2917 Robinson Road in Richwood, the park was named, "The Mary Francis Goins Park," in her honor!

"OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE" : JANE SEREPTA DEAN

Although Jane was born into slavery in Northern Virginia, she never let it keep her from striving to better herself, her immediate family, and her Race! At the end of the American Civil War, schools for Colored Children in Northern Virginia were scarce and close to nil. Occasionally, Jane was able to attend a local school, but not for any extended period of time. Additionally, she wanted to help her parents meet the financial needs of their family. So in 1866, Jane traveled to Washington D.C. and found domestic work. She would work in D.C. during the week and take the train back home to Virginia on the weekends. During this time, her father died, but she still kept on working and sending part of her wages back to her family in Virginia. While living in Washington DC., Jane would attend the 19th Street Baptist Church, since it was near where she lived. A few months later, she decided to become a member. One day on her way to visit her family in Virginia, Jane noticed a startling trend. Many Colored People were giving up farming for jobs in the city. Two of her biggest concerns with what was happening is that the Colored People would end up getting stuck in "low-wage jobs," and that they would "succumb to alcoholism" as well as to other social ills that came with city living. To help solve what see saw as a potential problem. In 1890, Jane got together with her sister, Ella Dean, and a White lady to establish an Industrial School for educating Colored folk. The school was located in Manassas, Virginia, and the name of the school was The Manassas Industrial School for Colored Youth. Although it took about 3 years to raise all of the money and get everything in order, the school received it's charter on October 7, 1893, and officially opened the following fall! The keynote speaker at the school's Opening Dedication Ceremonies just happened to be Frederick Douglas. In addition to her acting as a financial agent for the school, Jane served on the board of directors and the executive committee. After the Industrial School was running smoothly, she decided to address the need for more church Sunday Schools for Colored People. Through her affiliation with the Industrial School and 19th Street Baptist Church, Jane learned about fundraising. Also, she began to introduce herself to several important and influential people, those who had the funds that she needed to help her build more Sunday Schools & Colored Churches. Initially, Jane began raising money to establish more Sunday Schools, which led her to raising money for more churches as well. Jane became so good at fundraising that within a matter of a few years, she had enough money to build several new churches for the Colored People in Northern Virginia. The first church that Jane help provide the funding for was Mt. Calvary Church. Next was Prosperity Chapel in Conklin Loudoun County. After more fundraising, she helped with the funding of Cartharpin Chapel. In 1909, Jane helped see that the money was raised to build Dean-Divers Chapel. Throughout her fundraising efforts, Jane received donations from noted Philanthropists such as Andrew Carnegie, a wealthy Industrialist, and other rich American Capitalist. In the Bible, there's a scripture that says a person 's gift maketh room for them, and bringeth them before great men. Well, on February 14, 1906, Jane Dean, along with several students and faculty members of the Manassas Industrial School, visited the White House to meet President Theodore Roosevelt, Booker T. Washington and several other great men and women of her day! Sadly, on May 3, 1913, after suffering a stroke, Jane Dean died, and she was buried beside Mt. Calvary Chapel, the church that she had helped found. Interestingly enough, approximately 25 years after her death, in 1938, the Manassas Industrial School formally became the only school for higher education of Negro Children in five northern Virginia counties. By the way, in 1994, 35 years after the school closed for good, the former site of the Manassas Industrial School was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The former site is now a 70-acre city park, with a memorial to Jane Dean as founder of the former school for Colored Children. Also, the elementary school next to the park, in Arlington, Virginia, was named after Jane Dean.