"OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE" : MARYLAND BROOKS, "The Colored Cattle King" & Meat Grocer of Ouachita & Morehouse Parish - Part Two of a Two-Part Series.

"OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE" : Although, Maryland Brooks had customers in Ouachita and Morehouse Parishes, his home was located here in Monroe, Louisiana, and his address was listed as 2305 Breard Street. Out of curiosity, I drove by the address the other day, his home was located right near the corner of North 23rd Street and Breard Street, where North 23rd runs into Washington Street. The lot is now overgrown with grass, trees, and bushes. Hopefully, Monroe City officials will purchase the land and have a "MARKER" placed at his home address, at 2305 Breard, similar to the "MARKER" that will be placed at the former "Mount Nebo Rosenwald Elementary School" that was located on the corner of Jackson Street and Thomas Street in Monroe. Along with being in the public eye as a Businessman, Maryland Brooks was also involved in the community through the St.James M.E. Church and a Local Mason Lodge. He was a member of the St. James M.E. Church, the church was located on the corner of North 14 & Adams Street, and the pastor was Rev. G. C. Hayward. Maryland was connected with the St. James Church for over 40 years. Through the years, he held several positions in the church including, President of the Trustee Board, Superintendent of Sunday School, and Class Leader. Also, Maryland was a member of Lodge No.# 9 A.F.M., in Monroe, for more than 30 years. Motivational speaker Jim Rohn says that we are the average of the five people we spend the most time with. Well, here are five of the people that Maryland spent much of his time with, Dr. J.C. Roy and Dr. J.T. Miller, the doctors who had the Miller-Roy Building built on Desiard St, J.A. Beckwith, Isom Moore, and Richard "Daddy" Burns. For the record, Maryland and all these other men were born during "THE FORGOTTEN RECONSTRUCTION PERIOD IN LOUISIANA!" By the way, all of these men were in attendance at Maryland's funeral, with the exception of Dr. John Tildon Miller. Dr. Miller had died of a heart attack the previous year, on July 5,1935. Other notable Colored Men at his funeral who had witnessed Maryland's rise in society from "Maryland the Kid Butcher" to become "Maryland the Meat Mogul" were, Rev. W.W. Hill, Rev. L.A. Jackson, James Roland, Southern Rainey, Arthur Smith and Kenneth Graham. Although these Colored Men have been forgotten,"they were the ones who helped pave the way for every Black person living in Monroe, Louisiana today!" Near the end of the funeral service, Miss Zula Mae Corbin read a resolution from the City Wide Ushers. Another thing that stood out at his funeral, was when Rev. G.C. Hayward issued an emotional and emphatic challenge to the Young Colored Males of Ouachita & Morehouse Parishes that were in attendance. His challenge to them was to "PRODUCE ANOTHER COLORED MAN LIKE MARYLAND BROOKS!" In closing, I would like to remind everyone in Monroe that we are facing a similar challenge today, and that challenge is to "PRODUCE MORE BLACK MEN LIKE MARYLAND BROOKS and THE BLACK MEN WHO WERE AT HIS FUNERAL!"