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Ellen C. King
c. 1839-1936 Daughter of Mary Thompson King and sister of Harriet King Brown. Born at 70 Warren Street and lived there most of her life. Went to North Carolina after…
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Esther Newman
c. 1883 – 1901 First woman graduate of the NJ College of Pharmacy along with Emma Egge. Graduated in April and died in August due to appendicitis after an operation.…
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Margaret Douglas Haines
1884-1966 Lifelong resident of Newark. Member of the General Assembly 1949-1953. Taught at Garfield and Avon Ave Schools. Canteen worker and ambulance driver in WWI. Signal corps driver and USO…
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Dorthann Williams Kirk
1938- One of the first people hired by Newark’s jazz station WBGO and became the face of and a fierce advocate for the station. She served as Director of Community…
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Willie Belle Hooper
1906-1999 Born in Georgia and attended school, including getting a teaching certificate in Florence, S.C, after which she taught in several rural schools. According to her daughter, Newark would not…
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Asimina Zois
1909-1987 Arrived in Newark at age 7 from Greece. She began sending care packages back to her native village in Greece after WWII, and later sent packages to Vietnam servicemen…
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Anna Lois Russ Jones
1911-1987 Mother of Amiri Baraka. Born in Alabama, lived in Newark from 1926. Attended Tuskegee, Fisk, and Shaw College. Administrator for Community Hospital for many years. Community relations specialist for…
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Sarah Catherine Howard Johnson
1907-1993 One of the first African American nurses in the Visiting Nurses Association of Newark, where she worked from 1930-1950. Nurse at Hawkins Street School from 1965-1977. Received degrees from…
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Maggie Clay Beckett
c. 1892-1972 Founded the James H. Beckett funeral home with her husband. President of the New Jersey State Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs 1943-1947, as well as Vice President. She…
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