Category: African Americans
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Rosa L Sears Scudder
c. 1852 – 28 Jan 1930 Rosa Sears was the mother of Clara Scudder, piano prodigy. She taught in the Colored School with James Baxter from at least 1870 until her marriage to…
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Julia A. Mason Voorhees
c. 1867-May 4, 1915 Only student from the Colored School to test into the High School in 1880 with an 82.7%, higher than many other students. She was the first Black student to…
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Rose S. Ray Moryck
c. 1858 -1942 Mother of Brenda Moryck. One of the first colored teachers and principals in NJ, according to her obituary in the New York Age (She hasn’t been found in the Board…
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Fanny Tuell (Faye Adams, Scruggs, Jones)
1923-2016? Pioneering R&B singer who had several chart-topping hits in the 1950s, including 1953 hit “Shake a Hand”. Active from the 1940s-1960s. Born in Newark as Fanny Tuell and lived at 588 North…
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Gloria Jones Swieringa
1938- In 1956, Gloria Jones was believed to be the first blind student ever elected to the National Honor Society, while she was at Barringer High School. She was an A student and…
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Elsie Reed Eatman
1930-2014 Born and raised in Newark, graduated East Side in 1948. She was a nurse (Martland), teacher and manager at the Newark Housing Authority. Eatman was the first president of the Pennington Court…
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Dr. Gwendolyn Goldsby Grant
1935-2018 Dr. Grant was an advice columnist at Essence Magazine for over 25 years.Dr. Grant was an advice columnist at Essence Magazine for over 25 years writing the “Sexual Health” column. Essence called…
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Modina Boyd Davis Watson
1926-1994 Hairdresser, makeup artists, assistant, secretary, stylist and “gal Friday” for Sarah Vaughan who traveled the world with Vaughan from 1950-1960. Modina met Vaughan at Arts High where they became close friends. Later,…