Category: Born or raised in Newark (high school or before)
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Mary Stilwell Edison
1855-1884 Born in Newark to Nicholas Stilwell and Margaret Crane. Nicholas was a lawyer and in 1860, the family lived in the 5th Ward, today’s Ironbound. The city directories put Nicholas at 89…
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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,…
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Bernice Schneiderman Edelcreek
1927-2015 Born and raised in Newark, Bernice Edelcreek said “Newark was the only place I ever really wanted to teach.” A physical education teacher, she was named Newark’s Teacher of the Year in…
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Evelyn Silverstein Simpson
1931-2021 Newark space planner, interior designer, teacher and potter. Graduate of Weequahic High School and Newark School of Fine and Industrial Art. Lived on Renner Ave during highschool. She tudied ceramics at the…
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Bessie Lanier Smith
1924-1966 Bessie Lanier was born in Virginia but graduated Arts High in 1942 with a major in music. She was prominent in the Clinton Hill anti-poverty activities with United Community Corporation and as…