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Lem See Wong
1880-? Mrs. Willie Hong, was called “the only Chinese woman in the city” in 1909 and “the only woman in Chinatown” in 1911. The Star Eagle wrote, “She is very nice indeed. Mrs. Theresa E. Burnett…visits her every week and teachers her the English language and Christian principles.” Willie Hong was sometimes called the “mayor”…
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Corrina Pitters Kay-Williams
1924-1994 Corrina Kay-Williams was born to Jamaican parents in East Orange. She served as an Essex County freeholder, East Orange councilwomen and educator in Newark, retiring as Vice Principal of Central High. “She left a legacy that was very hard to fill”, said the Freeholder President Sarah Bost. “You looked up to people like her,”…
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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 David Scudder in 1873 and is still listed under her maiden name as a teacher in the 1874 city directory. Rosa’s sister…
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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 graduate from the High school, directly from the Colored School, since 1877. When she graduated in 1884, the Newark News wrote, “among…
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Clara Woodward Greene
c. 1846 – Jan 31, 1904 Born about 1846 in New England, Clara W. Greene was vice principal of Newark High School (now Barringer), or Principal/Head of the Female Department, for 25 years, which was only integrated into the Male Department around 1899. According to her obituary, she revolutionized the curriculum of the High School,…
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Eliza A. Chase
c. 1829-2 Jan 1880 First principal of the Female Department of Newark High School in 1855. The 1938 Barringer yearbook wrote, “an inspiration to all her students when high school and college education for women was in its infancy”. She had poetry and short stories published, including in the Daily Advertiser. Reichle writes, “Eliza A.…
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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 of Education Reports for Newark, so where Rose taught is a mystery with research in progress). She married John Moryck, a saloon…
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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 11th Street through at least 1950 when she was married to Thomas Scruggs. She performed Gospel / religious music in Newark with…
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Debra Holmes
1953- Holmes was one of the first women in NJ to graduate as a Journeyman, Machinist, Tool & Die Maker / Mechanical Engineer. She worked at Westinghouse and then Anhueser-Busch in Newark, where she was the only female Machinist and Mechanical Tech Planner in the history of the company. Holmes worked at Anhueser-Busch for 32…
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Leah Adele Neuhut
1877-1908 Born to a rabbi in Newark, blind from birth and deaf from 1904, she was called, “one of the most remarkable blind women in the country”. Neuhut a reputation as a pianist, author, and speaker. Advocated on behalf of the blind to the state government. She also advocated for a library for the blind…