Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings is perhaps underappreciated outside Florida for her literary legacy and also not sufficiently understood even in the Sunshine State. Who was she, really? It’s a question author Ann McCutchan answers brilliantly in her new biography of Rawlings.
Olga Mitchell, known for her passion in exploring family history and its relationship to Eatonville, passed away last month at 95. Eatonville is perhaps the most storied historic community in Central Florida because of its most famous daughter, Zora Neale Hurston. Eatonville’s eldest elder, Ella Augusta Johnson Dinkins, died at 102 on Nov. 29. Dinkins had not only known Hurston but had helped initiate the annual festival founded in Hurston’s name in 1990. The passing of these elders brings reminders of how important they, and others like them, have been in preserving our history.
Tuesday, December 15, 2020 by Renata Sago (NPR)
Ella Augusta Johnson Dinkins, posing in a garden, one of her favorite places.
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Ella Augusta Johnson Dinkins was the oldest resident of Eatonville, Fla., one of the oldest Black incorporated towns. She died last month at home in her sleep or, as town residents put it, “on her own terms.” She was 102.
Dinkins was a fiery elder who loved God, gardening, and a good town committee meeting. She also knew the Harlem Renaissance writer Zora Neale Hurston and helped initiate the festival that has brought more than a million people to the area since its start in 1990.
Lonnie Graham
Originally published on December 14, 2020 10:03 am
Ella Augusta Johnson Dinkins was the oldest resident of Eatonville, Fla., one of the oldest Black incorporated towns. She died last month at home in her sleep or, as town residents put it, on her own terms. She was 102.
Dinkins was a fiery elder who loved God, gardening, and a good town committee meeting. She also knew the Harlem Renaissance writer Zora Neale Hurston and helped initiate the festival that has brought more than a million people to the area since its start in 1990.
She would tell you in a second that the town barely had a light, and that Hurston, its most famous resident, was telling the truth when she described Eatonville as a city of five lakes, three croquet courts, 300 brown skins, 300 good swimmers, plenty of guavas, two schools, and no jailhouse.
Ella Augusta Johnson Dinkins, Champion Of Zora Neale Hurston s Hometown, Dies At 102 – Nation & World News wuft.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from wuft.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.