A Quinn Jones Museum and Cultural Center and Matheson History Museum celebrate Black education alligator.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from alligator.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The new namesake of one of Gainesville’s oldest schools
A new, modern sign was erected last fall outside of one of Gainesville’s oldest public schools, replacing another sign bearing the name of a Confederate brigadier general. The former J. J. Finley Elementary School, which served White students during segregation, is now named for a third generation Gainesvillian, Carolyn Beatrice Parker, whose paternal grandmother was enslaved.
Carolyn Beatrice Parker was the granddaughter of Eliza Caro, who moved to Gainesville sometime after she was emancipated in 1865. Parker’s niece and namesake, Leslie Carolyn (Cosby) Edwards, said Caro was among the founding members of Mt. Pleasant United Methodist Church, which was established in 1867. Edwards, a retired professor of literature, communication and cultural studies at SUNY Empire State College, remembers her aunt as a determined woman. The eldest of seven children born to Dr. Julius A. Parker and Delia M. Parker, Carolyn Parker playe
With One School Name Change Down, Gainesville Activists Push To Topple Other Confederate Reminders 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.