Plainfield Black History Reference
A Cross-Collection Finding Aid for Archival Resources at Plainfield Public Library
Since the city’s beginning, Black residents have influenced the building and development of Plainfield. Although some people may have been brought here as slaves, many more moved or migrated here to build families, homes, and businesses. Both men and women worked in a myriad of fields. There were numerous social, religious, and professional organizations as well. Plainfield boasts several important Black firsts for New Jersey in these fields, with notable accomplishments in education and athletics. To be sure, our City has produced brilliant minds, talented artists, and influential activists. This finding aid presents a starting point for further research of Plainfield’s Black history, and it will be updated on an ongoing basis. A printable brochure of Plainfield Black History highlights is available.“May We Make Them Proud” by Alonzo Adams
Donated by Adams to the Library in 2011.
Working in Plainfield in the early 1900s
Black residents were employed in a wide range of occupations. In the 1915 Plainfield City Directory Black residents are indicated with the note, “(col)” beside their names. This was not the case in all the directories. There are listings for ashmen, bakers, barbers, blacksmiths, bottlers, butlers, caretakers, carpenters, carriers, chauffeurs, chefs, chimney cleaners, clerks, coachmen, contractors, cooks, coremakers, craneman, dentists (and dentist assistants), domestics, dress makers, drivers, electricians, elevator men, expressmen (movers), farmers, gardeners, grocers, hod carriers, hostlers (and stablemen), janitors, laborers, lab workers, laundresses, machinists, maids, managers, manicurists, masons, messengers, millers, newsdealers, nurses, painters, physicians, porters, seamstresses, shoemakers, stonecutters, tailors, teachers, teamsters, toolmakers, toolworkers, trainers, truckmen, undertakers, waiters, watchmen, and yardmen.
There are also listings for unusual occupations such as “Scalp Specialist,” and “Scavenger.”
Roscoe Wormley was a dentist, as was Preston A. Clay. There were two Black physicians at that time – Jefferson Anderson and Fred Durrah. Chase M. Holmes and Lottie Kearney were teachers.
Learn more about the Plainfield City Directories.
Image: Dr. Jefferson C. Anderson campaigns for Coroner of Union County [Daily Press, October 24, 1903, page 1]
Black-Owned Businesses in the early 1900s
Several women were dressmakers. Sadie Brown, Maggie Cobbs, Lizzie Green, Alice Maynard, and Mary Sweeney all ran their businesses from out of their homes. Robert Jones owned a grocery on East 3rd Street, and William Wright ran one on Plainfield Avenue. Edward Byers ran a real estate business. Harvey Williams and William White each owned and ran a restaurant, on Madison Avenue and North Avenue, respectively. There were at least four business partnerships. These were Brown & Hill Barbers and Hall & Willis Taxi Cabs on North Avenue, Quinn Bros. (coal) on West 4th Street, and Rogers & Bolling Barbers on Madison Avenue; the last was located in the same building as William Harvey’s restaurant at 115 Madison Avenue.
Firsts in Civil Service
Back in the 1880s, Nixon Morris (left image), messenger, became the first Black post office employee in Plainfield; in 1915 Edward Urquart became the first Black postal carrier (a “regular” employee; “carrier”).
James A. Saunders (right image) was the town’s first Black police officer, and also the treasurer of the city’s Emancipation Day committee in 1891. He was a member of the force from 1895 to 1917. Laurence A. Watson Jr. was the first Black police officer to be assigned to the detective bureau in 1966. Cecil Allen became the first Black chief of the Fire Department in 2004; he left in 2011. He gave 39 years of service to the department, and was a P.H.S. graduate and Marine Corps veteran.
The first Black citizen to be elected to the Plainfield Common Council was dentist, Dr. James H. Reid in 1956. Dr. Reid was the first Black person to be elected as a councilman in any city in the United States! The first Black woman to be elected to the Council was Nellie F. Suratt in 1972; she was also the first Black person to serve as Council President in 1975. Gwen Crews was the first Black Republican woman to be elected to a seat. Ernestine Forbes was the first woman and first Black lawyer to be appointed as attorney for the City’s Planning Board in 1982 – and she may have been the first Black woman to practice law in Plainfield. The first Black woman to hold the post of City Administrator was Jewel Thompson-Chin in 1990.
William T. Merritt was the first Black candidate to ever win a citywide election in 1978 – the same year that for the first time Black councilors held the majority of seats. Richard Taylor was the first Black Democratic party chairman. Everett C. Latimore was the City’s first Black mayor (1982-1984) and Sharon Robinson-Briggs was the first woman of any race to be elected Mayor (2006-2013).
Firsts in Education
Not only was Plainfield a first in education for the state of New Jersey, the city holds several firsts specifically for Black Americans. Maude (Minnie) Benton Mitchell was the first Black graduate of Plainfield High School in 1888; Alfred Presto White was the first Black, male graduate of P.H.S. Anna Broadnax was the first Black female valedictorian in 1904. James Malcolm (Mack) Davis was the first Black athlete at P.H.S. His classmates voted him the Biggest Flirt in 1906! Gloria Carpenter (left image) was the first Black teacher in a public school in Plainfield in 1944; she taught at the Washington School. Marshall Brown was the first Black head coach of any high school in New Jersey in 1968! Russell Carpenter, Gloria’s brother, was the first Black Superintendent of Schools in Plainfield in 1969. Dr. Richard F. Neblett was the first Black citizen to be appointed to the Plainfield Board of Education in 1963 and then elected as President in 1965. He served as President again in 1973. M. Elizabeth Chitty was the first Black woman president of the Board of Education.