Kenneth P. Green Sr.’s Photographs of the 1960s and 70s.
Multiple women outside a West Oakland Methodist Church in 1967. (Kenneth P. Green Sr.)
ABOUT THE ARCHIVE (from the Website)
The Kenneth P. Green, Sr. Photography Archive seeks to preserve and present the collected work of photojournalist Kenneth P. Green, Sr. As a lifetime Oakland resident and the first African-American staff photographer for the Oakland Tribune (1968-1982), Mr. Green captured some of the most consequential social changes occurring not only in the Bay Area, but in our time. His photographs reflect the best of photojournalism and photography —a chronicle of the here and now and a collection of personal portraits that illustrate the timeless human side of the people involved. What separates the Green Archive from conventional journalistic sources are the thousands of additional images Green captured as a participant and member of a dynamic community mobilizing during turbulent years. His true artistry lies in his ability to capture the multifaceted organic expression of the African American community in the Bay Area—unrehearsed portraits of movement leaders, interactions of families, students, and community members, and the full range of people who participated in the daily work of social change.
ABOUT THE FOUNDATION
The Kenneth P. Green, Sr. Photographic Archive is maintained by Sugga’s Eye, Images, A Green Family Foundation. In 2015 the Green family opened The Kenneth P. Green, Sr. Archive to the public with the expressed purpose of preserving the rich history captured in these images and returning it to the community. Many who lived through these moments remain in our community and have shared their personal recollections and stories, further documenting the historic importance of the images.
The Foundation is also committed to engaging younger generations in confronting today’s problems through the lens of a history not often told. The stories these images tell have the power to inspire today’s teens by documenting an empowered black community working together to achieve self-determination and social change.
“Kenneth P. Green Sr. attended Laney College from 1965–67, majoring in Photography. During that time, he developed a close relationship with students and student associations at Laney, as well as Merritt College. These Oakland-based campuses had substantial student bodies of color and were both vibrant community colleges as well as centers of activism and community organizing. His images capture all facets of campus life.”
OAKLAND COMMUNITY
“Kenneth P. Green Sr. was the staff photographer at the Oakland Tribune from 1968-1982. Prior to, and even during, his tenure at the Tribune, he was a keen observer of his community. This gallery highlights a set of personal portraits that capture the multifaceted organic expression of the African American community in the Bay Area.”
Current Show
CURRENT
Toward A Black Aesthetic: Kenneth P. Green Sr.’s Photographs of the 1960s and 70s. SAN FRANCISCO PUBLIC LIBRARY, 25 January-21 April, 2024
The exhibition, titled Toward a Black Aesthetic and on view through April 21, 2024, features Green Sr.’s mostly never-before-seen images capturing Bay Area Black women’s beauty and style in the 1960s and ’70s.
Jewett Gallery – Lower Level African American Center Exhibit Space – 3rd Fl, 100 Larkin Street SF CA 94102
More Info:
The Oakland Tribune’s First Black Photojournalist – KQED
The Commemorator newspaper was a newspaper printed in South Berkeley from 1990-2013 by the Commemoration Committee for theBlack Panther Party and focused on promoting the goals of the Black Panther Party as outlined in its Ten Point Program. The newspaper served to teach the history, goals, and principles of the Black Panther Party, as well as report community news mostly related to living wage employment, violent crime, and adult literacy.
The Commemorator newspaper collection consists of 54 issues of Commemorator newspaper printed from 1990-2012. The newspaper consists of reports on the activities of the Commemoration Committee for the Black Panther Party, profiles and activities of former Black Panther Party members, community news and op-ed articles, letters to the editor, photographs, and events listings.
Fannie Wall Children’s Home and Day Nursery, an orphanage and daycare center, was established in 1918 by African-American clubwomen in West Oakland. Sometimes it is called the Fanny Wall Home.
“Charity is the Golden Chain that reaches from heaven to earth.”
from the letterhead
The Beginning
In 1914 the Northern Federation of California Colored Women’s Clubs President Fanny Wall and Financial Secretary Hettie Tilghman began working on a children’s home and day nursery to support black working mothers and care for orphaned black children. After years of planning and fundraising, the home opened in 1918 on Peralta Street in West Oakland.
“Care for the Orphans
“Shelters the Half Orphans”
“Keeps the Children of Day Workers.”
Oakland Tribune April 1920
Initially, the home was called the“Northern Federation Home and Day Nursery.” It was subsequently renamed to honor Fannie Wall who was the first woman to run the charity on a daily basis.
The Fannie Wall Children’s Homeand Day Nursery was open to children of all races, ethnicities, and religions, it was the first facility in Northern California to provide various services including housing, boarding, and daycare for black orphans.
It was located at 1215 Peralta Street in West Oakland from 1918-1928.
Fannie Wall ( 1860-1944) came to Oakland with her family in the early 1900s. She was born in Gallatin Tennessee in 1860. She was married to Archey(Archy) H. Wall (18?? -1931), was a staff sergeant in the US Army. They had two daughters, Lillian (Williams) and Florence (Murray), and one son Clifton. Archey was transferred to the Presidio in San Francisco and they ultimately ended up in Oakland. Wall was an early community activist who participated in several organizations that promoted African American economic empowerment
She served several terms as the president of the California Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs.
She co-founded the Art and Industrial Club of Oakland in 1906. Under her presidency, the club joined the Child Welfare League. Wall also help establish the “Colored Y” of Oakland.
In 1936 Archie Williams her grandson (Lillian)won a gold medal in the 400-meter run in Berlin.
Oakland Tribune Aug 8, 1936
Fannie Wall died on April 14, 1944, in her home on Telegraph Avenue. She is buried in the same plot as her husband in the San Francisco National Cemetery.
Oakland Tribune Apr 20, 1944
Linden Street Site
In 1928, having outgrown its original location they moved to a new one on Linden Street.
Fannie Wall Children’s Home, 815 Linden – 2nd site -Courtesy The African American Museum and Library Oakland
The handsome house at 815 Linden Street was purchased for $5000. The upper-middle-class house was designed by Charle Man in the 1880s. It was one of five buildings built by Frances Reichling a surveyor, who subdivided his property at the corner of Linden Street and Eighth Street. The largest of the buildings became the family home and the others were rentals.
Linden Street 1948 -African American Museum & Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)
The home could accommodate up to 20 resident children and 8-15 children for daycare services and be operated by a professional staff of over ten employees that included social workers and a volunteer psychiatrist.
The house was considered a step up from the one on Peralta Street and was across the street from the “Colored Y.”
Women and children seated around the piano at the Fannie Wall Children’s Home and Day Nursery- updated -African American Museum & Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)
New Look
The Linden Street site was given a face-lift in 1953. The “new look,” a two-room addition was used as the administrative offices, releasing the old offices and reception room for nursery classes and a future library. They provided room for 47 children.
In 1962 the Oakland Redevelopment Agency purchased the property at 815 Linden St. in order to demolish the building for the Acorn Project.
Management
“Fannie Wall is Calling”
From the annual report
The Northern Federation of Colored Women Clubs operated the Fannie Wall Home until 1941. The home was then incorporated as an independent organization. At that time it was the only home in California that primarily cared for African-American children.
The home was admitted as an agency of the Community Chest-United crusade in 1923
Fannie Wall was elected as the first president and served more than 20 years as the head of the 21 board of directors. She was succeeded by Mrs. Lydia Smith Ward who in turn was followed by Mrs. Chlora Hayes Sledge in the 1940s.
The home was managed by a Board of Directors, which largely consisted of members of the Northern Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs, a community advisory committee, and an executive director who oversaw the home’s day-to-day operations.
The Board of Directors of the Fanny Wall Home – Chlora Hays Sledge, President, center-left.Courtesy The African American Museum and Library Oakland
Girls with fans at the Fannie Wall Home, in the 1940s.Courtesy The African American Museum and Library Oakland
Fundraising
The home received funding from a variety of sources including rent from an apartment in Berkeley donated by Josephine Sutton, Community Chest, the Dreiser Trust, and through fundraising events coordinated by the home.
Ticket to chicken dinner for Fannie Wall Home Benefit-1944 -African American Museum & Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)
Fannie Wall Children’s Home and Day Nursery, Inc. charity ball program – 1946 – African American Museum & Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)- Identifier MS162_B1_F6_001
Oakland Tribune 1958
The third charity ball was held on January 19, 1948, at the Oakland Auditorium.
In 1959 a fashion show was held at Slim Jenkins to raise money for the building fund. Models showed the latest styles.
A Haven For Children
Rodeo artists Schwartz and Grodin entertain children with finger paints at the Fannie Wall Children’s Home and Day Nursery – circa 1947 -African American Museum & Library at Oakland Photograph Collection
Oakland Tribune 1949
In 1949 the Fannie Wall home had 30 children who received daycare while their parents worked. Ranging in age from 3 to 14 years. During the summer months, the children took swimming lessons at the de Fremery Park pool: enjoyed story hours at the West Oakland Branch Library, and had special excursions to other city parks and playgrounds.
Birthday Party 1946
Monthly parties were held to honor the children whose birthdays occurred during the month. They would dress up for a special dinner or an afternoon party.
Oakland Tribune Aug 8, 1948
Integrated Playground at the Fanny Wall Home, the 1950s. Courtesy The African American Museum and Library Oakland
The Final Location
In 1964 they purchased a house at 647 55th Street for $19,000. They initially struggled to obtain a license from the Social Welfare Department, and the home was not re-opened until 1967 as part of a placement program for the Alameda County Welfare Department.
Fannie Wall Children’s Home 55th Street – 3rd site Courtesy The African American Museum and Library Oakland
The home was forced to close again in 1970 for remodeling and reopened in 1978 as a child daycare facility and Head Start Center. It is now called Fannie Wall Head Start.
Group photograph of attendees at Fannie Wall Children’s Home and Day Nursery mortgage burning ceremony (first row, left-right): Annie Mae Smith, Albertine Radford, Silvia Parker, Mildred McNeal, Marge Gibson (second row, left-right): Bessie Watson, Euna Tucker, N. Adams, Lela Posey (third row, left-right): Eugene P. Lasartemay, Roy Blackburn, Kermit Scott, Harold Adams – 1981 -African American Museum & Library at Oakland Photograph Collection
Fannie Wall Pre-K Program – 647 55th Street Oakland CA
More Info:
Under Siege: Construction and Care at the Fannie Wall Children’s Home and Day Nursery – Marta Gutman – Researchgate.net
The Linden Branch Y.W.C.A. and the Filbert Street Y.M.C.A. developed programs during the 1930s that helped the Black community survive the Depression years. They emerged at a time when the national Y’s both encouraged separate branches for Black members.
Linden branch of the Y.W.C.A. in Oakland, California. Circa 1940 West Oakland Public Library, Oakland History Room.
Linden Center got its name from its location at 828 Linden Street in West Oakland. It achieved “branch” status in 1924 due to increase membership. It was then known as the Linden Branch Y.W.C.A or the Linden Y.
Young Women’s Christian Association Collection – African American Museum & Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)
The Linden Y functioned as a job placement center and welfare agency during the Depression.
Linden Street Y.W.C.A.–West Oakland Library
The branch operated as a community center, offering members religious training, recreational activities, counseling, vocational training, and music and art programs.
Linden Street Y.W.C.A. – African American Museum & Library at Oakland
Y.W.C.A. yearbook Young Women’s Christian Association of the U.S.A.–History. African American Museum & Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)
By 1938 the Linden St. Y had a membership of over 750.
For almost 25 years, the Linden Branch existed as a segregated facility. Following a national policy change in 1944, the board of the Oakland Y.W.C.A. integrated the Linden Street Y.
“to make its program available to all women and girls irrespective of race, creed or color”
The name was changed to West Oakland CenterY.W.C.A.
Group of men and women sitting on a wall in front of Linden Branch Y.W.C.A – circa the 1930s. African American Museum & Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.
Group Photo 1940 African American Museum and Library at Oakland
Linden Street was described as ” a two-story framed building with four club rooms, a reception hall, office for the business and industrial sections, and two rooms rented to accommodate working girls.”
The facility and surrounding neighborhood were razed in the early 1960s to make room for the Acorn Projects.
Linden Street Y.W.C.A. 828 Linden Street circa 1940 Young Women’s Christian Association of Oakland. African American Museum & Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)
Oakland’s Black Y.M.C.A.
Organized by Rev. L.A. Brown of the First A.M.E. Church, it opened on June 6, 1926. It was initially located at 3431 Market Street in West Oakland, and William E. Watkins, an attorney, was the first director. In 1927 the organization had a membership of 160, 134 seniors and 26 boys.
3431 Market St -Today, Google Maps
In 1929 they moved to 804 Filbert Street and became known as the Filbert Street Branch, Y.M.C.A. In 1935 they moved to 805 Linden Street and became the Eight and Linden Branch, Y.M.C.A.
The Filbert Street Y promoted a competitive sports program. Its annual track meets athletic contest attracted competitors from over the Bay Area.
Oakland Tribune March 19, 1934
They sponsored a variety of classes and activities. Members could attend courses in Bible and woodworking. A boys’ orchestra, organized by C. E. Brown, performed for the public. Some of the boys were invited to summer camp.
In 1936 Mr. Watkins resigned as the director and was replaced by R.T. Smith. The directory lists the BLACK YMCA at 836-36th Street. After the move to 36th Street, it became known as the North Oakland Branch. It probably integrated at about the same time as the Linden Branch.
Exterior of Y.M.C.A. building African Americans–California–Oakland–History–Pictorial works. source: Joseph (E. F.) Photograph Collection circa the 1930s
836 -36th Street today – Google Maps
More Info:
Oakland Heritage Alliance Newsletter – The Black Y’s of Oakland – Winter 1987-88
During the later part of the 19th Century and the beginning of the 20th Black women in Oakland established clubs and institutions to address the growing demands of the Black community.
California State Association of Colored Women’s Clubs, Inc. brochure – see here.
The Fannie Jackson Coppin Club is known as the “mother club” of California’s African American women’s club movement.
“Not failure, but low aim is the crime.“
Motto
The club was named in honor of Fannie Jackson Coppin (1837-1913), who was born a slave in Washington, D.C., and became a renowned educator.
Colored Directory 1917
At first, the club’s priority was to provide African American travelers who could not stay at segregated hotels with welcoming places to spend a night.
The club was involved with the creation of the Home for the Aged and Infirm Colored People in Oakland to provide care for elderly African Americans in the state of California.
Oakland Tribune June 26, 1959
California Club Journal 1973
Art and Industrial Club
In 1906, a branch of the Art and Industrial Club was formed and devoted itself to the arts and the “uplift of the race.”
“Deeds Not Words”
Motto
Colored Directory 1917
Mother’s Charity Club
Founded in 1907
“Lift as We Climb“
Motto
The Mother’s Charity Club was founded in 1907. They were dedicated to philanthropic endeavors. During its earliest years of activity, the Mother’s Charity Club fed and cared for many children and sick and needy persons.
Colored Directory 1917
1959-60
Elmhurst Progressive Club
The Elmhurst Progressive Club was founded in 1912 to uplift humanity.
“Progressive“
Motto
Colored Directory 1917
Oakland Tribune 1914
Imperial Art and Literary Club
The Imperial Art and Literary of Oakland were founded in 1912. They provided charity and promoted the arts and literary work.
“Love and Truth“
Motto
Colored Directory 1917
Oakland Tribune 1931
California Club Journal 1973
Self Improvement Club
Self Improvement Club of Oakland was founded in 1916. Their goal was to improve humanity and the surrounding communities.
“He who is true to God, is true to Man”
Motto
Colored Directory 1917
Rhododendron Self Cultured Club of Oakland
The Rhododendron Club was formed in the early 1950s to uplift and work for the development culture of their race. They wished for their every deed to be large and strong.
“Like Ivy we Climb–Lifting as we Climb“
Motto
Four women holding presents at the Rhododendron Club fashion show at Slim Jenkins
Exhibit at the African American History Library Oakland
Phillip Richard Springer (1874-1952) was the first black man in Oakland to own a taxicab. He was born in Barbados, in the British West Indies, and left home at age 16. At first, he operated under a jitney permit in Oakland, but he later had the license changed to a taxicab permit. By 1915, Springer’s Cab Company was well established. The Pullman Porters and West Oakland
Phillip R. Springer – date unknown
Phillip lived at various addresses in West Oakland.
1916
In the 1917 directory, he is listed at 835 Union Street with chauffeur as his occupation.
In the 1925 directory, he is listed along with his wife Edna at 879 Campbell Street with a taxi cab driver as his occupation.
From 1927 until he died in 1952, he lived at 957-35th Street with his family. The 1930 census reports that he owned his home and was a taxi cab driver at his own stand.
The Springer Home from 1927-at least 1952 957- 35th Street – Google Maps
Oakland Tribune 1952
A Family Business
Helaine Springer Head knows the taxicab business inside out. That’s because she grew up in it. Her late father, Phillip Springer, was the
“the first black man to own and operate his own taxi business – Springer Cab – in Oakland in the early 1900s”
Helene Springer Head 1975
Before Springer died in 1952, he gave his wife and daughter a crash course in running the business, as it was up to them to carry on. They ran the company out of the family home on 35th Street.
Oakland Tribune
Eventually, Helaine decided to strike out independently and acquired City Cab in 1964. She started with two cabs, and by 1975 she had three.
When Lydia Flood Jackson died at 101 in 1963, she was the oldest native of Oakland.
Sacramento Bee June 11, 1963
She was the daughter of a formerly enslaved person, the first Negro to attend an integrated Oakland public school in 1872, and became a leader of the women’s suffrage movement in 1918.
Oakland Tribune July 10, 1963
Lydia was born on June 9, 1862, at her family home in Brooklyn Township, now a part of Oakland.
She died on June 9, 1963. Services were held at the First A.M.E. Church in Oakland, California, formerly known as the Shiloh African Methodist Episcopal Church, which her parents helped found in 1858.
Her father was born into slavery in South Carolina and was freed in 1838; he traveled to California during the Gold Rush, settling in Oakland.
In 1854 her mother founded California’s first Negro School in Sacramento and was the first teacher. She founded a private school for minority groups in Alameda County in 1858 when Indians, Negroes, and Chinese were not allowed in White public schools. The school was at their home at 1334 East 15th Street in Oakland.
The Floods had a son, George, who is believed to be the first African-American child born in Alameda County. Elizabeth and Isaac Flood were among the earliest African-American families in the Oakland area and one of the most prominent and progressive.
Education
In 1871 her father, a leader of the Colored Convention, successfully fought to have Negro children admitted to public schools.
The Oakland School Board passed the following resolution:
Oakland Tribune July 10, 1963
In 1872, his daughter Lydia became the first student to attend the Swett School (later the Old Bella Vista School). Then, she attended night school at Oakland High and married John William Jackson in 1889.
Activist and Clubwoman
Lydia Flood Jackson – undated Flood Family Papers
Jackson was a member of the Native Daughter’s Club and the Fannie Jackson Coppin Club for forty-two years. Jackson was a leader in the California Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs. While a member of the Federation, she was on them to demand women’s suffrage. While addressing the organization’s 1918 state convention, she told her audience.
“Today we are standing on the threshold of a great era looking into futurity to the mid-day sun of Democracy”
She founded Flood Toilet Creams, a successful West Coast cosmetic business that manufactured toiletries, creams, and perfumes. (I wish I could find more information on this)
Carolyn Carrington pins corsage onto Lydi Flood-circa 1960s- African American Museum Oakland
Oakland Tribune June 1962
Lydia Flood Jackson was honored on her 100th birthday by the City of Oakland as their “oldest living native and daughter of the first Negro school teacher in California.”
The William M Stephens family was a successful African American family from Oakland. They owned the Stephens Restaurant, and Virginia, their daughter, won acclaim at the age of fourteen when her name Jewel City was selected for the Panama-Pacific International Exposition buildings in a competition sponsored by the San Francisco Call-Post. Virginia was the first African American woman to receive a law degree from the University of California Berkeley’sBoalt School of Law in 1929.
Stephens Restaurant at 200 East 14th Oakland Circa 1925 – photo by M.L. Cohen Stephens Family papers, MS 5, African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California.
The Stephens Family
William Stephens Circa 1901 Stephens Family papers, MS 5, African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California
William Stephens was born in 1870 in Accomack County, Virginia. He moved out to California while still a child and attended school in Oakland and San Francisco. After graduation, Stephens completed Heald College coursework before working with the Southern Pacific Railwayin 1886. Beginning as a Sleeping Car Porter, he worked his way up to a clerkship under H.E. Huntington, assistant to the company’s President.
In 1894 he lived at 1132 Linden Street in West Oakland.
In 1898, Stephens resigned from Southern Pacific and took a position with the Crocker family, traveling with them throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Through these travels, Stephens learned about the hotel and restaurant business.
In 1901, he married Pauline Logan (1874-1929) of Tehama, California.
Pauline Stephens circa 1898 Stephens Family papers, MS 5, African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California.
Pauline gave birth to one daughter, Annie Virginia (who went by Virginia), on April 7, 1903. Due to his daughter’s health problems as a young girl, Stephens resigned from his post with the Crockers and began working at an Oakland social club. He moved on from this position in 1915 to manage the clubhouse at the Hotel Del Monte Golf and Country Club in Monterey County.
Pauline died in May 1929.
Oakland Tribune May 29, 1929
William died on November 21, 1932
Oakland Tribune Dec 2, 1932
Stephens’ Restaurant
Stephens worked at the Del Monte Hotel for about nine years. It was there he learned more about the restaurant business. His first venture was known as the Joy Lunch Room. From his very first business, he was successful, and in 1927 the old Joy Lunch became known as Stephens Restaurant.
Group of men standing in front of Stephens’ Restaurant & Lunch Room at 110 East 14th circa the 1920s Stephens Family papers, MS 5, African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California
The restaurant soon became the dining rendezvous of the ultra-fashionable folk of the city and gave lucrative employment to young African American men and women.
California Eagle Dec 1930
Stephens’ Restaurant grew from small quarters into an ample establishment seating over 200 people, occupying three locations near Lake Merritt.
William Stephens (right) and employee inside Stephens’ Restaurant circa the 1920s Stephens Family papers, MS 5, African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California.
The restaurant enjoyed great success during the 1920s and 1930s and was usually filled to capacity. Stephens took great delight in employing African American high school and college students so they could earn money for their education.
Oakland Tribune 1927
The final location of the restaurant was 200 East 14th (now International Blvd) at 2nd Ave and was in business until 1938 when Narcisi’s Italian Restaurant opened.
Stephens Cocktail Lounge
In 1936 it was announced that the restaurant added a cocktail lounge and was under the management of George Devant and Charles Simpson (Stephens’s nephew.) Charles inherited the recipes that made the restaurant famous.
Known to gourmets for years as the
“home of real Southern cooking”
Oakland Tribune Mar 27, 1936
Oakland Tribune 1936
Virginia Stephens
Born in Oakland on April 7, 1903, Annie Virginia Stephens was the only child of William and Paul. She attended public schools in Oakland until the family moved to Pacific Grove, where she graduated from high school.
In 1915 the San Francisco Call-Post held a naming contest for the buildings within the Panama-Pacific International Exposition – Virginia won the competition (1300 titles were submitted) when her name “Jewel City” was selected; she was twelve at the time.
“We regret to say that when it was discovered that Miss Stephens had colored blood there was a sudden silence on the part of the press and the recognition ever given her was a season ticket to the grounds.”
Virginia attended the University of California at Berkeley and received a bachelor’s degree in science in 1924.
While at Berkeley, Virginia and Ida L. Jackson was charter members Rho Chapter in 1921 and Alpha Nu Omega, a graduate chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha. These were among the first Greek sororities for African American women west of the Mississippi.
Members of Rho Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, University of California, Berkeley (left-right): Virginia Stephens, Oreatheal Richardson, Myrtle Price (in back), Ida Jackson (sorority president), Talma Brooks, and Ruby Jefferson (1921), African American Museum and Library at Oakland.
Encouraged by her father to attend law school, she enrolled in the Boalt School of Law at UC Berkeley and earned a degree in 19 9. At that time, she was only the second woman to receive a law degree from the school and the first African American woman to complete the progr m. Virginia passed the California Bar in the same year, the first African American female Attorney in California.
California Eagle 1930
Virginia married attorney George Coker (1906-1970) The Cokers helped tutor African American students for the State bar exams They moved to Virginia and maintained a private law practice there for almost a decade.
In 1939 after working in private practice for ten years, they moved back to California, settling in Sacramento. Virginia was appointed Attorney in the State Office of the Legislature Council in Sacramento in May 1939 In this capacity, she helped with drafting and amending legislative bills and worked under four different legislative councils:
Upon her retirement in 1966, Virginia attained the position of Deputy of the Indexing Section Virginia died in Sacramento at 83 on February 11, 1986.
Royal Edward Towns (February 10, 1899–July 23, 1990) was one of the first African American firefighters in Oakland. He was born in Oakland in 1899.
Royal E. Towns
He joined the OFD in 1927 and was assigned to Engine Company No. 22, a segregated firehouse in West Oakland. The station is located at 3320 Magnolia Street. He helped train many other black applicants to pass the test and was a scoutmaster for a Boy Scout troop that included Sam Golden, who became the first African American fire chief in Oakland.
The exterior of Engine No 22 firehouse
Royal Towns was the 11th black Oakland fireman hired in 1927. They didn’t employ the 12th for another 15 years.
Royal E. Towns (center) and his colleagues with Engine Company No. 22 of the racially segregated Oakland Fire Department. (1943)
Royal E. Towns and his colleagues with Engine Company No. 22 of the racially segregated Oakland Fire Department. (1943)
In 1971 there were only 35 black firefighters.
Towns became the first to be promoted in the OFD. He became a chief operator in 1941 and retired as a lieutenant in 1962.
Royal Towns on the left with Oakland firefighters standing in front of fire engine no. 22 – Circa 1943
Royal Towns was instrumental in helping desegregate the fire department. He helped train many other black applicants to pass the fire department test.
Personal Life
Royal Towns was born in Oakland on February 10, 1899, to William Towns and Elizabeth Towns.
Towns married Lucille Dennis on May 26, 1920. Together they had three children. The family lived in various locations within Oakland.
The photos are courtesy of the Royal E. Towns papers, MS 26, African American Museum and Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California. Photos at Calisphere
A special edition of my blog in honor of Black History Month and a wonderful man.
Calvin Simmons Conductor
I was lucky enough to know Clavin Simmons personally. He was the conductor of the Oakland Symphony when I worked there.
Let me back up a little bit. My mom Sarah Chambers started working at the Oakland Symphony in 1977 when I was still in high school. She began as the receptionist and worked her way up the ladder to the Director of Education.
SF Examiner January 28, 1985
She would sign me up during the summer to hand out flyers at lunchtime events. One of our board members would do the same with her daughter Libby Schaff was the Mayor of Oakland from 2015-2023.
I was hired in 1980 as the receptionist and worked my way up the ladder to Box Office/Marketing Assistant. We both worked for the Symphony until September 1986, when they filed for bankruptcy.
Before the Oakland Symphony
Calvin was born in San Francisco in 1950 to Henry Calvin and Mattie Pearl Simmons.
Music was a part of his life from the beginning. He learned how to play the piano from his Mother.
Balboa High School Yearbook 1968Balboa High School Yearbook 1968
Calvin attended Balboa High School in San Francisco, where he was a member of the orchestra.
“did tons of conducting with school orchestra.”
Madi Bacon
SF Examiner September 19, 1969
The Maestro Kid
He was the assistant conductor with the San Francisco Operafrom 1972 to 1975, winning the Kurt Herbert Adler Award.
He remained active at the San Francisco Opera for all his adult life, supporting General Director Kurt Herbert Adler, first as a repetiteur and then as a member of the conducting staff. He made his formal debut conducting Giacomo Puccini’s La Bohème with Ileana Cotrubas. His later work on a production of Dmitri Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District drew national attention.
In 1979 he conducted the premiere of Menotti’s La Loca in San Diego.
He made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera, conducting Engelbert Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, returning the following year. He was on the musical staff at Glyndebourne from 1974 to 1978.
Oakland Symphony
with Harold Lawrence, manager Oakland Symphony circa 1978
Simmons became musical director of the Oakland Symphony Orchestra at the age of 28 in 1978. He was one of the early African-American conductors of a major orchestra.
His debut audition was in early 1978.
SF Examiner April 16, 1978
SF Examiner April 23, 1978
A Maestro Wordless – September 1978
SF Examiner September 26, 1978
Windsor Star January 22, 1982
Calvin joined the Youth Orchestra tour in July 1982
Calvin July 1982 Oakland Symphony Picnic – Photo by Bill Londagin
On Sunday, August 22, 1982, I was next door helping my husband, who was repairing our neighbor’s roof. All of a sudden, my mom screams out the window that Calvin has died. Such a sad day. It took another week to find his body. It was such a loss to Oakland and the music world. He was on his way to greatness.
SF Examiner August 23, 1982
Calvin was visiting friends in Upper State New York. Connery Pond was where he went a lot to unwind and regroup. While waiting for dinner, Calvin took a canoe ride out in the pond. He was by himself about 150 feet from the shore; he was a good swimmer. A woman was taking pictures of the sunset from the beach. She pointed her camera towards Calvin, and he must have noticed that, and being the ham he was, he stood up to pose. He then fell into the water.
SF Examiner August 23, 1982
Philadelphia Daily News August 24, 1982
A Final Tribute
There was a memorial service on September 07, 1982, at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco; more than 2200 people attended.
There was a memorial concert on September 20, 1982, at the Paramount Theatre.
