WWII Soldiers Making a New Year’s Meal

In honor of Monday's upcoming Veterans Day, I give you this photo, which includes a Monroe soldier named Arzellous Howard: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/resource/fsa.8e02776/ . I think the order is wrong and the names read from left to right. Mr. Howard is the one on the far right. Thanks to all who have served, especially those of the … Continue reading WWII Soldiers Making a New Year’s Meal →

Teachers of Monroe Colored High School – 1944

There are some heavy hitting names in this photo! Those identified starting in the bottom row: Unknown, Katie Black Williams, Mrs. McClanahan, Henry Carroll (principal of the school), Clara Andrews, Henrietta Windham Johnson, Unknown. Second Row: B.D. Robinson, Zerita Thompson, Ruby Gilbreath, Unknown, Unknown, Unknown, George Mills. Third Row: Unknown, Mary Louise Coleman, Unknown, Eula … Continue reading Teachers of Monroe Colored High School – 1944 →

Photos of Mulberry Grove and Layton Castle

I recently went back to the Layton Castle website. They have recently added photos of the building before and after it was turned into a castle. You can see them here: https://www.laytoncastle.com/history/blog-post-title-one-gczzx-pa49b I encourage you to take a thorough look through their webpages. Particularly interesting is a blog post earlier this year, detailing their project … Continue reading Photos of Mulberry Grove and Layton Castle →

A Former Enslaved Person Passes Away

I have a feeling I am going to be sharing quite a few things from the new Willis collection! One of the things that was found was a newspaper clipping detailing the death of a former enslaved person who was living with the Willis family. There is no citation with the clipping, but it seems … Continue reading A Former Enslaved Person Passes Away →

St. James Methodist Church

Monroe Colored High School Class of 1929

You can see Professor M.J. Foster in front in the black cap and gown. The school building was fairly new. One of the ladies in this class is Mrs. Ollie Mae Burns, a pioneer trailblazer in the library field. A branch of the Ouachita Parish Public Library is named for her.

The Voter Purge of 1956

Imagine getting a notice from the Voter's Registration Office that there is something wrong with your voting registration and you need to come in to the office at the courthouse within ten days and rectify it. You then get to the courthouse and find a line of people out the door and down the sidewalk. … Continue reading The Voter Purge of 1956 →

Women Who Lead the Way in Ouachita Parish

I was asked to write an article about some of the women who made history in Ouachita Parish. I chose Louisa Lamy McGuire, Eliza Pinkston and Mary Goss. You can read the article here: https://www.monroe-westmonroe.org/blog/women-who-led-the-way-in-ouachita-parish

A Monroe Tuskegee Airman

Did you know one of the Tuskegee airmen was from Monroe? You would if you had read an article in the Monroe Free Press back in February 2022! James Weldon Mason was born in Monroe on 14 September 1915 to John H. and Valena Mason. By the 1940 draft he was in Atlanta, GA. He … Continue reading A Monroe Tuskegee Airman →

The Ritz Theater

The below photo shows a rare view of the old Ritz theater, which was the only African American theater in town during segregation. It was located at 911 DeSiard street, right down from the Miller-Roy and next to Pierce's Pharmacy.