‘A living tribute’
Black pioneers who helped shape Marion County are honored in the newly dedicated Heritage Trail Park in West Ocala.
Narvella Haynes, left, and Ruth Reed, right, hug each other during the Heritage Trail Park ribbon cutting ceremony on West Silver Springs Boulevard in Ocala, Fla. on Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2024.
Heritage Trail Park on West Silver Springs Boulevard in Ocala, which pays tribute to pioneers and leaders from the African American community who helped mold Marion County, was formally opened with a special ceremony on Sept. 3.
The park, which stretches along the north side of State Road 40 from Northwest 9th Avenue to Northwest 11th Avenue, has a curved sidewalk lined by eight, 48-inch by 96-inch weather resistant art panels with portraits of honorees by local artist Charles Eady.
Sixteen, 12-inch by 18-inch plaques that describe the accomplishments and contributions of additional local honorees are placed on stands along the two-block Heritage Trail.
Ocala City councilman Ire Bethea welcomed attendees to the event.
“This has been a long time coming. The honorees are people who fought for justice, equality and inclusion,” he said.
Narvella Haynes of Ocala said the history depicted is “critical to know.”
The Heritage Trial was “conceptualized in 2018 by the Community Redevelopment Agency’s (CRA) West Ocala Advisory Committee. The park boasts a decorative sidewalk, public art, and lush landscaping,” according to a city of Ocala press release.
City Manager Pete Lee called the ribbon cutting event a “great day” and said the park honors history that should not be forgotten.
Ocala Mayor Ben Marciano told those gathered that the Heritage Trail is a “living tribute to those who shaped West Ocala.”
Dr. N.H. Jones, a pioneering Black physician and namesake of a local elementary school, is depicted in one of the art panels, which are clearly visible off the shoulder of West Silver Springs Boulevard (State Road 40).
According to a biography on the Marion County Public Schools website, Jones was born in 1897, earned his medical degree in 1926, and began medical practice on West Broadway (Street) in 1928.
“Dr. Jones was the first Black doctor to become a staff physician at Munroe Memorial Hospital,” the biography states.
Carolyn Adams, who, with her late husband, Arthur, were the prime movers in establishing the Estella Byrd Whitman Community Health Center in West Ocala, was one of the attendees at the event.
“He delivered me,” Adams, 77, said as she looked at Jones’ art panel.
Adams served as a member on the West Ocala Community Redevelopment Agency Advisory Committee.
A number of family members, neighbors and friends of the honorees also gathered at the new park.
The honorees were educators, such as Thelma Parker, or religious leaders like Deborah Dorothy Brown, or businesspersons like Pearl Jackson, known as “Miss Pearl,” who served soul food to people from all walks of life at her downtown cafe.
Dr. Richard Hughes is honored with an art panel.
“In 1925, Dr. R.S. Hughes opened the American National Thrift Association Hospital, which was the only facility to treat African Americans for hundreds of miles,” according to the city’s website.
The hospital was located on West Broadway near Pine Avenue. A roadside historical marker has been placed at the site.
The Rev. Richard Howard of New Saint Mary’s Missionary Baptist Church said the history outlined at the Heritage Trail is “very important for the community.”
“I wish all the children could come see this,” he said.
Cherrietta Prince, Nene McIntosh and Gwen King were among those who attended the event. U.S. Army veteran Kenneth Vernon came to honor family members. Margaret Spivey said she knew some of the honorees and enjoyed a close-up look at the art panels and plaques. Attendees remarked on the expressive eyes on the art panel portraits.
Eady, a 20-year resident of Ocala and art teacher at a Belleview High School, told the gathering that the art panels took about three weeks each to complete and that acrylic paint was used for durability.
“I was astonished,” Eady said about learning about his subjects’ work and accomplishments as he studied for the paintings.
Eady’s “The Unscene South,” a series of paintings depicting Blacks living as free people during the time of slavery, was on display at the Appleton Museum of Art in Ocala earlier this year.
A biography of Eady on the museum website states that the South Carolina native was one of five recipients of the State Teaching Artist Residency in 2022 and his work “Anna” garnered the Grand Prize at the 2021 ArtFields event in Lake City, South Carolina.
Local photographer and author Cynthia Wilson-Graham was on the selection committee subcommittee for the honorees. She said the selection criteria included choosing people who made a “significant contribution” to the community and that the process took several years.
Wilson-Graham found the portraits on the art panels very expressive. She said the art panel depicting Pickney Woodbury, described as a “community activist,” especially reached out to her.
Wilson-Graham authored “The LONG Journey,” a biography of Austin Long, who passed away in 2017 at age 92. Long, a west Ocala businessman and community advocate, helped many in the area around his store when they needed groceries and other essentials.
An amazon.com post about the book states that Long “forged a pathway for many people to follow. His entrepreneurial spirit has helped him become the person that he is, although he received only an elementary school education.” The book is available through the website.
Whitfield and Loretta Jenkins, both honored with plaques on the Heritage Trail, attended the event. Both have served as president the Marion County Chapter of the NAACP, Whitfield in the 1980s and 1990s, according to his plaque. He was recognized last year by the local chapter of the NAACP as the “Freedom Fighter of the Century.” The husband and wife were both moved Tuesday by the Heritage Trail tribute.
Edward D. Davis Sr. was a “hero of the Florida civil rights movement, specifically fighting for equality for Black students and teachers,” according to a plaque placed in his honor.
“As president of the all-Black Florida State Teachers Association, and principal of Howard Academy, he led a successful lawsuit for equal pay during World War II; but Davis, along with other activists, were fired from their jobs. Davis never returned to education but founded the Florida Voters League …,” the plaque states in part. The plaque indicates Davis was president of Central Life Insurance.
Davis, who passed away in 1989, has been inducted into the Florida Civil Rights Hall of Fame.
Daniel Banks of Ocala is Davis’ grandson.
“I’m so glad Ocala is finally honoring his contributions on the very street where he ran his business,” Banks wrote in part in a text.
One plaque honors Civil Rights leader Rev. Frank G. Pinkston Sr., a local pastor who served as president of the Marion County Chapter of the NAACP in 1963.
Pinkston is hailed on the plaque as the “Black Liberator of Marion County,” who, along with Sonny and Charles Washington, “started the local Civil Rights movement” with “secret meetings” to gather NAACP members.
He was not deterred by threats to himself or his family and, according to published reports, members of the community, under the guise of a “hunting and fishing club,” provided armed security.
Pinkston, born in 1936, passed away in 1973.
Barbara Brooks, chair of the West Ocala Community Redevelopment Agency Advisory Committee, was one of the speakers at the ceremony.
“This is a great day in the neighborhood,” she said. She touched on areas adjacent to the trail that are in need of storm damage repair or need improvement, which should be “beautiful.”
Ruth Reed, vice chair of the advisory committee, and Carolyn Adams, also spoke at the ceremony. U.S. Representative Kat Cammack sent a spokesperson.
Ocala natives Melissa Tolbert and Renee Graham, cousins and both registered nurses, came to see the Heritage Trail and the plaque honoring their grandparents, William B. and Dorothy (McMillian) Vernon.
William B. Vernon, a World War II U.S. Army veteran, was involved in constructing numerous commercial buildings throughout Marion County, according to the plaque. He passed away in 2017. Dorothy Vernon, on another plaque, is described as a “Civil Rights advocate” and recipient of the Frank G. Pinkston Humanitarian Award. She passed away in 2019.
“We honor them with all we do … and it is nice to see the city honor their contributions,” Tolbert said.
To learn more, go to ocalafl.gov
Art panels:
Pinkney Woodbury
Dr. N.H. Jones
Austin Long
Dr. Robert Hughes
Lillian Bryant
Dr. James Ponder
Miss Pearl Jackson
Dr. Thomas Lloyd
Plaques:
Rev. Dr. O.V. Pinkston
Margaret Ann Thomas
Edward D. Davis Sr.
Dr. Deborah Dorothy Brown
Mattie Shaw Cohens
J.D. McDuffy
Loretta P. Jenkins
Judge James Dean
William Vernon
Whitfield Jenkins
Dr. Pamela Lewin
Reuben S. Mitchel
Dorothy Vernon
Thelma M. Parker
Rev. Frank G. Pinkston Sr.
Rev. Dr. Eugene Broxton
Source: City of Ocala:
Support community journalism
The first goal of the Ocala Gazette is to deliver trustworthy local journalism so corruption, misinformation and abuse are not hidden from the public or unchallenged.
