🇺🇸 Black History is American History

Almost 71 years ago (June 5th), mom graduated from Stanton High School in Jacksonville, FL. Under her photo in The Stantonian Yearbook, it notes her nickname was Pudding, her hobby was Reading, her vocation was Nurse Training, and she was a member of the Drill Team.

The school was built in 1868 and named after Edwin M. Stanton, President Abraham Lincoln's second Secretary of War. He was an ardent champion of human rights and an advocate of free school education for Negro boys and girls. At that time, it was the second school for black children in the entire state of Florida.

The original school mascot was 'The Blue Devil'. Because the wooden building was destroyed by fire and rebuilt twice in 1882 and 1902, 'The Phoenix Rising From Ashes' was later adopted as a second mascot. Both mascots are used today--The Blue Devil for sports and other activities, and The Phoenix as a symbol for the school itself.

There were no more fires but over time, the second wooden building deteriorated and was deemed unsafe. A fire-proof brick building was finally constructed in 1917, which was there by the time mom came along, and is still standing today. The school was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, and it is still educating students as Stanton College Preparatory School.

Mom always felt nothing but pride whenever she talked about her Alma Mater and its history of survival through racial adversity, destruction, and segregation. She was more than happy to tell anyone who asked that she graduated from Stanton High School in the Class of 1951.