Black Joy

John W. and Jean Darden celebrate 25 years.

Chicago Defender, 2 January 1932.

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Thank you.

Discovering and sharing the stories of East Wilson brings me joy. I’ve often said that I would curate Black Wide-Awake even if no one read it, but you do read it, and for that I’m immeasurably grateful. Thank you for another year of close scrutiny and careful commentary, of food and feedback, of time and attention. Send me your ideas, your clues, and your grandmas to be interviewed. Let’s do it again!

Photo by Janelle Booth Clevinger.

The Perrys celebrate 50 years of marriage.

Passaic (N.J.) Daily Herald, 28 December 1931.

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In the 1880 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farm laborer Jack Hodge, 64; wife Gilly, 49; and children Susan, 19, Sidney, 13, and Joseph, 33. [Next door: farm laborer Handy Hodge, 20, and wife Roxy, 21.]

On 28 December 1881, John Perry, 22, married Susan Hodge, 21, in Stantonsburg township, Wilson County. Jack Hodge and Zillie Hodge were among the witnesses.

In the 1900 census of Militia District 1209, Bulloch County, Georgia: farmer John H. Perry, 39; wife Susan, 39; and children William H., 14, Martha J., 13, John H., 11, and Mary E., 10. The younger two children were born in Georgia; the rest of the family, in North Carolina.

In the 1910 census of Laston, Bulloch County, Georgia: farmer John H. Perry, 49; wife Susan, 49; son George, 14; and adopted son Luther Spells, 7. Susan reported that only 2 of her 11 children were living.

In the 1920 census of Norfolk, Virginia: at 1347 East 46th Street, railroad office boy John Perry, 60; wife Susan, 50; niece Hazel Gill, 14; and grandchildren Viola, 9, Elzie, 7, and Ida Perry, 6.

Christmas reflection.

Miss Edie Bell. Aunt Pet. Aunt Minnie. Aunt Alice. Aunt Nora Lee. Aunt Lula Mae. Holiday dinners in my childhood were often spent at tables prepared by these amazing women, the grandmother and great-aunts of my cousins Monica Ellis Barnes and Tracey Ellis Leon. 

I cherish warm memories of these generous women and the delicious meals they prepared — and of me, my sister, and cousins, safe and loved and well-fed.

Christmas brings joy, but also floods of memories of those we can no longer hug or break bread with. I held quiet space yesterday for memories of my grandmother and father and uncle and the Barnes sisters, and all who no longer sit with us in Wilson or wherever we once shared a table. I hope you were able to find joy and beauty in Christmas this year, and I pray for a better 2026 for all of us.

Unexpected joy on Christmas morning.

During the depths of the Great Depression, young Lusynthia Johnson wrote this Christmas short story set in a thinly veiled Wilson.

The Afro-American (Baltimore, Md.), 26 December 1936.

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Lusynthia Page Johnson was born in 1922 in Wilson County to Theodore Roosevelt Johnson and Rachel Bynum Johnson. In the 1930 census of Wilson, Wilson County: Mamie Bynum, 50; daughter Mozell Jeffrey, 23, maid; daughter Rachel Johnson, 25, hospital maid; son-in-law Rosevelt Johnson, 23, orchestra musician; roomer Namie Lasitor, 22, servant; and granddaughter Lucinda Farmer, 8.

B.W.A. Historical Marker Series, no. 35: Georgia Burke.

In this series, which will post on occasional Wednesdays, I populate the landscape of Wilson County with imaginary “historical markers” commemorating people, places, and events significant to African-American history or culture.

We been here.

GEORGIA BURKE

(1878-1985)

Boycotted school to protest abuse of Black teacher Mary C. Euell in 1918, then taught at alternative Wilson Normal & Industrial Institute. In 1928, launched renowned stage and movie career in New York City spanning decades. In 1920s, lived at 332 S. Spring [now Douglas] Street.

Detail from 1925 Sanborn map of Wilson showing house in which Georgia Burke boarded.

Giving thanks.

I am grateful for so much this year and am mindful to deliver my appreciation in real time. An extra special thanks is warranted, however, for  20 women and men, aged 83 to 100, who shared with me their time and memories of their Wilson County childhoods. I spoke with seven of my father’s Darden High School classmates; with attendees of at least seven different Rosenwald schools; with folks who stayed in Wilson their entire lives and others who joined the Great Migration out. I recorded their stories and returned transcripts for them to linger over and share with their families. I jotted notes on fascinating tidbits to research further, some of which have already made it into Black Wide-Awake.

I still have a long list of people I’d love to interview, and hope you’ll refer any elders who might want to talk. As importantly, I encourage you to capture your family’s history. Holiday gatherings are the perfect time to pull out your phone and start recording, whether video or audio. Ask. And listen.