Charlotte Hawkins Brown (June 11, 1883 – January 11, 1961) was an American author, educator, civil rights activist, and founder of the
Palmer Memorial Institute
The Alice Freeman Palmer Memorial Institute, better known as Palmer Memorial Institute, was a school for upper class African Americans. It was founded in 1902 by Dr. Charlotte Hawkins Brown at Sedalia, North Carolina near Greensboro. Palmer Memo ...
in
Sedalia, North Carolina
Sedalia is a town in Guilford County, North Carolina, Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 623 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 census.
History
The Dr. Joseph A. McLean House and Palmer Memorial Institute, Palm ...
.
Early life
Charlotte Hawkins Brown was born in
Henderson, North Carolina
Henderson is a city and the county seat of Vance County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 15,060 at the 2020 census.
History
The city was named in honor of former North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Leonard Henderson, w ...
, on June 11, 1883, to Caroline Frances and an estranged father. The granddaughter of former slaves, she was born in a time where large numbers of African Americans were moving north. She moved to
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...
, at a young age, where she was raised and educated.
Along with her brother Mingo, Charlotte attended public school in Cambridge. She was chosen as a speaker for her first graduation and following this attended the Cambridge English High School. Though her mother was hesitant, Brown was dedicated to her education and chose to attend Salem State Normal School. All of her schooling expenses were paid by Massachusetts Board of Education member
Alice Freeman Palmer
Alice Freeman Palmer (born Alice Elvira Freeman; February 21, 1855 – December 6, 1902) was an American educator. As Alice Freeman, she was president of Wellesley College from 1881 to 1887, when she left to marry the Harvard professor George He ...
, after they met by chance and Palmer was taken aback by Brown’s dedication.
Career
After one year of college, Brown was hired to work at the Bethany Institute, a rural school for African American children, in
Sedalia, North Carolina
Sedalia is a town in Guilford County, North Carolina, Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 623 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 census.
History
The Dr. Joseph A. McLean House and Palmer Memorial Institute, Palm ...
. Brown arrived to the school, run by the
American Missionary Association
The American Missionary Association (AMA) was a Protestant-based abolitionist group founded on in Albany, New York. The main purpose of the organization was abolition of slavery, education of African Americans, promotion of racial equality, and ...
, in 1901 to find it severely lacking in resources.
![Charlotte Eugenia Hawkins Brown](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Charlotte_Eugenia_Hawkins_Brown.jpg)
When the American Missionary Association decided to close the school a year later, Brown decided to create a school on her own. Coming from humble beginnings in a small blacksmith’s cabin, Brown continued raising money, eventually obtaining 200 acres and constructing two new buildings for her campus. The school, named the
Palmer Memorial Institute
The Alice Freeman Palmer Memorial Institute, better known as Palmer Memorial Institute, was a school for upper class African Americans. It was founded in 1902 by Dr. Charlotte Hawkins Brown at Sedalia, North Carolina near Greensboro. Palmer Memo ...
in honor of Alice Freeman Palmer, opened on October 10, 1902, and was a day and boarding school for African Americans. Brown worked tirelessly to create a safe haven for African American youth, she established the Palmer Memorial Institute’s board of trustees entirely of African Americans. Brown’s institute served as one of the only schools in North Carolina to offer college preparatory programs.
By the 1920s, the Palmer Memorial Institute was an established and successful
boarding school
A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exten ...
attracting students from around the country, many of whom went on to become educators. Brown attracted national attention for her efforts, lecturing frequently at colleges around the country and receiving several honorary degrees. In 1941 she published ''The Correct Thing To Do--To Say--To Wear'', committing many of her educational philosophies and maxims in print. She continued to run the school until her retirement in 1952.
In addition to her work at the Palmer Institute, Brown was active in national efforts to improve opportunities for African Americans, including the
Southern Commission for Interracial Cooperation and the
Negro Business League. She was the first African American woman named to the national board of the
YWCA
The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries.
The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swi ...
. She was an honorary member of
Alpha Kappa Alpha
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. () is the first intercollegiate historically African American sorority. The sorority was founded on January 15, 1908, at the historically black Howard University in Washington, D.C., by a group of sixteen stud ...
sorority.
Legacy
Brown's papers are at the
Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study
The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University—also known as the Harvard Radcliffe Institute—is a part of Harvard University that fosters interdisciplinary research across the humanities, sciences, social sciences, arts, a ...
at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
.
The restored campus buildings of the
Palmer Memorial Institute
The Alice Freeman Palmer Memorial Institute, better known as Palmer Memorial Institute, was a school for upper class African Americans. It was founded in 1902 by Dr. Charlotte Hawkins Brown at Sedalia, North Carolina near Greensboro. Palmer Memo ...
are now the
Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum
The Alice Freeman Palmer Memorial Institute, better known as Palmer Memorial Institute, was a school for upper class African Americans. It was founded in 1902 by Dr. Charlotte Hawkins Brown at Sedalia, North Carolina near Greensboro. Palmer Memo ...
,
which links Brown and Palmer Memorial Institute to the larger themes of African American women, education, and social history, with an emphasis on the contributions made by African American citizens to education in North Carolina.
The museum's visitor center is located in the Carrie M. Stone Teachers' Cottage (1948), and features exhibits about Brown, the Institute and African American education in North Carolina. Visitors can tour Brown's residence, known as Canary Cottage, which has been furnished to reflect the 1940s and 1950s, when the school was at its peak. Several dormitories, the dining hall, bell tower, teahouse and several teachers' cottages can also be seen.
Brown's brother, Mingo, was the father of jazz singer
Maria Hawkins Cole, who became the wife of musician
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...
and the mother of singer
Natalie Cole
Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of American singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to success in the mid-1970s as an R&B singer with the h ...
and actress
Carole Cole
Carole Cole (October 17, 1944 – May 19, 2009) was an American actress, music producer, and the CEO of King Cole Productions. She was the daughter of singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole and jazz singer Maria Cole, and the older sister of si ...
.
References
Further reading
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External links
Charlotte Hawkins Brown MuseumCharlotte Hawkins Brown PapersRadcliffe Institute, Harvard University.
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Charlotte Hawkins
1883 births
1961 deaths
People from Henderson, North Carolina
African-American academics
20th-century American educators
People from Cambridge, Massachusetts
Academics from North Carolina
African-American women academics
American women academics
20th-century American women educators
20th-century African-American women
20th-century African-American educators