African American History: Oral History

Nina Honemond Clarke

Nina Honemond Clarke has lived in Montgomery County her entire life, first attending the segregated elementary school in Poolesville and graduating valedictorian of her class from Rockville Colored High School in 1934. She earned her teaching certificate from Bowie State Teacher’s College, her bachelor’s from Hampton Institute, and a master’s degree in education from Boston University.

Part of her 36-year tenure in the Montgomery County Public Schools included serving on the professional committee appointed by the School Board to plan the integration process in 1954-1955. Previously, she had taught at the segregated Quince Orchard School and at the Sandy Spring consolidated elementary school, among many others. After integration, she continued in the school system and retired in 1973 as principal of Aspen Hill Elementary School.

Following her retirement she transitioned to a career as a public educator and an expert local historian, co-authoring A History of the Black Public Schools in Montgomery County, Maryland (1978), and authoring A History of the 19th Century Black Churches in Maryland and the District of Columbia (1983). She has been a lifetime member of the NAACP and also served as a volunteer docent for the Montgomery County Historical Society, in addition to holding membership in dozens of other organizations throughout the county. She was interviewed twice in 2003, by Paul Van Nevel and also by Lisa Crawley. Mrs. Clarke lived in Montgomery County until her death in 2021 at the age of 103.

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Doris Plummer Hackey

Doris Plummer Hackey (1928-2018) grew up in Germantown, Maryland, and attended the segregated elementary school there, where Nina Clarke was one of her teachers. She graduated from Lincoln High School in 1945, and then attended Miner’s Teachers College in the District and took courses at Bowie State, Montgomery College, and Towson. Her coursework qualified her for a teacher’s card, which enabled her to substitute-teach in the segregated Montgomery County schools, including Germantown, Quince Orchard, and Edward U. Taylor, among others. As a young mother and teacher, she experienced the integration of the public schools in the 1950s and was also influential in working toward integration of the Catholic Schools in Germantown. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Antioch in 1972 and a Master’s from Hood College in 1986. In addition to raising her own children, she operated a nursery school and daycare as well as teaching at Montgomery County Head Start for almost 25 years.

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Geneva Mason

Geneva Mason (1899-1980) was a prominent community leader in the Scotland community in Montgomery County. She was born in 1899 in Washington, D.C. and raised in Georgetown. She graduated from the O Street Vocational School. In 1917, Mason moved to the Scotland community in Potomac, Maryland. She was the first African-American woman from her district to serve on the Montgomery County Government Committee. In this role, she worked to improve health care, housing, education, and water and sewer services in Scotland. In the 1950s, Mason worked with the Board of Education on integration of schools. She also worked on the Charter Commission Committee and the Suburban Hospital Committee. Mason also spent 17 years fostering over 25 children in her community.

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Isiah “Ike” Leggett

Isiah (Ike) Leggett served three consecutive terms as Montgomery County Executive (2006-2018). In 2016, he served as president of Maryland Association of Counties and president of the County Executives of America. Before becoming County Executive, Leggett served as an at-large member on the County Council and as Council president three times. He also served as chair of the Democratic Party of Maryland from 2002-2004. Earlier in his career, Leggett was a professor of law and the assistant/associate dean at the Howard University Law School. He also served as a captain in the Army, during which he did a tour in Vietnam, and was selected in 1978/79 as a White House Fellow.

Leggett holds four degrees: A Bachelor of Arts from Southern University, a Master of Arts and a Juris Doctorate from Howard University, and a Master of Laws from The George Washington University. He has received numerous awards and honors during his 32 years of public service, including being named a “Washingtonian of the Year” in 2015. Additional awards include the Distinguished Alumni Award from both Howard University and Southern University, and The George Washington University’s Fulbright Public Service Award.

 

Margaret Taylor Jones

Margaret Taylor Jones was a long-time educator in Montgomery County. She was born in 1907 in Washington, D.C. She earned a Bachelor’s degree at Howard University and Master’s degree at Columbia University. For 40 years, she worked as a teacher, supervisor, and principal in Montgomery County Public Schools. She taught elementary school at the Scotland School and Rockville Elementary School for 20 years. From 1951 to 1955, she supervised African-American elementary schools in the county. In 1959, she was appointed as the first African-American Principal of Bannockburn Elementary School. Jones also served as President of the Montgomery County Teachers Association from 1943 to 1953.

Interview here →