Senate Resolution No. 1663
BY: Senator MAY
HONORING the Black history trailblazers of New
York State's Cayuga and Onondaga Counties
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to recognize and
celebrate the achievements, contributions, and resilience of Black
Americans throughout history; and
WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to honor
the Black history trailblazers of New York State's Cayuga and Onondaga
Counties in conjunction with the observance of the 100th Anniversary of
Black History Month; and
WHEREAS, New York State's Cayuga County is host to numerous Black
trailblazers whose historic "first" accomplishments contributed
invaluably to our State's rich history and wealth of diversity,
including Harry and Kate Freeman were foundational figures in the
development of Auburn, New York in the early 1800s; further, Morgan
"Luke" Freeman and the Freedman family have been regarded as the
"guardians" of Harriet Tubman-Davis and her legacy, escorting her to
their home in Auburn; and
WHEREAS, Harriet Tubman-Davis, a prominent figure in New York State
and U.S. history, lived on South Street in Auburn; she is renowned as an
Underground Railroad conductor, a Civil War spy, and a humanitarian; she
was deeply involved in the AME Zion Church and established the Harriet
Tubman Home for the Aged; and
WHEREAS, Other notable figures who meaningfully contributed to the
history of Cayuga County include Lena Johnson, the co-founder of
Auburn's Booker T. Washington Community Center; Dr. Jerome H. "Brud"
Holland, president of Hampton Institute (now Hampton University), the
first Black person to serve on the board of the New York Stock Exchange,
and former U.S. Ambassador to Sweden; Marcellus "Ben" White, the first
Black mayor of Port Byron, New York and possibly the first Black mayor
in New York State; Naomi Post Fletcher, NAACP member and preschool
teacher who received a key to the city of Auburn; William Jackson, the
founder and first President of the Auburn/Cayuga NAACP branch and former
executive director of the Booker T. Washington Community Center; Gwen
Webber-McLeod, author and the first Black woman to be appointed chair of
the Auburn Industrial Development Authority; and
WHEREAS, Onondaga County's history is characterized by the
achievements and actions of notable Black trailblazers whose admirable
legacies have shaped our State's storied past and bright future, such as
Isaac Wales, the first Black resident of the municipality now known as
Syracuse, New York, who was a formerly enslaved man who helped build the
Erie Canal in the 1800s, and was a renowned AME Zion minister and one of
the best-known "stationmasters" of Syracuse's Underground Railroad; and
WHEREAS, Further, more notable trailblazers in Onondaga County
include Sarah Loguen Fraser, the first Black doctor to graduate from
Syracuse University's College of Medicine and one of the first Black
women in the United States to earn an M.D.; William Herbert Johnson, the
first African-American to graduate from Syracuse University's College of
Law; Edmonia Highgate, a civil rights advocate and educator who served
as a delegate at the 1864 National Convention of Colored Men held in
Syracuse-one of the few women recognized at that national political
gathering; Marjorie Carter, the first Black teacher in the Syracuse City
School District; Peggy Wood, the first black woman to become a social
worker in Onondaga County, who championed civil rights activism in
Syracuse through housing and healthcare and education for teenage
mothers; Frank Wood, director of Dunbar; Willie B. Gilbert, the first
African American Syracuse police officer; Herman Edge, the first African
American deputy chief of the Syracuse Police Department; The Honorable
Langston C. McKinney, Syracuse's first Black City Court judge; Chester
Whiteside, the first Black disc jockey, television commentator, and
appointed Black Syracuse firefighter; Malchester Reeves, the first Black
elected official in Syracuse; Van B. Robinson, the first Black president
of the Syracuse Common Council and founder of the Syracuse chapter of
the NAACP; Clarence "Junie" Dunham, the first Black man elected to the
Onondaga County Legislature; Constance Timberlake, the first Black woman
elected to the Syracuse Board of Education; and
WHEREAS, Throughout the twentieth century and up to this day,
African-Americans, including many recent refugees from Africa, have
continued to break down barriers in public service, elected office,
commerce, education, science, medicine, philanthropy, and volunteerism,
such as Cassandra Jones-Ingram, the first Black woman to serve in the
Syracuse Police Department; The Honorable Sandra Towns, Syracuse's first
Black woman elected to City Court; Danita Thomas, the first Black woman
to serve in the Syracuse Fire Department; Lillie Fields, the first Black
principal in the Liverpool Central School; Lovely Winslow, the first
Black woman to become an Onondaga County Legislator; Bea Gonzales, the
first Black Hispanic person to hold citywide office in Syracuse and the
first Latina President of the Syracuse Common Council; Samuel D.
Roberts, the first Black person to represent Onondaga County in the New
York State Assembly; Linda Ervin, the first Black woman to serve as
Minority Floor Leader of the Onondaga County Legislature, on the
Jamesville DeWitt Board of Education, and to serve as president of the
Board of Education; Michael Monds, the first Black Fire Chief of the
Syracuse Fire Department; Melanie Littlejohn, the first Black president
of the CNY Community Foundation; and Sheena Solomon, first Black
executive director of the Gifford Foundation; and
WHEREAS, It is imperative of this Legislative Body to recognize
those individuals who have contributed substantially to the progress,
advancement, and diversity of the State of New York and the Nation at
large, who paved the way for the future success of all residents; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
honor the Black history trailblazers of New York State's Cayuga and
Onondaga Counties in in conjunction with the observance of the 100th
Anniversary of Black History Month in February, 2026.
