Celebrate Black History Month
A look into the lives of influential black leaders
Words by Sam Lauron Photo of Jacob Fontaine courtesy of Austin History Center
Countless prominent figures throughout Austin’s history have made an impact on this city and beyond. Here are just a few of the local leaders who have contributed their voice, skills, and social initiatives to the betterment of their community.
Daniel Alexander
Alexander came to Texas from Kentucky with Thomas Freeman McKinney as a slave. On the McKinney plantation, Alexander became the chief horse trainer and breeder. He and his wife would later purchase 73 acres of land from McKinney and go on to found the nearby community of Pilot Knob. Though entering Texas as a slave, Alexander overcame oppression, rose through ranks and his family became known for their skills in horse breeding, racing, and training, as well as dairy farming and blacksmithing. They have continued to manage their land for over 120 years now.
Ada DeBlanc Simond
From the moment she arrived in Austin in 1914 at the age of 11, Simond was a caretaker: first to her siblings and later for her own children. It wasn’t until after she raised her children that she was able to pursue the education she always wanted. She eventually earned a B.S. in family life education and an M.S. in home economics and child development before going on to become the head of the home economics department at Tillotson College (now Huston-Tillotson University) and later working for the Texas Tuberculosis Association and the Texas State Department of Health. Simond wrote a black heritage column for the Austin-American Statesman and also authored a series of six books about a small Austin black community called Mae Dee and Her Family.
Jacob Fontaine
Fontaine was a community leader in numerous ways through his community involvement with the church and with his many business endeavors. After emancipation, Fontaine founded the First Baptist Church in 1867 and later went on to help found several churches in the Austin area including New Hope Baptist Church, Good Hope Missionary Baptist Church, and the Mount Zion Baptist Church. Fontaine gave a voice to his community by paving the way in the publishing industry as the founder of the Austin Gold Dollar, one of the first black weekly newspapers in the South and the first newspaper under black ownership in Austin.
L.C. Anderson
Laurine Cecil (L.C.) Anderson was born in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1853. After receiving his B.A. from Fisk University and becoming a teacher, he eventually made his way to Texas to work at Prairie View Normal and Industrial College (now Prairie View A&M University) with his brother, E.H. Anderson. He was later appointed principal of Prairie View and remained in that position for 13 years before resigning and moving to Austin to become principal of E.H. Anderson High School, named after his brother. Anderson was the principal of the high school until 1929 when he resigned after 34 years.
To learn more about the community’s influential black leaders throughout history, visit the African-American Families Gallery at George Washington Carver Museum. The permanent exhibit showcases 10 families who have made an impact in Austin and Central Texas throughout history.
Contact:
George Washington Carver Museum
165 Angelina Street
austintexas.gov/carvermuseum
