“Everything You Are and Possess Today, Whether Good or Bad, Will Pass Down To Those Who Come After You” – Paul J. Meyer. Never would I have thought that by accepting to help a friend with an out-of-town assignment, I would learn that Morris Henry Carroll, the former principal of Carroll High School in Monroe, Louisiana, was one of “THE FIRST BLACK REAL-ESTATE MOGULS” in Monroe, Louisiana!!! Well, when we recently traveled to the town of Tallulah, Louisiana, we met a former resident of Monroe by the name of Albertine Collins Johnson, who was one of “THE FIRST BLACK” librarians in Monroe. As a matter of fact, she was trained by non-other-than Mrs. O. Richardson McDonald! Well, Albertine was able to confirm that Henry Carroll once owned a bunch of properties throughout Monroe. As a matter of fact, Albertine said that many of the teachers who taught at Carroll High School rented from Henry Carroll when he was the principal.
By the way, the name of Henry Carroll ‘s Real-Estate Company was,”Better Home Realty Company,” and it was located at 3010 Renwick Street, just up the road from Carroll High School, near the old Popeyes Chicken joint and King of Wings. Once again, this is something that I am just now learning. You would think that news as big as this would be taught at Carroll High and Carroll Jr. High Schools, but it isn’t! Furthermore, as the older generations of Blacks in the City of Monroe die off, who is going to continue to inform Black people in Monroe about “OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE?” If you know me, you know that I could go on and on about this, but it’s time for me to inform everyone about this week’s Black Pioneer. Oretha Castle Haley was born on July 22, 1939, in Oakland, Tennessee. Sometime before her 8th birthday, her family moved to New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1958, Oretha graduated from Joseph S. Clark High School. From there, Oretha enrolled at Southern University of New Orleans. However, during her Junior year, she and a few of her friends decided to participate in the Civil Rights Movement as well as form the New Orleans Chapter of the C.O.R.E. Organization. As President of the New Orleans Chapter of C.O.R.E., Oretha led local boycotts in New Orleans and set up sit-ins that led to the integration of lunch counters throughout the city.
In 1963, John Reddix, a Black man who was the local president of the Monroe Chapter of the NAACP, requested that C.O.R.E., Congress of Racial Equality, send members to Monroe, Louisiana, to help with “A VOTER REGISTRATION DRIVE.” In 1964, Oretha was sent as a representative from the New Orleans Chapter of C.O.R.E. that she had helped organize. Upon her arrival to Monroe, Oretha served as a Field Secretary for the group. Additionally, the local C.O.R.E. office in Monroe that Oretha worked out of was located at 103 North 10th Street.
Strangely, when the Monroe Chapter of C.O.R.E. closed, all of the records were boxed up and sent to the University of Wisconsin. Not too long after President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act in 1964, the New Orleans Chapter of C.O.R.E. ended up closing, and Oretha decided to return to Southern University of New Orleans to complete the requirements for acquiring her degree. Between 1965 and 1967, Oretha earned her college degree and married nationally known “Civil Rights Activist and C.O.R.E. Attorney Richard Haley.” Along with her accomplishment in helping raise their four boys, Oretha was instrumental in the accomplishment of several things in the City of New Orleans. First, she helped establish the New Orleans Chapter of the Sickle Cell Foundation ; Secondly, she helped stop the city officials in New Orleans from building a bridge that would have displaced over 3,500 citizens, mainly Black residents ; Thirdly, she successfully took on the New Orleans Recreation Department to integrate the public parks system ; and Lastly, she headed and led the election campaign of Dorothy Mae Taylor, “Louisiana’s first Black female legislator!” Sadly, on October 10,1987, after years of fighting for Civil Rights for her people and then having to fight cancer as well, Oretha Castle Haley passed away at the tender age of 48.
To honor her memory, city officials in New Orleans renamed the blocks of Dryades St. between Howard and St. Philip Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard, and two years ago, her home in Orleans Parish was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
