Evelyn Allen ~ 1995. Worcester County Library Historic Slide Collection, WR 53 Snow Hill363, via Flickr.
Evelyn Allen is best known as the owner of Evelyn's Village Inn on Green Street in Snow Hill, Maryland.
Before Evelyn's restaurant on Green Street, Evelyn owned a building on the corner of N. Washington and River Street (later torn down to build the current Snow Hill Library). She opened her business in 1958/1960, and enjoyed that location until 1970 when she moved to Green Street. During her time at the location on N. Washington Street, Evelyn mainly served Black customers. Before desegregation, white customers would order from her, but would not eat within the business.
Evelyn's Village Inn on Green Street ~ 1995. Worcester County Library Historic Slide Collection, WR 53 Snow Hill370, via Flickr.
In 1970, Evelyn moved to Evelyn's Village Inn on Green Street. She stayed in that location until 1995, when she retired and closed the restaurant. In 1986, Evelyn won the Worcester County NAACP Business Award. Evelyn's became a beloved restaurant that people would visit from far away.
Listen to an Oral History with Evelyn Allen below. She discusses her restaurant, and her early life working in hotels around Ocean City.
James Lee Purnell Jr. Maryland State Archives. Via Maryland.Gov
James Lee Purnell Jr. was born in 1937 in Briddletown, Maryland. This was during a time when Berlin was still segregated.
Purnell spoke with OC Today in 2020 about a time when he witnessed racism. "'My sister was hit in the stomach with a blackjack [weapon] at 7 years old for just standing on the corner of the street while my mother was inside paying for her shoes to wear,' Purnell said. 'My father eventually got that police officer fired off the job.'" (Lanasa, Ally. James L. Purnell Jr. sworn in as Wor. official 25 years ago. OC Today. 2020 Dec 3. Via OC Today.)
For much of his life, Purnell worked as a school bus driver and a charter bus driver. In the 1980s was when Purnell became an active member of the NAACP. The landfill in Briddletown was located behind his mothers house, and he, along with the NAACP, fought to get the landfill relocated.
In 1986, James L Purnell Jr. was named president of the NAACP, a position he held for 10 years. During that time, he was able to successfully get the landfill in Briddletown moved to Newark. Another huge achievement was when the NAACP sued Worcester County to form a minority district so that Black residents would be able to get elected. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case, thus going with the lower courts ruling that stated it was legal for a minority district to be formed.
O'Sullivan, Sean. The History of a History Maker. The Daily Times. 1995 Dec 3.
In 1995, after many years of fighting, James Lee Purnell Jr. was elected as the first Black County Commissioner for Worcester County. He was also the first Black President of the County Commissioners. He served until 2014.
Speaking about his legacy, Purnell stated: “I just want to be remembered as James Purnell, born, raised [and] grew up in this community, and a person that gave of himself to make a difference in this community along with support that I got from the community and from the county as well as from the state,” (OC Today).
Judy Johnson memorial outside the Snow Hill Library.
William Julius "Judy" Johnson was born in Snow Hill in 1899. He was a baseball player who grew up during a time when the baseball leagues were segregated. Even facing large societal challenges, he was inducted into the Nation Baseball Hall of Fame on August 18, 1975.
Judy Johnson's first chance at making a career in baseball occurred in 1919, while he was living in Wilmington, Delaware. He tried out for the Hilldale Club, an American professional Negro League baseball team, in Darby, Pennsylvania (south of Philadelphia). He did not become a full time member of the team until 1921, making $150 a month.
Judy continued to advance his career and started mentoring other players. In 1929, Judy was named the Negro Leagues Most Valuable Player by the Chicago Defender and the Pittsburg Courier, two of the leading Black newspapers of the time.
The Most Valuable. The Pittsburgh Courier. 1929 Sep 28.
In 1930, Judy Johnson began his career as a player-manager. Judy was the player-manager for the Homestead Grays for a year, and then in 1931 he returned to the Hilldale as their player-manager until 1932. He would continue to be involved in baseball, while holding other jobs for much of his life.
In 1954, Judy Johnson made history when he was hired as a coach for the Philadelphia Athletics. He was the first Black coach hired in the Major League Baseball. However, his time there was temporary, so most people give the title to Buck O'Neil who was added to the full-time coaching staff of the Chicago Cubs in 1962.
Judy Johnson did come back to Snow Hill a few times in his life. He actually was married in Snow Hill to Anita Irons in 1923. He also came back when the town of Snow Hill declared October 2, 1987 "Judy Johnson Day". At the dedication, Judy shared childhood memories of his father bringing him into town for treats.
Hall of Famer. The Daily Times. 1987 Oct 4.
Flossie B. Douglas. The Daily Times. 1990 Feb 28.
Flossie Douglass was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1897. She graduated from Howard University in Washington D.C., and furthered her teaching career at Ohio State University, Athens, West Chester State University, the former Emporia State Techers College, and Hampton University. After teaching in Kansas City, Missouri, she eventually found her way to Worcester County in 1926.
Douglass was the school teacher for the "colored" Box Iron School, which was about 4 miles from Snow Hill. The school was a small one room framed building located on the county road leading to Box Iron to Truitt’s Landing by Girdletree. The building had no lights and only a small wood burning heater for cold weather. The fire had to be taken care of everyday and sometimes the larger boys and other people in the community, who lived near the school, would help with the fire. The enrollment from November to March was 68-70 people with people sitting two in a seat. The enrollment from September- November was an average of 34-38 pupils.
Announce Colored Teachers for Co. Schools This Year. The Democratic Messenger. 1937 September 23.
After 5 years of teaching at Box Iron School, the Worcester County Board of Education moved Flossie Douglass to the Snow Hill School. The Snow Hill School had a very small four room building with no light and very small blackboard space. Two of the rooms upstairs were used for the high school and the other two elementary classrooms were moved across town to the old Odd Fellows Hall. This was the only high school for Black children in all of Worcester County, Maryland. They had a pot belly stove in each classroom and coal was used and the fires were kept overnight. The school was located on Collins Street across from the Cemetery (no longer there).
In 1960, Flossie Douglass retired from teaching. Though, she continued to help children. From 1968-1972 she worked with the Head Start of Worcester County.
Listen to an Oral History with Flossie Douglass below. She discusses her early life as a Black educator in Worcester County, Maryland.
Vote For Verda F. Welcome. The Evening Sun. 1958 Nov 1.
Verda Freeman Welcome was born in 1907 in Lake Lure, North Carolina. Encouraged to drop out of school, she refused and attended college at Coppin Normal School in Baltimore Maryland in 1929. She then received a Masters from New York University, and became an educator for Baltimore City Public Schools. - Maryland Women's Hall of Fame
Verda Freeman Welcome and Irma George Dixon made history when they became the first Black women to be elected to the Maryland House of Delegates in 1958. Welcome continued to make history when she became the first female Black Maryland State Senator elected in 1962, and the second female Black State Senator nationally (first being Cora Mae Brown in Michigan in 1952).
Whiteford, Charles. Annapolis, March 13. The Baltimore Sun. 1964 Mar 14.
Verda Welcome was very instrumental in pushing for desegregation policies. In August of 1963, Welcome was attempting to attend a United Democratic Women's Clubs meeting in Ocean City, but was denied entry of the hotel on the basis of her race.
Due to the civil rights movements and her experiences, Welcome became extremely active in the Public Accommodations Act of 1964, that forbid hotels and motels from turning away anyone based on race. In March of 1964, Maryland exempted half of its counties from following the Public Accommodations Act, including Worcester County. Welcome then gave the speech seen in the news article above. She was right in saying that the movement could not be stopped, because in July of 1964, the Civil Rights Act was passed.
Verda Welcome served in the Maryland State Senate until 1982, an amazing 25 years of service.
Maryland Historic Inventories - WO-181
New Bethel Methodist Episcopal Church is the most prominent historic site in Germantown, south of Berlin.
The church is a gothic Revival frame structure built with an asymmetrical plan dominated by a corner entrance and bell tower. Tripartite sanctuary windows, filled with colored glass, follow the pointed arch design.
The New Bethel Methodists are distinguished as one of the oldest Black church memberships in Worcester County. New Bethel was started in 1855 by Black members of Stevenson Methodist Church, several of whom were freedman. The early ministers usually were white until after the Civil War. The first Black pastor of the church was the Rev. Isaiah Broughton.
In 1885, the original building was replaced with an enlarged church. In 1905, a new and larger church was dedicated.
(Worcester County: Maryland’s Arcadia.)
Local History, Special Collections, and Genealogy