Local Lives Stories from our African American Community

Written by Third Graders

Of

St. Anne’s School of Annapolis

Spring 2012

L O C A L

L I V E S

L

O

C

A

L

L

I

V

E

S

St. Anne’s School of Annapolis invests in the intellectual and spiritual promise of each student in a community

that celebrates diversity and values the dignity of every human being.

We challenge students to think critically and creatively, to know themselves as learners, and to govern their lives

with confidence, compassion and integrity.

St. Anne’s School draws from its Episcopal tradition as an independent, co-educational school, serving students in

Preschool through Eighth Grade.

WITH GREATEST GRATITUDE TO THOSE IN OUR COMMUNITY

WHO SHARED THEIR KNOWLEDGE, ENTHUSIASM, SKILLS AND

STORIES:

ALMA CROPPER

WALTER QUEEN

ZASTROW SIMS

KADDIE HERNDON

MARY THOMPSON

CAPTAIN ELDRIDGE MEREDITH

CAPTAIN TYRONE MEREDITH

Dedication

WILEY H. BATES LEGACY CENTER

NORTHERN ARUNDEL CULTURAL PRESERVATION SOCIETY

BETTY MACK

BLACKS OF THE CHESAPEAKE FOUNDATION

MELANIE HERRERA

THE BANNEKER DOUGLASS MUSEUM

GENEVIEVE KAPLAN

DR. JOAN GAITHER

JANICE HAYES WILLIAMS

A SPECIAL THANKS TO:

FOUR RIVERS HERITAGE AREA

WHO GENEROUSLY PROVIDED

A MINI GRANT FOR OUR RESEARCH

THE CHILDREN:

ABRIA, ANNABELLE, ARIN, BELLA , BEN, DONOVAN, ELIZABETH,

IAN, JAYLAH, JILLIAN, MILAN, NAOMI, OWEN, REX

Thank you also to the community members who helped to make this

research possible and to the children who questioned, listened and opened their hearts into researching the rich

stories of our community.

Contents

Overview Naomi Annabelle

1

Ms. Alma Cropper Arin Abria

2-6

Mr. Walter Queen Rex Benjamin

7-11

Captain Eldridge Meredith

Annabelle Elizabeth

12-16

Mr. Zastrow Sims Ian Owen Jaylah

17-22

Ms. Kaddie Herndon Naomi Jillian

23-26

Ms. Mary Thompson Donovan Milan

27-30

Captain Tyrone Meredith

Bella 30-33

By Annabelle and Naomi

Our Third Grade class studied the local African American community.

We went to the Banneker Douglass Museum and we took a walking

tour of Annapolis with Janice Hayes Williams. We looked at all of the

historical places in Annapolis. We also went to the Bates Legacy

Center to look at the museum and to interview people who went to

High School there. We went to the Bates Center again and did a

quilting workshop with Dr. Gaither. Black watermen came to our

class to talk about what is was like to be a waterman. They told us

about fishing and the kinds of fish that are in the Chesapeake Bay.

This is a book that has biographies that we wrote about the people

that we interviewed: Ms. Mary, Ms. Alma, Mr. Walter, Mr. Sims, Ms.

Kaddie, Captain Eldridge and Captain Tyrone.

Overview

1

Alma Cropper

2

Alma Cropper

By Arin

Ms. Alma Cropper grew up in Parole and went to Parole Elementary School. She walked

to school each day. She remembers four special friends she had. Ms. Alma has two

sisters and two brothers. She had a lot of cats when she was growing up and had five

dogs. Her grandfather had a farm. Ms. Alma’s dad died when she was seven. She

remembers some favorite family recipes. She especially liked macaroni and cheese and a

delicious banana pudding. Church was very important to Ms. Alma. She said she grew up

in church. She loved singing and all kinds of music.

Ms. Alma went to Bates High School. Bates was the only high school for black students in

the county. She thought it was great. She loved the choir and all her teachers. She

remembers Ms. Harrison, Ms. Tate, Ms. Taylor, Mr. Irvin and Mr. Butler. She liked to play

dodge ball and volleyball. She ate in the cafeteria. Ms. Alma walked a half hour to get to

school each day. She went to the prom and homecoming and loved helping people.

Sometimes for fun, Ms. Alma would go to Carr’s Beach to listen to music. She also liked

working in a hotel for awhile. Being a nurse was a tradition in her family and she was a

nurse for twenty years. A happy moment in her life was when her first grand child was

born. An important lesson that Ms. Alma learned was to listen, to love and to care. She is

really proud of being her.

I learned from Ms. Alma that you should be proud of being you!

3

By Abria

Ms. Alma Cropper grew up in Parole. Her grandfather had a farm. Her dad

died when she was seven. Ms. Alma never got into trouble when she was

young but her siblings would fight a lot. She had four special friends.

When Ms. Alma left Parole Elementary School she started going to Wiley H.

Bates High School. In high school she played dodge ball and volleyball. She

ate in a cafeteria. Ms. Alma lived in Parole so she had to walk about a half

hour to school. She thought going to a black school was great. She loved

high school. She went to proms and had homecomings. At school she sang

in the choir. Ms. Alma also sang in her church choir. She likes all kinds of

music. Some of her favorite teachers were: Ms. Harrison, Ms. Tate, Ms.

Taylor, Mr. Irvin and Mr. Butler. In high school Ms. Alma did not play a sport.

Two of her favorite subjects were English and history.

Ms. Alma has two sisters and two brothers and five dogs. A tradition that was

passed down in her family was nursing. She was a nurse for twenty years.

She remembers many stories that her family would tell. Some of her favorite

family meals are macaroni and cheese and banana pudding. An important

person in her life was her mother.

Sometimes Ms. Alma would go to Carr’s Beach to have a little fun when she

got off work. She worked hard at a hotel for awhile. Carr’s Beach had a lot of

Alma Cropper

4

music and dancing and celebrities. It was a place that was started because

black people couldn’t go to the white beaches, they were segregated, so

they started a place of their own.

Ms. Alma was proud when her first grand child and great grand child were

born. In her life she learned to listen to others, to pay attention and to love

and care for people. She has always liked helping people.

Ms. Alma now helps to run the museum at the Bates Legacy Center. I

learned from her that you should be proud of the woman you have become.

Alma Cropper

5

Portraits of Ms. Alma by

Arin and Abria

6

Walter Queen

7

By Rex

Mr. Walter Queen grew up in Annapolis. When he was young he

played with frogs, marbles, bikes and played cowboys and

Indians. One day when he was nine years old he went to swim in

a pond. He did not know that there were snakes in the pond until

later, but he never got bit! Mr. Walter doesn’t remember that many

songs but he does remember singing “Mary had a Little Lamb.” He

still remembers all of his friends from when he was younger, and

he remembers that he had a really good time in third grade.

Mr. Walter went to Wiley H. Bates High School. He liked Bates

and said that it was really fun, he especially liked to go to football

games. His favorite teacher was Ms. King. He liked her because

she was thoughtful. He liked history and singing in the choir. Mr.

Walter walked to school everyday. It was about a half mile walk.

He ate in the cafeteria and thought the food was good. He liked to

play kick ball and dodge ball at recess. He also went to a special

club called the Y.M.C.A. He had a lot of fun there. One day when

he was doing track and it was his very first time he started out

Walter Queen

8

doing fine and then he tripped. He felt so bad.

One time when he was young he wanted an apple off a tree, so he

stole it. Oops! Someone heard him and he started to run. They

caught him and he had big trouble at home. He never did that

again.

Mr. Walter had three brothers, three sisters and three dogs.

Something that was passed down in his family was respect. The

children were all taught to respect everyone. A favorite family

recipe of his is crab and gravy, yum, yum, yum!

Sometimes for fun Mr. Walter would go to Carr’s Beach and listen

to Chuck Berry and Elvis. An important event in his life is when he

got his first car. It was a 65 Mustang and it was green. When he

was younger he wanted to be a teacher. He spent some time as a

counselor.

Mr. Walter is proud of his dad and also really proud of himself

because he worked hard.

I learned from Mr. Walter to work hard and to respect others.

Walter Queen

9

By Benjamin

Mr. Walter’s childhood was fun. He used to play with frogs and marbles, ride

bikes, swim in a pond with snakes and play cowboys and Indians. He

remembers singing “Mary had a Little Lamb.” Mr. Walter says that he learned a

lot in third grade. One day he stole an apple from an apple tree. He climbed up

the tree to get the apple. He got caught and got in trouble. One of his favorite

family meals was crabs and gravy. His family tradition was respect.

Mr. Walter had fun in high school. He went to Wiley H. Bates High School. He

walked about a half mile to school He went to the prom and played football

when he was there. He also did track. The first time he ran track he fell down!

His favorite teacher in high school was Ms. King and his favorite subject was

history. Mr. Walter went to a club called the YMCA. He also liked to go to Carr’s

Beach a place where you could listen to music and hear famous people sing.

He liked to listen to Chuck Berry and Elvis.

Mr. Walter wanted to be a teacher. He is proud of himself and his father and of

respecting other people.

I learned from Mr. Walter to respect other people, not only your family but

everyone who loves God and is God’s child. I learned to respect yourself and

to be proud of yourself.

Walter Queen

10

Portraits of Mr. Walter by

Rex and Ben

11

Captain Eldridge Meredith

12

By Annabelle

Captain Eldridge Meredith is a black waterman. He has a boat

called the Island Queen. He grew up with six brothers and sisters

and had one dog. He never got in very much trouble. His dad

always took him out on his boat with him. When he went to

school they were segregated. White and black children could not

go to school together. He walked a mile to school each day.

Captain Eldridge’s favorite part of school was history. In high

school he got to ride a bus to get to school, unlike when he had to

walk in elementary school. Some of his favorite family recipes are

oyster stew and crab cakes. They now serve them at a restaurant

he opened which is on Kent Island.

Captain Eldridge has been a waterman for twenty five years. He

likes to whistle while he works. At one time there were more than

5,000 watermen all over the Chesapeake Bay. Now there are not

that many. The biggest thing Captain Eldridge ever caught was a

stripped rockfish. The smallest thing he caught was a sunfish.

One fish he never caught was a sturgeon.

Captain Eldridge Meredith

13

Captain Eldridge sold his fish at a wholesale market. He used a

wooden boat to catch fish and other seafood. He said that the best

places to fish are Love Point and up the Chester River.

The scariest things that happened to him on the water are when he

saw a shark and when he got caught in a big storm.

Once Captain Eldridge was outside barefoot. He was down by the

bay. He did not see a crab coming toward his foot. The crab bit his

toe. He ran back to his mom. He learned that you should always

wear your shoes outside!

I learned from Captain Eldridge to always work hard and to love what

you choose to do.

Captain Eldridge Meredith

14

By Elizabeth

Once Captain Eldridge was out by the Chesapeake Bay. He was wearing no

shoes. He was crabbing. Then, suddenly……snip! A crab bit him. Captain

Eldridge grew up on the bay with his family. He had six siblings and one

dog. He never got into very much trouble when he was little and his dad

sometimes took him out on his boat.

Captain Eldridge went to a segregated school. When he was young many

schools were separate for black and white children. He had to walk about a

mile each day to get there. When Captain Eldridge went to high school he

rode on the bus. His favorite class was history.

When he grew up, for work he was a waterman, he caught fish. He was a

waterman for twenty five years. Captain Eldridge said that crabbing and

fishing was fun. Sometimes he likes to whistle when he works. He has some

good fishing spots. He likes to go up the Chester River and to Love Point.

He would sell the fish that he caught to the markets. He caught yellow

perch, white perch, rockfish, drum fish and catfish. His favorite foods are

oyster stew and crab cakes.

One time when Captain Eldridge was fishing he saw a shark. He was

startled. He likes fishing because he works for himself and can do what he

wants to do. A lesson he told us was to be yourself.

Captain Eldridge Meredith

15

Portraits of Captain Eldridge by

Annabelle and Elizabeth

16

Zastrow Sims

17

By Ian

The day after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, Mr. Sims

walked the streets of Annapolis with the mayor. People were

upset and angry and wanted to fight. Mr. Sims and the mayor

talked to the people, calmed them down and asked them to

stop. Mr. Sims said that he helped to keep Annapolis from

burning that night. He was someone who worked to make his

community a better place.

Mr. Sims went to Bates High School. Bates was the only school

for black students in the county. You can call Mr. Sims Zastrow,

that is his football and basketball name. He loves those sports

and played them in high school. When he was in high school,

he got in trouble a lot. The teachers helped him because

sometimes he would be distracted by his friends. He ate in a

cafeteria and walked to school. He remembers that sometimes

some white children who rode by on the bus to their school

would throw things out the window at him and his friends. Mr.

Sims favorite subject was history and he liked math too.

Zastrow Sims

18

For fun, Mr. Sims used to go to Carr’s Beach. Sometimes he and

his friends would sneak in. Famous people played music there.

Mr. Sims told us a story about how when he was young you

would never wear a hat inside. He was wearing a purple hat

when we met him.

Mr. Sims learned ten special words that he always remembers.

They are, “If it is to be, it is up to me.”

I learned from Mr. Sims to never give up.

Zastrow Sims

19

By Owen

Mr. Sims lived in Annapolis. When he was little he got into trouble a lot.

He didn’t have any brothers or sisters or pets, but he liked dogs. He

liked third grade and liked school. He played I Spy, football and

basketball. He ate in the cafeteria and liked the milk.

Mr. Sims went to Bates High School and his favorite subject was

history. He lived down the street. There was a prom at Bates that he

went to. He liked to go to Carr’s Beach to swim and listen to music.

Mr. Sims said, “If it is to be, it is up to me.” It is up to each person what

happens in their life.

I learned that you choose for yourself what you will do.

Zastrow Sims

20

By Jaylah

Mr. Sims said that when he was a child he liked school. He also liked playing I

Spy, football and basket ball. He went to Bates High School. His favorite

subject was history. He ate in the cafeteria and went to prom and homecoming.

One of his teachers died at 96 years of age.

Mr. Sims liked music and he liked to sing songs that were a hit. He went to a

club for fun and also liked to go to Carr’s Beach. Sometimes he would sneak in

with his friends and swim and listen to music.

When he was young he got into some trouble and had to go to court. He

learned that he had to try harder and work to do the right thing.

Mr. Sims had a daughter that graduated from the University of Texas. One of

his favorite family recipes was fried chicken.

Mr. Sims worked for the community and wanted everyone to be treated fairly.

He worked with the mayor of Annapolis to keep the community safe after

Martin Luther King Jr. died.

Mr. Sims says, “If it is to be, it is up to me.”

I learned from him that you need to treat other people the way that you want to

be treated.

Zastrow Sims

21

Portraits of Zastrow Sims by

Ian ,Jaylah and Owen

22

Kaddie Herndon

23

By Naomi

Ms. Kaddie went to Bates High School. She had a lot of fun when she was a

kid. She had lots of friends that she had fun playing with. Once she got in a

fight with a girl that was annoying her, but usually she did not get into

trouble. Her first hobby was reading. Ms. Kaddie had three brothers, no

sisters and one dog. She liked her family dinners and especially loved her

mom’s lemon meringue pie. She said it was delicious.

At Bates High School, Ms. Kaddie went to proms and homecomings. She

said it was a lot of fun. She loved to go to basketball games too. She was in

a journaling club in high school. She loved to write and read and do a lot of

math thinking.

For fun she loved to go to Carr’s Beach with her friends and listen to James

Brown’s music. One of her favorite songs is “Rockin’ Robin.” She is still

friends with people from high school.

Ms. Kaddie is proud of being a mom. An important person in her life is her

mom. An important lesson she learned was to go to college, she never did.

Ms. Kaddie wanted to be a police woman when she was younger.

I learned from Ms. Kaddie to go to college and not to give up on your

dreams.

Kaddie Herndon

24

By Jillian

Ms. Kaddie grew up in Annapolis. Her childhood was great, she had lots of

cousins and friends. Her first hobby was reading. She said third grade was

good. During recess she liked to play Hide and Seek, dodge ball and Catch Me

If You Can. In her family she had three brothers and one dog. She saw her

cousins a lot. She went to Carr’s Beach a few times and saw Gladys Knight,

James Brown and Diana Ross. She loved Rock and Roll music. One of her

favorite songs was “Rockin’ Robin.”

One time when she was a tween Ms. Kaddie got in a physical fight with

another girl. She told us a story about when her parents were dating. Someone

stepped on her mom’s foot and her dad punched him!

Ms. Kaddie went to Wiley H. Bates High School. Her favorite subjects were

reading and math. She was a cosmetology student. She rode the bus to school

and it took 30 minutes. It was about 28 miles. For lunch she had chicken and

mashed potatoes but she didn’t really like the green beans. She loved the

yellow cake with chocolate frosting. Some of her best memories were making

friends and learning. For fun she went to basketball games with friends. Ms.

Kaddie has a friend named June and she has known her for about 65 years.

Ms. Kaddie is proud of being a mother and having a chance to go to high

school. She now regrets not going to college. I learned from Ms. Kaddie to be

proud of who you are and to get a good education.

Kaddie Herndon

25

Portraits of Kaddie Herndon

by Naomi and

Jillian

26

Mary Thompson

27

By Donovan

Ms. Mary lived in a corner house. She often made her own toys when she

was a child. She played jacks a lot and sometimes she would fight with her

brother and sisters. Sometimes she would get in trouble. She remembers

once that she got burnt on a tube that is used to heat up the stove because

she was playing too close to it. If she was disobedient she would not be

allowed to use her skates for awhile. Ms. Mary walked to school ever since

she was in first grade. She walked when it was warm and she walked when it

was cold. She had no TV and she played outside a lot. Ms. Mary had to do

chores and she liked to listen to the radio. She would listen to whatever came

on, but her favorite show was called, “I’ll be glad when you’re dead.” Ms.

Mary’s favorite sport at recess was dodge ball and her favorite animal was a

dog named Bojangles. Ms. Mary also had a twin sister, an older sister and a

brother. When she was in third grade she had to do reading and arithmetic.

Ms. Mary went to Bates High School because that is where all the black

students went. She did not eat in a cafeteria. Her favorite part of school was

mathematics and PE. She never rode a bus to school and never had a

problem walking to school. She walked about two miles each way. School

was fun for her. She went to prom and homecoming and loved all her

teachers.The friends she had are mostly dead now.

I learned from Ms. Mary that you should love school because you might not

have a chance to go.

Mary Thompson

28

By Milan

Ms. Mary lives in Annapolis at her old high school. Ms. Mary had a twin sister

and she had a brother and a dog named Bojangles. She had some friends and

some of them have died. For fun, Ms. Mary played dodge ball. When she was a

child she made her own toys like yoyos and skateboards. Whenever she got in

trouble she had to stay in the house. Ms. Mary’s favorite family recipes are

homemade bread and fried chicken. When she grew up she wanted to be a hair

dresser. She liked to listen to whatever came on the radio and her favorite show

was, “I’ll be glad when you’re dead.” A tradition that was passed down in her

family was sewing. Her family also used to tell scary ghost stories.

Ms. Mary went to Wiley H. Bates High School. When she was in high school they

had no cafeteria and she had to walk to school. She walked two miles. There

was no bus. Her favorite part of school was math and cooking. In high school she

had to do math, reading, writing and spelling. When she had recess, she would

talk the whole time. Ms. Mary went to proms and homecomings. She said that all

of her teachers were very nice. Ms. Mary said it was fun going to a black school.

There were no problems at all. When she went to Bates there were no clubs

there.

Ms. Mary said that she used to go to Carr’s Beach and she liked listening to

music. Ms. Mary’s happiest time in her life was going to Bates High School. Ms.

Mary says you should not judge people by what color they are and you should be

nice to everyone. I learned from Ms. Mary to be kind ,sweet and nice to people.

Mary Thompson

29

Portraits of Ms. Mary by

Donovan and Milan

30

Captain Tyrone Meredith

31

By Bella

Captain Tyrone is a black waterman on the Chesapeake Bay. His job is to take

people out in his charter boat on the bay to fish. Captain Tyrone grew up on the

water. When he was my age he worked every summer on the Chesapeake

Bay. He used to get up at 5:00 in the morning because it is better to go fishing

in the early morning when there are more fish. One time when he was young

he got in so much trouble he was punished. His school was great, not just

because it was integrated but because he had so many friends. Captain Tyrone

did not have to walk to school, he rode the bus. One time when he went

outside to go to school there were seven or eight buses waiting at his door. He

had a big family, on brother and four sisters. That is six children including him.

He also had a dog. He is still friends with people he knew when he was young.

An important lesson he learned when he was little was to not play on the ice.

One time when part of the bay froze he went out and played on it. There was

an open hole and he fell through!!! He was able to climb out and he ran home.

By the time he got home he was all dry, but he learned never to do that again.

By the time he was eighteen Captain Tyrone bought his own boat. Before he

became a watermen though he sold life insurance. His favorite part about

being a waterman is that he is self employed, he works for himself. He is proud

of being a waterman and has been doing it for many years. Once there were

over 5,000 watermen on the Chesapeake Bay.

Captain Tyrone Meredith

32

Now there are not so many and Captain Tyrone says that he is one of the

younger watermen working on the bay today. He uses a wooden boat when he

takes people out to fish. He catches rock fish, blue fish, and drum fish. He likes

to fish on the Eastern Bay and at Love Point. He used to sell the fish he caught

at the market. The biggest fish he caught was 28 pounds and was almost 50

inches long. The smallest fish he caught was a sunfish. One time he even

caught a shark.

I learned from Captain Tyrone that you should do what you like, not just what

other people like.

Captain Tyrone

33

Portrait of Captain Tyrone

by Bella

34

THIS PUBLICATION HAS BEEN FINANCED IN PART WITH STATE FUNDS FROM THE

MARYLAND HERITAGE AREAS AUTHORITY, AN INSTRUMENTALITY OF THE STATE

OF MARYLAND. HOWEVER, THE CONTENTS AND OPINIONS DO NOT NECESSARILY

REFLECT THE VIEWS OR POLICIES OF THE MARYLAND HERITAGE AUTHORITY.

Thanks to the many people who helped to

make this research possible!