Viola Muse’s Coworkers
By Jocelyn Tolbert
On March 5, 1936, Florida became one of the first states to employ a Negro Writers Unit (NWU) as a part of its Federal Writers Project (FWP) effort, in order to “contribute research for state guides and write separate histories of the African American experience” (Bordelon 133) in the state. Field workers (writers who did the bulk of reporting) ranged all over Florida as they conducted interviews on and observed Black life in Tampa, Daytona, Orlando, Tallahassee, Lake City, Live Oak, Gainesville, Fernandina and more for publication in Florida’s exemplary submission to the American Guide series, Florida: A Guide to the Southernmost State.
By the end of the first year of the NWU’s operation, the number of employees was reduced from 10 to eight, and before its operation ceased in 1939, sometimes there were only three or four (Bordelon 137). Until very recently, little has been known about these employees. “Although biographical information on the [B]lack Florida writers is almost non-existent, internal evidence points to the fact most of the male writers were former newspapermen” (Bordelon 137). We do have some clues — information included on most of the typescripts from the era can tell us who was employed when and where. It appears that at least six women in addition to Viola Muse were employed in the NWU, though not all at the same time: Rachel A. Austin, L. Rebecca Baker, Ruth Bolton, Pearl Randolph, Grace Thompson and Portia Thorington.
Without knowing who these women were, it would be impossible to tell the full story of the NWU. The work they produced, covering everything from the stories of former slaves to African American folk tales and travel information, is only part of the story. Where did they live? What were their lives like? What was their educational and family background? What kind of work did they do before this, and what did they do after it was over? Understanding the entire picture of their lives helps us understand not only how the Federal Writers Project operated, but also about African American life in Florida during the Depression.
Unfortunately, no lucky cache of drafts, notes and photos belonging to any of these women has yet been found. In order to learn more about these six women and their work, hundreds of federal and state census data documents and Jacksonville city directories, in addition to troves of documents and correspondences from university library collections, were analyzed.
Rachel E. Andrews Austin was born in the area of Sparta, Georgia in 1894, the daughter of Solomon Andrews, a farmer and former slave. She married a carpenter named James Austin at age 21 and in 1920 was working as a bookkeeper in Jacksonville.
After her divorce from James and the onset of the Great Depression, Rachel lived for a time with her nephew, Blythe Andrews, and his family at 1940 Louisiana St. Blythe was the son of Rachel’s brother William Wallace Andrews, Sr., the founder of the Florida Sentinel, a Jacksonville-based Black newspaper. The paper, and the family, was active in the Jacksonville community, as evidenced by this undated program for a performance it sponsored called “The Negroes' Making In America,” during which Rachel performed a song called “We’ve Fought Every Race’s Battle But Our Own.” Though the Sentinel folded during the Depression, when Blythe and his family moved to Tampa, he re-formed the business and it still operates today.
Rachel worked at the NWU as a secretary from at least October 1936 to April 1937. During that time, she wrote several interviews with ex-slaves and at least one travel article, a 12-page guide to the Black churches of St. Augustine. As a secretary and not a field worker, she may have had other duties besides writing, so we can’t be sure of the exact dates of her employment. She was a resource for her colleagues, with her name showing up in lists of references on art and music. But by 1938, the Jacksonville city directory listed her as the manager of Rachella Beauty Salon.
Rachel died in 1939 at around age 45 from causes yet unknown. She is buried in the Old City Cemetery in downtown Jacksonville.
L. Rebecca Baker (sometimes noted as Rebecca L. Baker) was born around 1912 in Florida, the third child of a steam railroad porter and a public school teacher. In 1935, she was about 23 years old, living in Jacksonville, and city directory information lists her as a student — perhaps finishing college. Census data and other records regarding Rebecca after this time were not found; a woman her age at this time would likely have gotten married and changed her name.
Rebecca was employed as a field worker with the NWU from March 1936 until at least early 1937, turning out at least one ex-slave interview and several articles about Black life in the Daytona area, including its history, music, churches and educational institutions. Parts of her education article on Bethune-Cookman College (now called Bethune-Cookman University) were used in Florida: A Guide to the Southernmost State.
Ruth V. Daniels Bolton was born in St. Augustine on New Year’s Day 1905, the daughter of Castilian S. Daniels and Catherine I. Acosta Daniels.
According to federal census data, Ruth completed 4 years of high school. In 1925, she married Lemuel Bolton, a Jacksonville native and Stanton and Howard University graduate. Lemuel was a journalist, having served as editor of the previously mentioned Florida Sentinel and of the “colored page” of the Jacksonville Journal, a predominantly white newspaper. He was also a Florida correspondent for the national Associated Negro Press. Tragically, he died after a short illness only 2 years into his marriage to Ruth.
Ruth was a stenographer, likely using shorthand to take dictation or other notes. She worked from at least 1931 to 1933 in the office of Robert P. Crawford, a Black attorney practicing at 610 W. Duval St. In 1935, the Jacksonville city directory lists her work as a stenographer for the Federal Emergency Relief Adminstration (FERA) and the 1940 census notes she is a stenographer in “Public” work. Though the FERA was a government relief work program, it’s hard to be sure if these entries are related to her work at the NWU. The known pieces she authored span only June and July of 1939: three “life history” interviews and a mostly-dictated article about the activities of the Jacksonville Negro Welfare League.
Pearl Randolph was born in South Carolina in 1905. Records of her family are spotty and thus not much is known about her early life. According to the 1940 U.S. Census, she completed 2 years of high school. She married Louis Victor Randolph in 1927, and the couple settled in Jacksonville. Louis worked several jobs, including radio mechanic and jewelry store porter. The couple had at least four children before his death in 1936. Through the course of her life, Pearl also had several careers. The 1935 Jacksonville City Directory lists her as a social worker for FERA. In 1940, she was a nurse; in 1950, a car cleaner.
As a field worker for the NWU from May 1936 to to early 1937, Pearl was the most prolific of the women studied. She wrote about Black history and education in Orlando; a piece about Aunt Aggie’s Boneyard, a “unique sightseeing attraction” in Lake City; the history of Eatonville — home of Zora Neale Hurston and one of the first towns in the U.S. incorporated by African-Americans; and many interviews with ex-slaves. Her work on Eatonville and description of African American life in Orlando were used in Florida: A Guide to the Southernmost State. Her work also appears in “The Florida Negro,” an unpublished manuscript compiled by the NWU (including Hurston, who also worked there for a time) detailing the history and contemporary life of African Americans in Florida.
Pearl lived in Jacksonville for the rest of her life, and before her death in 2001, was the oldest active member of St. Paul Lutheran Church.
Grace Thompson was born around the year 1900 in South Carolina, the daughter of a woman whose name was also Grace Thompson. In 1930, census data shows that the elder Grace (Grace A.) was a widowed dressmaker living in Jacksonville at 1901 Tyler St. The 1930 city directory, though, lists her as the principal of West End Private School — it’s a possibility she changed jobs sometime in between the creation of the two records. The younger Grace, whom it is assumed was the NWU employee, was not employed at that time. She was also a widow and had one child, Estherine.
The 1935 Florida state census tells us that Grace was college-educated, and had found a job doing clerical work. She was likely one of the first field workers hired when the NWU was organized the following year, and perhaps one of the first cut. Only one manuscript attributed to her has been located: a 13-page article written in March 1936 called “Negro Music,” which details the contributions to music made by Black people from Jacksonville, from James Rosamond Johnson to the Clara White Mission Drum and Bugle Corps.
Portia L. Thorington was born in Alabama about 1898. In 1916, she was working as a clerk and residing at 2214 Mars Ave. in Jacksonville, where she lived for many years. From at least 1927-30, she did bookkeeping for Citizens Industrial Insurance Co. During the Depression, it’s clear Portia had a hard time finding work in her field — she turns up on records listing her as a “domestic” and as a cook. But in 1935, her employment was listed in the city directory as “clerk FERA.”
Portia worked for the NWU as a secretary in early 1936, but only one essay attributed to her has been found, so it is unknown how long her tenure there lasted. Her essay was called “A Voo-Doo Doctor,” an investigative report for which she underwent a “treatment” from Brundas Hartwell, a voodoo practitioner living in the Yulee area. A short version of her encounter with Hartwell was published in Florida: A Guide to the Southernmost State.
After her time in the NWU, Portia was eventually able to find bookkeeping work again and remained in Jacksonville until her death in 1969. She was widowed early in life, and never remarried or had any known children. She was active with the Bethel Baptist Institutional Church at least until the late 1950s.
Works Cited
Bordelon, Pamela G., "The Federal Writers' Project's Mirror to America: The Florida Reflection." (1991). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 5168. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/5168.
Rachel Austin
Year: 1900; Census Place: Militia District 113, Hancock, Georgia; Roll: 203; Page: 5; Enumeration District: 0018. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7602/images/4120066_00271?pId=77251678.
Year: 1920; Census Place: Jacksonville Ward 7, Duval, Florida; Roll: T625_218; Page: 10A; Enumeration District: 60. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6061/images/4295786-00421?pId=7004749.
Ancestry.com. Florida, U.S., Divorce Index, 1927-2001 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.
Original data:Florida Department of Health. Florida Divorce Index, 1927-2001. Jacksonville, FL, USA: Florida Department of Health. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/8837/images/FLDIV_0020-0007?pId=1380497.
Year: 1930; Census Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Page: 4A; Enumeration District: 0019; FHL microfilm: 2340047. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6224/images/4531933_00956?pId=102703851.
“About Us: Florida Sentinel Bulletin.” The Voice Of The Community Speaking For Itself, Florida Sentinel Bulletin, https://flsentinel.com/?page_id=65120.
Viola Muse, “"Art — References",” The Viola Muse Digital Edition, accessed April 28, 2023, https://violamuse.unfdhi.org/items/show/32.
Directory Title: Polk's Jacksonville City Directory; Year Range: 1930 - 1931; Page #: 121; Publisher: R.L. Polk & Co.; Publication Year: 1930-1931. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1988/images/31559_142313-00704?pId=3801965.
Directory Title: Polk's Jacksonville City Directory; Year Range: 1938; Page #: 48; Publisher: R.L. Polk & Co.; Publication Year: 1938. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1988/images/31559_142317-00267?pId=4043032.
“Rachel Andrews Austin (1891-1939) - Find a Grave...” Find a Grave, 2 Apr. 2015, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/144500994/rachel-andrews-austin?_gl=1%2A15hb6wk%2A_ga%2ANjA0Nzc4Mi4xNjgxMTc3NTQ5%2A_ga_4QT8FMEX30%2AY2RmM2E2MmEtZjk2OS00OTVlLWJlZWQtNjhmZjFkZjlhNmJjLjE3LjEuMTY4MjY0NTEyMC4zMi4wLjA.
“The Negroes' Making in America Program.” Editing the Eartha M.M. White Collection, University of North Florida, Thomas G. Carpenter Library Special Collections and Archives, June 2014, https://unfdhi.org/earthawhite/items/show/70.
Rebecca Baker
Year: 1920; Census Place: Jacksonville Ward 7, Duval, Florida; Roll: T625_218; Page: 52A; Enumeration District: 60. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6061/images/4295786-00505?pId=7008984.
Year: 1930; Census Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Page: 39A; Enumeration District: 0022; FHL microfilm: 2340048. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6224/images/4531934_00198?pId=102715178.
Directory Title: Polk's Jacksonville City Directory; Year Range: 1935; Page #: 90; Publisher: R.L. Polk & Co.; Publication Year: 1935. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1988/images/31559_142315-00594?pId=2951540.
Ruth Bolton
Year: 1910; Census Place: Jacksonville Ward 3, Duval, Florida; Roll: T624_159; Page: 5B; Enumeration District: 0074; FHL microfilm: 1374172. Ancestry, 2006. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7884/images/31111_4327445-00447?pId=150765119.
State Archive, Tallahassee and Clerk of Courts; Various Counties; County Marriages, 1920-1992. Ancestry, 2016. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/900056358:61369?ssrc=pt&tid=190106555&pid=192467558310.
Year: 1930; Census Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Page: 22A; Enumeration District: 0044; FHL microfilm: 2340049. Ancestry, 2002. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6224/images/4531935_00076?pId=102766575.
Year: 1940; Census Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Roll: m-t0627-00625; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 68-83. Ancestry, 2012. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2442/images/m-t0627-00625-00132?pId=130375895.
United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Roll: 4543; Sheet Number: 71; Enumeration District: 68-118. Ancestry, 2022. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/62308/images/43290879-Florida-169998-0026?pId=80629242.
The Baltimore Sun; Publication Date: 7 Apr 1997; Publication Place: Baltimore, Maryland, USA; URL: https://www.newspapers.com/image/171603285/?article=01e71b9e-8a2a-4f9e-a9e1-0a5b0e1e74b7&focus=0.78368056,0.83995813,0.87863284,0.9546242&xid=3355
Jacksonville, Florida, City Directory, 1912. Ancestry, 2011. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2469/images/11898674?pId=668551441.
Jacksonville, Florida, City Directory, 1935. Ancestry, 2011. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2469/images/11912072?pId=669559701.
The Birmingham Reporter; Publication Date: 26 Mar 1927; Publication Place: Birmingham, Alabama, USA; URL: https://www.newspapers.com/image/575079586/?article=50f3cda6-e3f4-469f-a195-b95a3778819d&focus=0.40356934,0.79665285,0.53401744,0.9434588&xid=3355.
Kappa Alpha Psi, Jacksonville(Fl) Alumni Chapter, Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi, 2020, https://jacksonvillekappa.com/chapter.html.
Pearl Randolph
Year: 1930; Census Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Page: 16B; Enumeration District: 0021; FHL microfilm: 2340048. Ancestry, 2002. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6224/images/4531934_00037?pId=102707570.
Directory Title: Polk's Jacksonville City Directory; Year Range: 1935; Page #: 611; Publisher: R.L. Polk & Co.; Publication Year: 1935. Ancestry, 2010. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1988/images/31559_142315-00855?pId=3012524.
Year: 1940; Census Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Roll: m-t0627-00624; Page: 14A; Enumeration District: 68-56. Ancestry, 2012. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2442/images/m-t0627-00624-00426?pId=129325694.
United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Roll: 4543; Sheet Number: 27; Enumeration District: 68-158. Ancestry, 2022. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/62308/images/43290879-Florida-170038-0028?pId=83405334.
Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/39536248:60901?ssrc=pt&tid=189189651&pid=272447830264.
Grace Thompson
Title: Jacksonville, Florida, City Directory, 1929. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2469/images/11828991?pId=1089639866.
Year: 1930; Census Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Page: 10B; Enumeration District: 0044; FHL microfilm: 2340049. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6224/images/4531935_00052?pId=102765354.
Ancestry.com. Florida, U.S., State Census, 1867-1945 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2008. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1506/images/CSUSAFL1867_089273-00626?pId=2878157.
Portia Thorington
Jacksonville, Florida, City Directory, 1916. Ancestry, 2011. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2469/images/11821884?pId=662830297.
Year: 1920; Census Place: Jacksonville Ward 6, Duval, Florida; Roll: T625_217; Page: 23B; Enumeration District: 52. Ancestry, 2010. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6061/images/4295785-01143?pId=6984307.
Year: 1930; Census Place: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Page: 6A; Enumeration District: 0019; FHL microfilm: 2340047. Ancestry, 2002. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6224/images/4531933_00960?pId=102704023.
Directory Title: Polk's Jacksonville City Directory; Year Range: 1931 - 1932; Page #: 657; Publisher: R.L. Polk & Co.; Publication Year: 1931-1932. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/3154941:1988?tid=190105085&pid=112474489194&queryId=49b365f46340c7171e0cf733ba815574&_phsrc=HJh336&_phstart=successSource.
Directory Title: Polk's Jacksonville City Directory; Year Range: 1935; Page #: 733; Publisher: R.L. Polk & Co.; Publication Year: 1935. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1988/images/31559_142315-00916?pId=3026742.
Directory Title: Polk's Jacksonville City Directory; Year Range: 1938; Page #: 778; Publisher: R.L. Polk & Co.; Publication Year: 1938. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/4127230:1988?tid=190105085&pid=112474489194&queryId=49b365f46340c7171e0cf733ba815574&_phsrc=HJh338&_phstart=successSource.
United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Jacksonville, Duval, Florida; Roll: 4543; Sheet Number: 26; Enumeration District: 68-144. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/62308/images/43290879-Florida-170024-0028?pId=80539883.
Ancestry.com. Florida, U.S., Death Index, 1877-1998 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1360988:7338?ssrc=pt&tid=190105085&pid=112474489194.
In Memoriam of the late Howard L. Robinson. 1947. Archives of the Ritz Theatre and Museum.
“Souvenir Program of Women's Day Activities, June 23, 1957.” Editing the Eartha M.M. White Collection, University of North Florida, Thomas G. Carpenter Library Special Collections and Archives, http://unfdhi.org/earthawhite/items/show/90.
Work Projects Administration. “Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves.” Born in Slavery: Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1938: Florida Narratives, Volume III, Project Gutenberg, 7 May 2004, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/12297/12297-h/12297-h.htm.