The other day, Ms. Latonya Jones led me through Hickman Hill, telling stories and sharing historical accounts of the old and historic African American community. She also taught me a great deal about one of Hickman Hill's native sons, the Rev. Willie Gray Hickman. Born in Hickman Hill in 1919, the Rev. Hickman was an influential AME Zion minister and community activist who was one of the unsung heroes of America's civil rights movement. I had long wanted to know more about him.
Havelock N.C.
The Magic Lantern Man
In 1893 and 1894, a young African American showman named I. P. Hatch criss-crossed the North Carolina coast and beyond. Using a device called a stereopticon, he shared images of the world's wonders with overflowing crowds from New England to Florida.
In the Small Town Where I Grew Up
A year before I was born, in the small town where I grew up, three African American children walked into my future elementary school while a line of U.S. Marines with rifles watched over them.
David Cecelski 