PUTTING THE 1930S IN PERSPECTIVE

In his upcoming book, By George, He Did It! From Lincoln Heights to Greater Heights, George Hall, a former student of Eckstein, who later became principal of the Glendale School, tells the story of his life.

In Chapter 2, entitled “Misjudged”(A Child Shall Lead Them) George talks about how he was retained in kindergarten at Eckstein School in 1941. In 1971, while principal at Glendale Elementary School, he discovered his school accumulative record. The folder also contained a teacher’s hand-written note that read, “George is shy, has no initiative, and no doubt won’t become much of anything”.

He goes on to comment about the difference in standards between the Congress Avenue School and the Eckstein School. He reports that Eckstein “only had one restroom and it didn’t have a door”, and that Eckstein “more disturbingly, didn’t have Ohio State Certification.”

In the book he also writes that “during the 1930s racial segregation thrived in many parts of the nation, and the Glendale community was no exception.” He goes on to tell the following story:

“It is reported that a family member of mine and his two friends, entered a store to purchase a bottle of whiskey. They knew the store owner, but was shocked to see a black doll with a string around its neck hanging in the rear of the bar. My kinfolk jumped over the bar and yanked down the doll. He was a large, muscular teenager with an intimating posture which dared anyone to step up to him wrong. All the white patrons of the bar fell silent as all three boys left the store without incident and of course, without a bottle of whiskey.”

C.J. Parrish the youth in the above story recalls that following the above incident “he never spent a dime in that place again.” He also remembers that while it was possible for Negroes to buy food and drinks in the local Glendale stores and bars, they had to consume them outside.

In 2011, Flornette White, C. J. Parrish, and Sanford Wright are believed to be the oldest surviving Eckstein students. Flornette White lives on Washington Avenue in Glendale.