Caroline LeCount
Born
Caroline Rebecca Le Count

c. 1846
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
DiedJanuary 24, 1923(1923-01-24) (aged 76–77)
Resting placeEden Cemetery
EducationInstitute for Colored Youth
Known forAnti-segregation activism
PartnerOctavius Catto (fiancé)

Caroline Rebecca Le Count (c. 1846 – January 24, 1923; often written as LeCount) was an American educator and civil rights activist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is often compared to later activist Rosa Parks for her early efforts to desegregate public transportation.

Early life

LeCount was born in South Philadelphia in 1846 as one of four children. Her father, James LeCount, was a cabinet maker and undertaker who was probably involved in the Underground Railroad, as stories have been passed down about him hiding slaves in coffins.[1][2][3] Caroline began school at a young age and graduated at the top of her five-person class from the Institute for Colored Youth in 1863.[4][5]

Career

After LeCount passed the teaching exam, being the first black woman in Philadelphia to do so,[6] she began teaching at the Ohio Street School (later renamed the Octavius V. Catto School). She became principal around 1868, making her the second black female principal in Philadelphia.[4] She notably defended black teachers from an accusation of inferiority, pointing out that they were required to receive higher test scores than white teachers in order to become certified.[7][8] She retired in 1911.[9]

LeCount was also an accomplished orator and poetry reader.[10] She read at the openings of various churches and was noted by The Christian Recorder for her ability to imitate an Irish accent when needed.[7]

Along with Jacob C. White Jr. and William Bolivar, LeCount helped sociologist W. E. B. Du Bois with research for his study The Philadelphia Negro.[11]

Activism

LeCount was part of the Ladies' Union Association, a group of women supporting the Union in the American Civil War. As part of their efforts, she and other black women would ride streetcars to deliver supplies to troops even though black riders were often removed by force.[12] She and others would board, be forcefully removed, and then appeal to the courts and the public to ban discrimination on streetcars. LeCount, along with her fiancé Octavius Catto and abolitionist William Still, also made petitions and lobbying efforts towards desegregation.[1] One historian noted that "Caroline Le Count did almost the same thing as Rosa Parks did, but her streetcar in 1867 was powered by a horse."[13]

When the city passed a law in 1867 banning segregation on public transport, LeCount successfully brought charges against a driver who wouldn't let her ride.[7] The city then issued an official notice to its transit companies that they were no longer allowed to discriminate against black passengers.[14]

Death and legacy

LeCount died on January 24, 1923, and was buried at Eden Cemetery in Collingdale, Pennsylvania.[7] Because of her refusal to leave segregated streetcars, LeCount has been called "Philly's Rosa Parks" in some modern media outlets.[8][9][15] In 2022, some Philadelphia residents began petitioning to rename the city's Taney Street, named for Roger B. Taney, the Supreme Court justice who decided Dred Scott v. Sandford, after her.[8][9] To mark the centennial of her death, the "Rename Taney" group commissioned a headstone to mark LeCount's grave and organized a ceremony at the site.[16]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Caroline LeCount & the Ohio Street School". Biographical Profiles - Explore the story of women's activism through documents & images. October 3, 2020. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  2. ↑ Lane 1991, p. 126.
  3. ↑ Biddle 2010, p. 118.
  4. 1 2 "Caroline LeCount". catto.ushistory.org. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  5. ↑ Biddle 2010, p. 288.
  6. ↑ "Before Rosa Parks: The fight for Philly transit equity and the Black women on the frontlines". WHYY. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Caroline LeCount". exhibits.library.villanova.edu. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  8. 1 2 3 Giesberg, Judith. "Rename Taney Street after Caroline Le Count | Opinion". Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on December 6, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  9. 1 2 3 "Op-Ed: Let's LeCount Taney Out". Hidden City Philadelphia. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  10. ↑ Biddle 2010, p. 343.
  11. ↑ Biddle 2010, p. 474.
  12. ↑ Biddle 2010, p. 345.
  13. ↑ Biddle 2010, p. 2.
  14. ↑ "Caroline Le Count | Pennsylvania Civil War 150". The Civil War in Pennsylvania. July 29, 2013. Archived from the original on July 29, 2013. Retrieved September 25, 2022.
  15. ↑ Barkley, Charles (January 28, 2016). "Philadelphia Black History Month All-Star of the Day: Caroline LeCount". The Philadelphia Citizen. Retrieved September 26, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Civil rights activist Caroline LeCount gets a tombstone 100 years after her death". Philadelphia Inquirer. October 21, 2023. Retrieved October 22, 2023.

Bibliography

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