By Lillian E. Small
(Sixth in a Series)
So much happened after the beautiful Mediterranean Revival architectural building once known as the first school for African Americans was vacated completely as a school for students. It had served briefly as an elementary school and was renamed Walker Elementary until construction on an adjacent piece of land was completed for the Walker Magnet Elementary School we all know. The building was then boarded up to be demolished in the late 80’s.
When Mary Laramore Smith learned of the fate of the school she loved so well as a student and later as a teacher, she knew that there must be others in the community who felt strongly about its preservation. She founded the Black Historical Society of Broward County in 1974 and the serious work began. Community activists joined in the efforts that took meetings, researching for resources, and most likely a lot of sleepless nights to bring her ideas to fruition; that is, why are we saving the building and what can we do with it?
The why save the building and the what can be done with it was vocalized right from the start without hesitation by Mary Smith. She had seen this community grow as a youngster and had knowledge of the contributions made by African Americans and Bahamians who helped bring about its historical significance. Even as early as the fight to keep the building off the chopping block, was the idea of it serving as a museum; a place to house artifacts and preserve significant history for the people of this community. Before any of this could happen, we needed to convince the School Board, the City, and Broward County of what this building has meant and still means to us; can and will mean to our future generation of children. We needed to have the powers-that-be to understand that we had lost too much of our history in the past and were desperate to make sure ours was not wiped out completely. This was all articulated by Mrs. Smith with heartfelt dialogue through employing fragments of her own life.
It goes without saying that this iconic building of many trials and tribulations was “saved by the bell.” Then we moved on to the next level of negotiations. What was left to be cleared was to have it designated on the National Register of Historic Places. The committee for this was co-chaired by Mary Smith who was determined to see her work completed. The designation came in 199l. The Old Dillard High School aka Walker Elementary School, had now become The Old Dillard Museum. These three are intimately interwoven into a beautiful history that has transcended the ages.
The legacy left to our community by Mary Laramore Smith is a beautiful testament of love. Her boundless energies kept her steadfast in pursuit of the goals that had been set to keep the building alive; one that has seen many come eager to learn, whether it was as a Dillard student or Walker student. Mary Smith passed away in 1996 and we owe her a debt of gratitude for her painstaking hard and diligent work that is our museum of history – The Old Dillard Museum. (Next Article in Series – Ernestine Ray, Curator of the Old Dillard Museum)
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