Enslavement to
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More Harrisburg Memories
From Byron M. Jackson, August 12, 2003
My sister, Gail Jackson Quarles, alerted me to your website about Harrisburg. I also grew up in Harrisburg, born in 1947 to Oliver and Alma Jackson. I wanted to let you know about a book that has a small section on and sources about African Americans in Harrisburg. The book is Harrisburg Industrializes: The Coming of Factories to an American Community. The book was written by Gerald G. Eggert and was published by Penn State University Press. It is very informative and offers a good history of industry in a developing Harrisburg of the 1850s through the early 1900s. Your readers might find the bibliography and sources helpful.
Harrisburg Industrializes also has a short section on Dr. William Howard Day, after whom the William Howard Day Housing Project was named. Dr. Day (the Dr. reference is an honorary doctor of divinity degree from Livingston College) came to Harrisburg as a school teacher in 1872.
My sister, Gail Quarles, made reference to the Joe the Motorist's Friend store on Third and Verbeke Streets in Harrisburg. It was always one of my favorite places in Harrisburg (as well as the hotdog stand at the Third Street Market) because they always featured a large Lionel trains display and stock at their store. I went to Hamilton Elementary School, Camp Curtin Junior High School, and graduated from William Penn High School in 1965. We lived uptown on Fifth Street after spending our first years as a family of 4 in the William Howard Day Projects. I enjoy your website from afar. I am a political science professor at California State University, Chico in Northern California and have been a faculty member here since 1974.
Byron M. Jackson
Chico, CA