Image courtesy Doris Jacobs
Last month, I told you about Henderson Business College, an establishment that stood on Linden but is now a parking lot.
A reader, Doris Jacobs, wrote to tell me that she had been researching an old diploma that had belonged to her mother, who had attended that school, and was (as you might expect) pleased when my article came out, since it told her a few things about Henderson Business College that she didn't know. She graciously provided me with a scan of her mother's fancy old diploma (it's a bit blurry because it was too large to fit on her scanner).
The diploma is dated 1925, and you'll see that Kiziah E. Smith earned a degree in Stenography. Although you can't see it here, the diploma was signed by the president of the school, George Henderson.
Doris told me this: "My mother was born in 1909 in Eufala, Alabama. Her family was prosperous enough to send her away to school. I have also attached a picture (below) of my mother and my dad, James D. Smith (yes, she married another Smith!) that was taken in our home in the Queens area of New York City, where I grew up. It is great to find information like this to add to our family history."
Thanks for sharing all this, Doris. I write about buildings a lot in "Ask Vance" and it's always nice to see the actual people connected with them.
PHOTO AND DIPLOMA COURTESY DORIS JACOBS
