Coleman Park Survey

(Lincoln Park and Tamarind Park)

Phillis Wheatley Library Mural.

Please answer all the questions

and thank you.

5).  The following list includes historical figures from the Coleman Park area.

Dr. Hampton Jackson – A physician born in Coleman Park who later performed knee surgery on President Reagan.

Dr. Thomas Leroy Jefferson – The first Black doctor in West Palm Beach, known as the “bicycle doctor” for making house calls by bike. He served at Pine Ridge Hospital.

James "Cracker" Johnson – A successful bootlegger, numbers runner, and entrepreneur during the Great Depression who helped develop West Palm Beach’s infrastructure, including donating funds for a Black hospital.

Ineria E. Hadley Hudnell - She taught at Roosevelt industrial High School from 1945 to 1978. She was a noted Community historian and activist. She advocated for the celebration of local African-American history. She collected a mass collection of historical materials that told the story of the African-American communities in West Palm Beach.

L.A. Kirksey - A noted music educator who established the school band at Roosevelt Industrial High School and helped in developing the music program at Florida A&M.

Dorothy "Dot" Riley – Owner of Dot's Motel, a prominent venue that provided accommodations for Black entertainers during the segregation era.

George and Esther Coleman – Coleman Park is named after them for their significant contributions to the development of this African-American community.

7).  The following list includes important Negro League baseball players from the Coleman Park area.

Hank Aaron – played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1954 through 1976. Considered one of the greatest baseball players in history.  Hank Aaron broke the long-standing MLB record for career home runs held by Babe Ruth and remained the career leader for 33 years

Roy Campanella – played in the Negro leagues and Mexican League for nine years before entering the minor leagues in 1946. He made his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut in 1948 for the Brooklyn Dodgers, for whom he played until 1957.

Josh Gibson – an American baseball catcher who played primarily in the Negro leagues. In 1972, he became the second Negro league player to be inducted in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Don Newcombe – was an American professional baseball pitcher who played ten non-consecutive seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He began his career in the Negro National League and ended it in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).

Satchel Paige - an American professional pitcher played in the Negro League baseball as well as Major League Baseball. His career spanned five decades and culminated with his induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Jackie Robinson – was an American professional baseball player who became the first Black American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the color line when he started at first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. The Dodgers signing Robinson heralded the end of racial segregation in professional baseball, which had relegated black players to the Negro leagues since the 1880s.