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Rosa G. Holmes Walker Papers, 1871-1943

 

Summary

Extent:
19.00 Linear Feet 22 archival document boxes.
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Rosa G. Holmes Walker Papers, Thomas G. Carpenter Library, University of North Florida, Jacksonville, Florida.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection contains personal and business documents of Rosa Holmes Walker, a Black funeral home director and businesswoman active in Jacksonville, Florida, during the early twentieth century. Included in the collection are materials relating to business records, ledgers, death certificates, removal and burial permits, funeral home bills and correspondence, and real estate correspondence from New York, New York. The collection also includes materials from her relatives, Henry and Fannie Glover of St. Augustine, Florida (early twentieth century) and to the Glovers of South Carolina (nineteenth century). Inclusive years are 1871-1943, with the bulk of the materials from 1920-1930. Few personal items are included in the collection. The Collection complements the Eartha M.M. White Collection as a source for Black history in Jacksonville, Florida, and provides documentation of a successful businesswoman flourishing in early twentieth century Northeast Florida.

Biographical / historical:

Born in the 1880s, Rosa G. Holmes Walker was a business entrepreneur and funeral home director during the early twentieth century. She founded and operated Holmes Funeral Directors, Inc. located on Broad St. in Jacksonville, Florida with her husband J.C. Holmes in 1904. After his death in 1916, she took over the role of Funeral Director. Ms. Holmes Walker married Reverend Thomas H.B. Walker, a Methodist minister and author, on October 16, 1918. During the Great Depression, Ms. Holmes Walker invested in real estate, purchasing thirty properties in Jacksonville, Florida and New York, New York. The income from these investments prevented the closure of her funeral home business during the 1930's. Ms. Holmes Walker operated the Holmes Funeral Home until her death on May 20, 1945. The Holmes Funeral Home is still in operation in Jacksonville.

Acquisition information:
The collection was acquired through donation from Dr. Daniel L. Schafer, 1985.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

The collection is open for research by appointment only. Please contact lib-special@unf.edu to schedule an appointment.

Terms of access:

Materials in the collection may be subject to copyright and are to be used for private study, scholarship, or research in accordance with the copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code). Use of reproductions of copyrighted works in excess of " fair use," may result in the user's liability for copyright infringement and be subject to the civil and criminal penalties of federal law. Visit the United States Copyright Office's website at http://www.copyright.gov/ for further information

Preferred citation:

Rosa G. Holmes Walker Papers, Thomas G. Carpenter Library, University of North Florida, Jacksonville, Florida.

Location of this collection:
Thomas G. Carpenter Library
1 UNF Drive
Jacksonville
FL
32224
USA