The James M. Baxter Terrace was a public housing complex in Newark , New Jersey . Named after James M. Baxter , it was opened in 1941. It was closed and demolished in 2009 due to social and financial neglect. The housing was partially replaced in 2012 by 90 apartments known by the name of Baxter Park.
7-701: Under the Federal Housing Act, the Newark Housing Authority was created in 1937. The Housing Authority was tasked with creating affordable housing for low income residents. When the first contracts were signed between the Federal Housing Authority and the city of Newark, Baxter Terrace was among the first projects to be built. The complex was named after James M. Baxter , the principal of the first high school for Black students in Newark. One of
14-618: The Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture . James M. Baxter James Miller Baxter (c. 1845 – December 28, 1909) was the first African-American principal of a school in Newark, New Jersey , taking the position at age 19 in 1864 and serving as Newark's only African – American principal until 1909, shortly before his death. Baxter was born in Philadelphia to James and Elizabeth Baxter, part of
21-566: The Baxter Terrace recreation hall went on to become the Monotones , a doo-wop group. Baxter Terrace was closed and demolished in 2009 and replaced by Baxter Park in 2012. Baxter Park became more focused on having mixed incomes rather than focusing specifically on housing low income people. Former residents of Baxter Terrace have held reunions. The façade of Baxter Terrace was preserved in demolition, with parts being brought to and displayed at
28-523: The city's small African-American middle class. In 1861 at age 16 he enrolled at the Institute for Colored Youth and graduated from the 4-year program in 3 years. After graduation he was elected as an officer of an African-American literary and debate society, the Frederick Douglass Lyceum. Two months after accepting a teaching position teaching position at Newark's State Street Public School, he
35-506: The first public housing facilities in the United States , Baxter Terrace was open for 68 years. Through the 1950s, Baxter Terrace remained the only majority Black housing project in Newark. The 14 acres of housing was informally segregated, with Black people living on one end, and whites on the other. Many early residents took pride in the community, with one father being cited as writing a theme song for it. A group of teenagers who sang in
42-564: The lodge in 1881, 1882, 1885, 1888 and 1892. Baxter married Pauline L. Baxter in 1877 and they parented five children, Elizabeth Baxter (b.1878), James L. Baxter (b. 1881), George Baxter (b. 1883), Louis Baxter (b. 1885), and Earnest Baxter (b. 1889). He retired in July 1909 and died in Newark from heart disease in December 1909. He was known for insisting in 1871 that African – American children who had graduated from grammar school should be admitted to
49-587: Was appointed the school's principal. In 1869 he opened a night school open to older students. Baxter was a member of The Historic Alpha Lodge No. 116, the first Masonic lodge composed primarily of African-Americans and recognized by the State Grand Lodge systems in the United States. Alpha Lodge No. 116 is under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of New Jersey . He held various positions, serving as Master of
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