Genealogy Disconnect (of sorts)

Anna Mae (Button) Davenport

Willis B. Williams with Richard Lee Davenport

Biologically Anna Mae (Button) Davenport and Richard Lee Davenport are my great aunt and great uncle. Emotionally they are my grandparents, and I have fond memories of them. 

Back Story

Anna Mae Button Davenport, born about 1897 is one of the younger sisters of my biological grandmother, Florence Clay Button, born about 1889. All the sisters were born in Georgia to the parents of Henry Clay Button and Mary Lane. The other Button sisters include Ida Belle, born 1896; Bessie, born 1904, and Verna Elizabeth, born 1909.

My grandmother, Florence had seven children that included my father, Willis B. Williams. She passed away on August 28, 1941, in Detroit Michigan just two days before my father's 12th birthday. My father was born in Detroit and had lived there up until that point. Unfortunately, I never asked and he never mentioned exactly when he came to Buffalo, New York but he did speak of going to elementary school in Buffalo. 

Of his four maternal aunts, Ida Belle had passed away in 1940, Bessie had passed away in 1937, Verna Elizabeth had two children, and Anna Mae had no children. That Anaa Mae was childless, probably led to the decision that my father and his sister, Joan live with her and her husband even though it meant moving them to another city and state.

He lived with his Aunt Mae (as she was called) and Uncle Richard until shortly after he married. As a young struggling couple, my parents lived with them for a while when I was a baby. 

Moving Forward

From my earliest memories, my great aunt Anna Mae and great uncle Richard Lee were my grandparents. That is how I introduced them. That is how they introduced me and my four brothers. They filled us with their grandparent love on a regular basis -- and then there were holidays and our birthdays that they always made extra special. 

We called them Deety and Pop-poo. Their home was always had food stuff that we didn't regularly have at home, like fresh fruit and a candy bowl always filled with candy. We always thought of them as rich because of where they lived --  the Cold Springs/Hamlin Park area of Buffalo, New York. Although we didn't realize it at the time, it was a section of the city with a significant number of Black professionals. 

I remember Sunday rides in Pop-poo's station wagon that had the "wood" on the side. We would go to the waterfront and sometimes to Canada. It was so much easier to cross the border at that time. Eastertime, Deety took us to Sears and Robuck for Easter outfits. Before the holiday, she would make chocolate eggs with a coconut filling -- and she would let me help. As the oldest and only girl, I often spent the night at house on the weekend or school vacations. I remember watching the Ed Sullivan Shoow and the Lawrence Welk Show. Much more that stuff, their home was safety, acceptance, and above all, love.

And then there were parts of my summers when I stayed with them in Idlewild, Michigan that I wrote about in another blog post.

Deety's obituary lists five grandchildren -- myself and my four brothers. Deety and Pop-poo are forever my grandparents and always in my heart.

So, my genealogy disconnect is looking at my pedigree chart and looking at family unit charts that list Deety and Pop-poo as anything other as my grandparents.

Copyright © 2026 by Sandra Williams Bush, Ancestor Callings: Georgia and Mississippi Roots. All Rights Reserved.

Evelyn Orthelia Brown Williams: Her Final Chapter

Circa 1970s

My beautiful mother made transition on Monday, December 22, 2025. Evelyn Orthelia Brown Williams is now with the Ancestors. I call her name. I will miss her earthly presence more than I can express.

As I entered her information on the Find A Grave site and connected her to immediate family, I felt a sense of peace.

I lovingly wrote her obituary which, of course, only tells a small fraction of her story.

    Evelyn Orthelia Williams was born November 30, 1931 in Buffalo, New York to Lucy and Noah Brown. From their union were born three other children -- Verlie, Arthur, and Vivian -- who all preceded Evelyn in death.

    During her youth, Evelyn was actively involved in the Sunday School program and other activities at Saints Home Church of God in Christ. She lived her entire life in Buffalo and was a product of the public school system, attending School #31 and Fosdick Masten High School. While in high school, she was president of the Lambda Chi Hi-Y and president of Alpha Pi Eta Sigma Sorority. She worked briefly as secretary at the historic Michigan Avenue YMCA, where she met her future husband.

    On September 26, 1952, she and Willis B. Williams were married in the home of the bride's mother. Their marriage lasted 58 years only ending with the transition of her husband in 2011.

    The couple became the proud parents of five children: Sandra Ann, Richard Lamonte, Steven Arthur, Willis Barry, and Raymond Louis. And later, they became the loving grandparents of Elizabeth Orthelia.

    Evelyn's hobbies have included bowling and painting. She was passionate about her garden, looking forward to planting a wide variety of vegetables every year.

    Evelyn was the ultimate mother, opening her home to her children's friends; some of whom continue to call her Mom. She happily called Rickey Butler and Andrew King her sons throughout her life.

    Evelyn Orthelia Williams was called home on Monday, December 22, 2025. She leaves to uplift her memory: daughter, Sandra Bush; sons, Steven (Mary) Williams, Willis (Barbara) Williams, Raymond Williams; granddaughter, Elizabeth Orthelia Bonds; dear cousins, Elizabeth Miller, Melvena Tyus and Ohio family; nephew, John Craddock; niece, Heidi Williams and a host of family and friends.

Copyright © 2025 by Sandra Williams Bush, Ancestor Callings: Georgia and Mississippi Roots. All Rights Reserved.

My Daddy's Shirts -- Holding On

My father, Willis B. Williams, made transition on March 31, 2011, in his adopted home of Buffalo NY where he lived for 70 years. He was brought to Buffalo in 1941 after the transition of his beloved mother, Florence Clay Button Burkette.  During his time in Buffalo, he continued his primary education, joined the military, married, and raised a family. 

One of the hardest tasks in the transition of a loved one is going through their earthly possessions. As the only girl -- aka, "Daddy's girl" -- I have an abundance of memories, but I wanted to hold on to something special. So, I had a quilt made of some of Daddy's shirts which is my watch-tv-on-the-couch-wrap providing me added comfort on chilly Buffalo nights.

Shirt quilt at my home, Buffalo NY

2014 Genealogy presentation at Buffalo Genealogical Society of the African Diaspora

Copyright © 2022 by Sandra Williams Bush, Ancestor Callings: Georgia and Mississippi Roots. All Rights Reserved.

Gravesites of William Turner Williams and Mary Jane Clark Williams

William Turner Williams and Mary Jane Clark Williams are my paternal great-grandparents. They are the parents of my grandfather, Willie Frances Williams, who is the father of my father Willis Burkett Williams.

Headstone of Mary J Williams
Photographed by Patty Shreve
Find-a-grave site

 MARY JANE CLARK WILLIAMS

Through a series of leads today (8/29/2022), I virtually saw the gravestone of my paternal great-grandmother, Mary Jane Clark Williams. It started with that Ancestry hint which led me to Newspapers-dot-com. Click. There was her death notice in The Macon Telegraph (Macon, Georgia) from Sat, 6 Nov 1948 (page 10). I easily recognized my great grandfather's name, W.T. Williams, as her surviving husband, along with their eight daughters: Annie, Virginia, Hattie, Fannie, Maggie, Daisy, Edna, Mary Jane and sevens sons: Joe, Willie (my grandfather), George, Carl, Herman, John, Harris. Each name had the city where they lived at that time -- verifying information and in some cases, providing me with new information.

Other new information included the name of her sister, Mrs. Sina Pound of Macon; the names of two sisters-in-law Mrs. Eliza Clark and Mrs. Ola Clark both of Macon. My guess is that they are her brothers' wives. Wow, my great-grandmother had at least one sister and two brothers.

Further information: "Funeral services will be held at Williams Chapel AME Church near Haddock, the day and hour to be announced later. Hutchins' Funeral Home." In a search I found two churches with the same name near Haddock, so I decided to first reach out to the funeral home, asking for a funeral program. I was surprised with a same-day response that took me back another generation!

"We do not have a funeral program. We only kept cards back in the 1940's.

This is the information on the card:

Name:  Mary Jane Williams

Date of Death: November 3, 1948   Age: 54

Place: Macon, GA

Date of Birth: March 25, 1894 

Place: Jones Co. GA 

Father's Name: Austin Clark - born in Jones Co. GA

Mother's Name: Marth(a) Pounds - born in Jones Co. GA

Occupation: Laborer

Cause of Death: Unknown

Informant: Fannie Hudson

Funeral: 2:00 p.m. 11/8/1948 at Wiliams Chapel AME

Burial: 11/8/1948 at Williams Chapel AME cemetery in Haddock, GA"

*NOTE: Her birth year is about 1864.

   

I was so excited about the information provided by Hutchins Funeral Home that I immediately looked at Find-A-Grave for the Williams Chapel AME Cemetery. I added all the new information from the funeral home, along with the picture of her gravestone to my family tree. 

WILLIAM TURNER WILLIAMS

Then it dawned on me, what about my great-grandfather, William Turner Williams? Another email to Hutchins Funeral Home provided information on him. Again, it took me back another generation.

Not sure if this is the right person but it's the only one in 1954 that came close.

Name: W.T. Williams

Residence - 2195 Neal Avenue

Place of Death - Macon, GA

Date of Death - July 29, 1954

Date of Birth - August 25, 1884  age 64

Place of birth - Jones Co., GA

Father's name - John Williams

Mother's name - Annie ? (Maiden name)

Occupation - Farmer

Spouse - Mrs. Mary Williams

Informant - Mrs. Rufus Hudson

Funeral - 1:00 p.m. August 2, 1954 

Williams Chapel AME - Burial in church cemetery at Williams Chapel AME

*NOTE; His birth year is about 1858.

Headstone of William Turner Williams
Photographed by Patty Shreve
Find-a-grave site

I am beyond grateful to the "angel" who took the time to photograph my great-parents' headstones and to the person at Hutchins Funeral Home who responded to my inquiries. I have both shouted for joy and cried happy, mournful tears over this new information which, of course, leads me to more questions to research.

*NOTE: Their death dates of 1894 and 1884 were clearly typos because their daughter Fannie Williams Hudson (Informant) was born in 1898.

Copyright © 2022 by Sandra Williams Bush, Ancestor Callings: Georgia and Mississippi Roots. All Rights Reserved.

1950 U.S. Census Anticipation

The 1950 U.S. census was released on April 1, 2022. There has been so much hype about its release, especially in the past month -- on the date of the release, there were even virtual parties during the "midnight hour". 

I wasn't excited about it at all, and I attended one webinar that left me so confused. But by the evening of April 1st, curiosity got the best of me, so I found myself taking a look at the Ancestry.com site and National Archives site. Both had prominent link assistance on their home pages for the 1950 census. To me, it seemed that Ancestry wasn't quite ready for the release (see image below). I found the National Archives site much easier to work with because I didn't have to figure out an enumeration district. There were other major sites that had assistance on their landing pages but since I was overwhelmed with all the hype, I just concentrated on the two sites I mentioned.

I already knew who I primarily wanted to find in the 1950 census: my parents, Willis B. Williams and Evelyn O. Brown; my maternal grandmother, Lucy Brown; my mother's siblings; my father's grandmother, Mary Lane Button; and my father's siblings.

I didn't like that I had to have an address to find the enumeration district (ED) on Ancestry. The whole point of my looking at the 1950 census was to find out where family lived.

Image from Ancestry.com on 1 April 2022 at 8:06pm

National Archives site

I liked that I could put in name, city/county, and state on the National Archives site. However, I didn't have much hope in finding m Brown family because it's such a common name.

MY MOTHER'S FAMILY

I was so happy that my maternal grandmother, Lucy Brown, and her children were the first "hit" when I did the search on Archives.com

1950 U.S. census, Buffalo, Erie County, NY, ED 65-124, sheet 15, household 111, lines 1-5 (Lucy Brown family); U.S. National Archives,_1950 Census_(https://1950census.archives.gov/search/).

In the top image, my grandmother, Lucy Brown, 46, is listed as a widow, living at 586 William St., Buffalo, Erie, New York. Living with her are all her children -- daughter, Verlie, 25, a registered nurse, employed in private duty; son Arthur, 23, a presser at a tailor shop; daughter Vivian, 21, a college student; and daughter Evelyn (my mother), a waitress in a cafeteria. 

The second image is from the bottom of the census page. Sample #4 from the supplemental questions is my Auntie Vivian.

Maternal grandfather, Noah Brown and his sister, Ida Brown living in Cleveland Ohio was a surprise. I initially looked for Noah in Buffalo NY and then looked at Cleveland because that was his place of death in 1966. Interesting that Noah is listed as widowed (as is my grandmother in Buffalo NY). My happy surprise was finding my great-aunt Ida because I haven't been able to find much information on her as an adult.

1950 U.S. census, Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, OH, ED 92-897, sheet 6, household 61, lines 17-18 (Noah Brown and sister Ida Brown); U.S. National Archives,_1950 Census_(https://1950census.archives.gov/search/). 

Also in the household is Jordan, *unknown*, number 19 with "SEE NOTE" which is at top of census form.

MY FATHER'S FAMILY

Richard L. Davenport and Anna M. Davenport raised my father, Willis B. Williams and his sister, Joan Williams, when their mother passed in 1941. Anna M. Davenport (Button) was one of his mother's sisters. In this record, my father isn't listed because he's in the Army from 1949-1951 during the Korean Conflict. However, his sister, Joan, age 19 is listed. They live at 209 Walnut Street in Buffalo NY.

1950 U.S. census, Buffalo, Erie County, NY, ED 65-150, sheet 1, household 7, lines 22-24 (Richard Davenport family); U.S. National Archives,_1950 Census_(https://1950census.archives.gov/search/).

In 1950 my father's grandmother, Mary Button, was living in Detroit Michigan, with a daughter, Verna and son-in-law, Robert Bynum. Finding my great-grandmother was another guessing game because at the time of her death in 1955 she was living in Buffalo NY with her daughter and son-in-law, Anna M.  and Richard Davenport.

1950 U.S. census, Detroit, Wayne County, MI, ED 85-1072, sheet 3, household 18, lines 25-29 (Robert Bynum family); U.S. National Archives,_1950 Census_(https://1950census.archives.gov/search/).

I am pleased with the family I have found. However, I did not find my father's siblings in Detroit, Michigan. Their surname is Burkett. I only got one hit on that name, followed by pages and pages with various name spellings. So finding them will be a search for another day.

Copyright © 2022 by Sandra Williams Bush, Ancestor Callings: Georgia and Mississippi Roots. All Rights Reserved.

African American Veterans Monument WNY

On November 9, 2018, I attended the groundbreaking ceremony of the African American Veterans Monument.  The memorial will be built in the Buffalo & Erie County Navel and Military Park with construction scheduled to begin in the spring of 2019.   It will be a tribute to all African American veterans who served in all military branches from the Revolutionary War to the present.  The monument will hold the distinction of being the first of its kind in the United States.

When the call went out to the community for opportunities to purchase an engraved commemorative brick in the memory of a loved one, I considered it an honor to be able to make two purchases.  One for my father, PFC Willis B. Williams (1929-2011), who served during the Korean Conflict.  The other for my uncle, Sargent Arthur Brown (1927-1986), who served during WWII. 

Renditions of the planned African American Veterans Memorial in Buffalo NY

Happy 85th birthday to Mommy: A Throwback Pictorial

My mommy, Evelyn Orthelia Brown Williams, is the daughter of Noah Brown and Lucy Washington of Mississippi.  She was born November 30, 1931 in Buffalo NY, the youngest of four siblings, that include Verlie, Arthur, and Vivian.

Although a city girl (born & bred) her favorite music is Country (1950s & 1960s) and her favorite hobby is gardening.  One of her special memories is visiting cousins in Ashtabula OH (which is basically the country).  I guess Mississippi roots run deep.

This is the earliest picture I have of Mommy.

Mommy at age 12 with her sister, Vivian Elizabeth Brown, age 14
So I asked why the long faces --  this was an Easter picture and they didn't like their outfits.

Fosdick Masten High School social club, circa late 1940s
Mommy seated, 2nd from left. Friends throughout adulthood (seated): Julia Bolden (left of Mommy), Bronite Blenman (right of Mommy) and Harriett Carlise (far right)

From a Buffalo NY newspaper when Mommy was part of a debutante ceremony.
This article is yellowing and unfortunately I don't know the newspaper.

With brother, Arthur Brown

Wedding picture, September 26, 1952.
She and Willis B. Williams were married in the home of her mother, Lucy Washington Brown

25th birthday party, 1956

Mommy told me that Daddy gave her this 25th birthday party

Birthday dinner at local restaurant, 1980s
Left to right: Daughter Sandra Ann,; Granddaughter Elizabeth Orthelia; Evelyn Orthelia; Husband Willis Burkette; Son Richard Lamonte (Flick)

Starting With Me

Sandra Ann Williams , born 1953, in the crib my father hand-made.

Most books, articles, workshops, etc. on genealogy state that research starts with yourself but it never dawned on me to do my own biography until recently.

I was born and raised in Buffalo, New York, the daughter of Willis B. and Evelyn O. Williams. Under their strong love, guidance and support, I was instilled with the importance of family, loyalty and community.

My earliest memories are of growing up at 218 Walnut Street in Buffalo and attending P.S. 47.  Months before my sixth grade graduation, my family moved to 523 Woodlawn Avenue in Buffalo's "Cold Spring" area. I remember my brothers and I thinking that we were rich because it was a beautifully tree-lined neighborhood with large well-kept homes. My brothers, Richard, Steven, Barry, and Raymond were transferred to the new neighborhood school, P.S. #53.  For the few months until my sixth grade graduation, I stayed in the old neighborhood living with my great-aunt, Elizabeth Mason aka Auntie Lizzie during the school week and going home for the weekends.

In September 1965 I attended the neighborhood school Woodlawn Jr. High (from 7th through 9th grades), and later East High School (1968-1971).  After a few false attempts at college -- Howard University {I attended Howard because it was my mother's dream to go there}, Villa Maria College, and Buffalo State College -- I finally earned an undergraduate degree from Medialle College in Human Services (1981). 

Not finding a job in my field, I worked a variety of jobs before taking a county clerical exam and being offered a job at the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library where I worked at many of the city branches, including the mobile units, the RAM Van and Lookie Bookie. While at the library, I attended evening classes at the University of Buffalo School of Information Library Science and earned a Master of Library Science degree (1991).

My biggest joy has been my daughter, Elizabeth --  her birth, raising her, seeing the woman she has become and sharing travel experiences with her. (At her request I never mention her age or birth year and seldom full name on social media.)

I met my husband, Joseph Bush, in 1986 while we were working at the Central Library. We married and honeymooned in Niagara Falls NY on January 6, 1996.  I retired from the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library in August 2015 after 30 years of service. My last position was Branch Manager of the Frank E. Merriweather, Jr. Library.

Since 1995, I have performed as a solo artist and as a charter member of Tradition Keepers: Black Storytellers of Western New York.  In addition to storytelling, I am a djembe drummer with the group Daughters of Creative Sound (since 2004), an African American women's percussion ensemble. 

I am currently ENJOYING retirement!

Pieces of Me -- Saints Home C.O.G.I.C.

On October 1, 2014 the church I had known as Saints Home Church Of God in Christ was demolished.  Until news reports and the preservation efforts I did not know that it was the oldest synagogue in Buffalo NY, although I knew it had been a synagogue.

"Preservationists chain themselves inside oldest synagogue to prevent demolition
from The Buffalo News (Buffalo NY), October 12, 2014, page C3

Saints Home Church of God in Christ is where I was first touched by those soulful spirituals that still comfort me today.   Some of them include:

A Little Talk With Jesus

I Shall Not Be Moved

I Couldn't Hear Nobody Pray

His Eye Is On the Sparrow

Every Time I Feel the Spirit

Pass Me Not

In addition to my parents and grandparents, this is the place that shaped my moral character.  I fondly remember what I now think of as "church before church" when the Mothers and/or Deacons of the church led Testimony  --  a tradition where you would stand before the congregation and publicly thank God for his blessings.  I also fondly remember Sunday School, chicken dinners, Easter programs, Christmas programs, and the first family of the church  --  Rev. and Mrs. Carl Roberson and their children, my church friends.

My father, Willis B. Williams, painted a larger-than-life picture of Jesus and it was dedicated in a ceremony in the Spring or Summer of 1961.   I am guessing at the season because my little brother Raymond was born in November 1960 and he is the baby in my mother's arms. The painting was right behind the pulpit and commanded your attention as soon as you entered the sanctuary.  

Adults:  Willis B. Williams, Evelyn O. Williams, Lucy  Brown; Children: Raymond L Williams (Baby), Steven A, Williams, Richard L. Williams, Willis Barry Williams, Sandra A. Williams

I remember my father on the floor of the living room painting this picture over a period of time.  Daddy painted the picture to donate to Saints Home in honor of my grandmother, Mrs. Lucy Brown  and my mother because that was their home church.  It was the first time I ever saw Jesus as a man of color.

This painting by Willis B. Williams was inspired by the scripture:

"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.   Revelation 3:20 King James Version 

Although I did not attend Saints Home after puberty, I still feel saddened by the demolition. A piece of my growing up past no longer physically exist  --  for decades I passed the building that once housed Saints Home C.O.G.I.C.   Sometimes I even went out of my way to see it because it spoke to me in a way  --  connected me, transported me, and grounded me. The building may be gone, but . . .

The bride wore pink - Evelyn Orthelia Brown

My parents, Willis Burkett WILLIAMS and Evelyn Orthelia BROWN were married on Friday, September 26, 1952.  The bride wore a dusty pink gown.  My Mom told that was the fashion at the time.  (Two months later her sister, Verlie BROWN, married Raymond T. WALTON in an ice blue wedding dress.)  The maid of honor was my Dad's sister, Joan WILLIAMS.  The best man was Auntie Joan's boyfriend Isiah.

I always loved my Mom's wedding dress and she gave it to me  (or I kidnapped it) when I was in high school.  I never dreamed about wearing it because (1) it was a size that I never was, and (2) and I never planned on getting married.  However, I did have dreams for the gown  --  I wanted to have a master suite with the gown as the focal point on a dressmaker form.

Neither my Mom nor I ever did anything to preserve her gown.  It's been on hangers from one house move to another.  At any rate I think it still looks good even through a bit wrinkled.  I showed my Mom this picture today  --  the anniversary date of her wedding anniversary  --  and she was surprised I still had the gown.

From the Buffalo Criterion newspaper:
Mr. and Mrs. Willis Williams are cutting their cake at their wedding reception at the home of Mr. Williams uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Davenport, Friday, Sept. 26 following their wedding at 5 p. m. at the bride's home.  She is the former Evelyn O. Brown of 386 William St.  The couple spent the weekend in Detroit.












IMAGES:
Photograph. Isiah (?), Willis Burkett WILLIAMS, Evelyn BROWN,and  Joan WILLIAMS 26 September 1952. Buffalo, Erie, New York. Private collection of Evelyn Brown WILLIAMS, Buffalo, Erie, New York.

Photograph. Wedding dress of Evelyn Brown WILLIAMS. Private collection of Sandra Williams Bush, Buffalo, Erie, New York.

Article. The Buffalo Criterion

Griot Stroll

On Saturday, June 28, 2014 Tradition Keepers: Black Storytellers of Western New York presented a Griot Stroll with several members telling stories about Buffalo's Black History.  I told my mother's story, Evelyn O. Brown, relating to the historical area where we were telling.  Taking the liberty of a storyteller, this is the story I told:

Evelyn O. Brown

          On this stroll you will hear about the famous and the prominent features of the African American influence on this area. I am not famous and I am not prominent. My name is Evelyn Brown and I am one of the first generations of my family born in the north. I was born in Buffalo during the 1930s. Both my parents were born in Mississippi and several members of their families came to northern states during the Great Migration -- this was a period when African Americans moved from the South to the North for better opportunities for them and their children . The were following the great American dream just as European immigrants did went they made it to Ellis Island.

          This area had been home to African Americans since the early 1800s. I was a toddler when the Jessie Clipper Monument was established by the Common Council in 1935. It’s right over there on the corner William Street and Michigan Avenue. Private Clipper was the first Negro soldier from Buffalo to die in World War I. The monument stands in memory of the valiant service of Negroes in all wars . . . take a moment to visit it.

          The Buffalo I grew up in was a segregated city. I grew up in this area in the 1930s and 1940s and I remember when it was a thriving community. And more than that, it was a neighborhood. Children would walk to school together and then back home again at the end of the day. After we did our homework, had dinner, and did our chores, we got to play outside for a while. The boys would play games like stick-ball or marbles. The girls would play games like hopscotch or jump rope. We would play to sing-song rhymes like “Ring-Around the Rosie” and “Miss Mary Mack”.

          Right along this area and down William Street there were drug stores, restaurants, candy stores, cleaners, hotels, nightclubs, funeral parlors. We didn’t have to leave the community for anything. We certainly need to go downtown; of course most of the stores downtown didn’t want Negroes in them anyway unless we were the cleaning staff. That’s pretty much how I ended up working at the Michigan Avenue YMCA. I had a secretarial diploma from high school. My typing, shorthand and general clerical skills were very good -- I was at the top of my class; but Negroes weren’t hired to work the front offices of the white businesses and companies.

           Did you know that the Michigan Avenue YMCA was designed by a Black man? His name was John Brent. The Y had an important place in our community -- it was a gathering place, a communal place. It had a cafeteria, gym, swimming pool, barber shop, tailor shop, library; and classrooms, locker rooms, dormitory rooms, and billiard tables. I started going to the Y in high school. Several of my friends and I were members of a girls Hi-Y club. One of my fondest memories was a powerful little woman named Mary Chapelle, who taught us deportment classes -- that is, how to be a lady. There were also similar classes for boys and young men on how to be a responsible members of the community.

          The media did not report our news -- for that we relied on Ebony and Jet magazines. For local news and events we had the Buffalo Star and later the Merriweather family published The Criterion.

          So as I said in the beginning, I am not prominent in Buffalos’ Black history and I’m not famous. The Michigan corridor IS important to Buffalo’s Black history and it was important in my life.  I met my husband, Willis B. Williams, at the Michigan Avenue Y and we dated along the Michigan Avenue corridor.  We were married almost 60 years until he made his transition in 2011.

          My name is Sandra Williams Bush and this is the story of my mother, Evelyn O. Brown.

When I got home later I had two messages from a dna cousin on my mom's side; a branch that she doesn't really know about.  The Stamps family from Mississippi.  Ancestors calling my name . . .

Sandra Williams Bush

Tradition Keepers: Black Storytellers of WNY