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Feature
Attorneys Launch Movement To Have Peer Admitted To Florida Bar
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
It began as a simple con- versation about unsung heroes between a Hillsborough County judge and her judicial assistant. During that conver- sation between Judge Clau- dia Isom and Mrs. Marlina McClure, the name of Ms. Blanche Armwood came up.
Ms. Armwood was the first African American woman in the state to graduate from an accredited school of law. However, Ms. Armwood never returned to Florida to attempt entry into the associa- tion and died suddenly the year after graduating.
Now, 125 years after her birth and 77 years after her graduation from Howard Law School, her peers are attempt- ing to have that honor be- stowed upon her, posthumously.
Judge Isom contacted Attorney Fentrice Driskell, President of the George Edgecomb Bar Associ- ation, who “grabbed the idea and ran with it.”
“She would be the first
BLANCHE ARMWOOD 1/23/1890 --- 10/16/1939
Black female attorney in the state. Attorney Arthenia Joyner is still the first prac- ticing attorney in Hillsborough County, Judge Isom said.
Currently, records show that Attorney Bernice Gaines Dorn became the first Black woman attorney to join the Florida Bar after ob- taining her law degree from Florida A & M University in 1958.
Attorney Driskell said, “It seemed like a perfect fit. We’re thankful she (Judge Isom) brought the idea to us.”
The ladies agreed that Ms. Armwood’s moral character is without question, but that
Several attorneys were on hand for the unveiling of the bust of Blanche Armwood on the Riverwalk last year. Among those at the unveiling were from left to right Attorney Sylvia Berrien, Attorney Theresa Jean-Pierre Coy, Attorney Fentrice Driskell, and Hillsbor- ough County Judge Claudia Isom.
Doctorate Degree, becoming the first Black woman from Florida to earn a law degree.
Ms. Armwood was a Civil Rights and Women’s Rights pioneer. At 16, Ms. Armwood graduated from the English-Latin course “summa cum laude,” at Spel- man Seminary, and earned her teaching certificate.
In 1914, the Tampa Gas Company, in conjunction with the Hillsborough County Board of Education and the Colored Ministers Alliance, hired her to organize an indus- trial arts school that would specialize in domestic science. In its first year of operation, over two hundred women re- ceived certificates of comple- tion.
Ms. Armwood was ap- pointed as the first Supervisor of Negro Schools in 1914, at the age of 32. She remained in that position for 8 years. Dur- ing her tenure, Ms. Arm- wood added five new school buildings, increased Black teachers’ salaries, and ex- tended the school year for Black students from six to nine months.
She was instrumental in establishing Booker T. Wash- ington High School, in 1926, as the first African American high school in Hillsborough County. Ms. Armwood was also a published author and the first Executive Secretary of the Tampa Urban League.
She also took an active role in the Women’s Suffrage Movement, the anti-lynching crusades, and politics.
Congressman Michael Bilirakis and the Florida House of Representatives rec- ognized Ms. Armwood in 1984. The same year, a new Hillsborough County High School was named in her honor.
Ms. Armwood was mar- ried twice, but did not have any children.
she also graduated from Howard Law School. That goal was accomplished after Attor- ney Sylvia Berrien, the Co- Chairperson of the Edgecomb Bar Historical Society, re- searched and found a copy of a letter from Howard University certifying that Ms. Arm-
wood obtained her law de- gree. It was located in the Spe- cial Collections section at USF Library.
The next step is to find support that Ms. Armwood intended to practice law. The next step is to locate a letter of recommendation from Peter O. Knight.
Also, in order to accom- plish this goal, they need the support of the community.
Anyone who wishes to sup- port the movement can mail a letter to the George Edgecomb Bar Association, P. O. Box 956, Tampa, Florida 33601-0956; or send emails to sberrien- law@aol.com. The letter must be received by May 31st and must be signed with the writer’s legal name.
About Blanche Armwood A Tampa native, Ms. Blanche Armwood decided that she wanted to become an attorney at the age of 44. She enrolled in Howard Law School in 1934, and gradu- ated in 1938, with her Juris
PAGE 4 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2015