Event shares 'HER'story of resilience in Allendale County

The stories of seven influential Allendale women were reenacted at the Black Resilience – Past, Present, and Future: Telling HERstory event hosted by the Allendale County Historical Society on February 13.

The James Brandt Building on Barnwell Road was recreated into the 1953 train station at the intersection of highways 125, 278, and 301 to set the historical scene for the event. Prints showing the northern, southern, eastern, and western view hung on the walls were provided by the Savannah River Site to orient guests into the experience.

The roleplaying event was created to share the stories of Black women who were influential in building the education, healthcare, and business sectors in Allendale County during the time of segregation. Although each dealt with personal, professional, and societal challenges, this event detailed their resilience throughout every obstacle as they navigated their careers and lives.

The seven women featured are Lillian Carter Lawton, Eva Mae Fields, Mattie Berry Drayton, Deanna Deloach Cohen, Mattye L. Thompson, Annie Mae Jones Butler, and Helen Aiken Stoney. Although each story is independent of the others, they all intertwined together to show the meaningful community they created together.

“Telling HERstory features the contribution of seven unique members of Allendale County, deeply rooted in the circumstances and experiences of their lives as educators, entrepreneurs, and a health professional,” said Sarah Bing, Allendale County Historical Society Committee Chairperson.

Boxed dinners were provided at the event, and every item of food inside carried significance. Fried chicken was donated by Hardee’s in Allendale, a slice of pound cake, Jollibee rice, black eyed pea balls, and water from the Healing Springs in Blackville.

“History documents that enslaved Africans to the Carolinas were direct descendants of the people of West Africa. Adding these cultural items to the boxed meal menu allows for a greater connection and meaningful practice of the past of Black history and culture in this region of the low country,” said Patricia Matthews, board member of Keep Allendale County Beautiful, at the event.

Each box also contained a Kente Cloth which originates back to 12th century Africa in Ghana and the Ashanti People. During this era in Ghana, a Kente Cloth was worn by royalty and important figures during ceremonies. An Ashanti King would create a new design to represent his reign.

“The Kente Cloth is our gift to you, please keep it as a reminder of the rich culture from which it emanates,” said Matthews.

Once the event began, each actor took to the podium to share a bit about the life of the individual they represented.

Read more about each individual in the stories below.

Lillian Carter Lawton was portrayed by mentee and friend, Zilla H. Williams.

“Mrs. Lawton was always smiling, and if you notice I have this tissue here. She always had a handkerchief in her sleeve,” said Williams of the beloved educator.

Before her teaching career began, Lawton went to Allendale Training School, then attended a math academy in Beaufort and attended Spelman College to receive her bachelor's of arts degree in education. Lawton began her teaching career in Allendale and Barnwell counties in 1954 and dutifully served her students until her retirement in 1986. For 32 years, she impacted every student who entered her classroom. Williams and her students remember her as a strict English teacher who was big on penmanship and made her students present their composition by memory. Outside of teaching, Lawton had been involved with the Galilee Baptist Church at a young age where she attended Sunday school, sang in the choir, and represented the church at various conventions.

After her retirement from the world of education, Lawton became a pianist at the Cave Funeral Home under Charlie Cave. Here she served as church pianist, treasurer, president of the missionary society, secretary of the ladies auxiliary, and youth advisor to the young girls association. Lawton also played piano at Simpson United Methodist Church in Allendale and participated on various committees within the church and was a member of the Mount Hope Baptist Association in Allendale County.

Williams fondly remembers taking trips with Lawton to women’s Baptist association events and sharing stories the entire way. She was a member of the Allendale County Retired Educators Association and served as the secretary for the Allendale County Democratic Party. In April 2017, Lawton was recognized by both houses of SC Congress and presented the Outstanding Citizen in South Carolina Award. Three months later she was awarded the Distinguished Service Award from the Allendale County School Board of Trustees. She also received the Lifetime of Service Award from the Allendale County African American Culture Center.

“I love her, and I’m going to miss her,” said Williams.

Lawton was born in Allendale County on June 29, 1924 and passed away on October 30, 2022 at Pruitt Health Center in Barnwell. Throughout those 98 years, Lawton “touched the lives of many students,” said Williams.

Eva Mae Fields was portrayed by Annette Johnson Cave, who served as a member of the committee that brought this event together.

Fields came to Allendale County after graduating from Culver High School in Savannah, Ga. Upon her arrival in Allendale, she found a passion in education. Her career began in the Baldock community in Allendale before moving to the Bull Pond region. At the time her teaching career began, the current high school building had not yet been built so she taught in small school houses in the outskirts of the county. When the high school was built in 1968, the students who went to school in the country began to mingle with the students from the city as they were all under one roof.

Regardless of where she taught, Fields was always teaching and sharing her love for math. Known as a ‘math wizard,’ Fields eventually began teaching sixth grade at the C.V. Bing School which was the first school built on a main highway to cater to Black students in Allendale County. Participation was key in Fields’ classroom and she encouraged her students to be actively engaged in their education. Her passion for her work was driven by the support of others and the growth of her students. Most days she would eat lunch with her friend and fellow educator across the hall, Mattye L. Thompson.

Mattie Berry Drayton was portrayed by Angela Doe Youmans, a board member of the Allendale County Historical Society.

Drayton is described as a trailblazer whose “pursuit of higher education and a profession was most deliberate and intentional,” said Youmans. Drayton’s interest in the field of education began at home from a young age as she always had an aptitude for teaching others and was a lifelong learner. Drayton’s dedication “to service, people, and their community that honors the rich heritage from which my story emanates,” said Youmans. Drayton graduated as the salutatorian at Allendale Training High School and then attended Voorhees College. Drayton then graduated from Benedict College which was a teachers college at the time and went on to receive a master’s degree from SC State University.

Throughout her 41 years in education, Drayton spent 26 of them teaching and 15 of them in administration. She began at Cave Elementary, later taught at Allendale Training School, and then went on to teach at C.V. Bing Elementary and Allendale County Primary School. Once Drayton stepped into the administrative side of the education field, she served as the principal of Fairfax Elementary, Allendale County Preschool Program, and the Allendale County Primary School.

Outside of her dedicated teaching career, Drayton was also a member of Beulah Baptist Church where she served as secretary and president of the missionary society. Drayton was the first past president of the ladies auxiliary for the Mount Hope Missionary Baptist Association and served as the secretary of the Mount Hope Missionary Sunday School Convention for 25 years. Drayton became a past worthy matron of the Order of the Eastern Star (OES) Rising Star Chapter 284, a past district four OES flag bearer, and a member of the Prince Hall Assembly of OES Chapter 284. Drayton also was a member of the Allendale County Retired Educators Association, and the S.C. Education Association. She became a life member of three organizations – the National Education Association, SC Association of Elementary School Principals, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Aside from her accomplishments specific to the education sector, Drayton was nominated for and listed in the 1975 edition of Notable Americans of the Bicentennial. In the same publication she was named a community member and notable leader. Drayton was also listed as a ‘Personality of the South’ in both the 1975 and 1976 publication.

Deanna Deloach Cohen was portrayed by her daughter-in-law, Georgia Smart Cohen.

Cohen was the oldest child of 13 and her family moved quite often when she was young. Their constant upheaval to another farming community led her to look for a career outside of agriculture. When Cohen became school aged, she began attending schools in the rural area of Allendale County before her family moved into the town. Cohen’s first job was working alongside L.F. Butler, the husband of Annie Mae Jones Butler, owner of Butler’s Florist in Allendale.

After Cohen married her husband, Ulysses, they began to raise a family on Palmer Hill in Allendale. Cohen attended Benedict College and then attended S.C. State University to work on obtaining her master’s degree. She was hired for her first job in education by renowned professor and educator, C.V. Bing, where her passion for teaching began. She taught first and second grade here. After her retirement in 1975, she began to travel visiting nine different countries and found Tel Aviv, Israel particularly beautiful.

Cohen was a member of the National Education Association, Fidelity Chapter #40 OES where she was a past matron, and joined the Prince Hall Assembly #282 where she became the first and oldest State Grand Lawyer Lady Ruler from the area. Cohen was a lifelong member of Mount Calvary Baptist Church where she served as an usher since she was young.

Although she was retired, Cohen jumped back into teaching and began working with students requiring special attention. Here Cohen developed an even deeper love for education.

“It doesn't matter where you start, it's where you end up,” said Cohen of her mother-in-law.

Cohen was born in Allendale and was 95 when she passed away on February 21, 2009.

Mattye L. Thompson was portrayed by her daughter, Cheryl Thompson.

Raised in Oconee County, Thompson attended elementary and high school in Westminster. As one of ten children who doubled as farm hands, she wanted to move as far as possible from South Carolina after graduation and sought a career in education. She attended S.C. State University in Orangeburg where she earned a degree in education. After graduating from S.C. State, she got her first job in Pickens County where she taught for a couple of years before moving on.

“With only a suitcase, I used my determination, my tenacity, and my magnetic personality to cultivate a life right here in Allendale County,” said Thompson of her mother. She traveled with a friend from Oconee County to Allendale, a place she had never been before.

As she continued teaching, she gained a great sense of achievement watching students grow and develop as individuals. Part of this development was not using the word ‘ain’t,’ which her students quickly learned she was not a fan of. Thompson aimed to ensure her students could communicate effectively and stressed the importance of it when searching for employment.

Thompson was very involved in community outreach in Allendale County as well as many civil organizations. She was a dedicated member of Beulah Baptist Church, a member of Fidelity Chapter #40 OES, and was grand matron of an OES chapter as well. Thompson was also a member of the NAACP.

Aside from teaching and her community, Thompson was an avid music lover. Her daughter recounts smells of Pine Sol and a breeze when her mother would clean the house on weekend mornings and open all the doors and windows while music echoed throughout the house. Her husband, Rev. George Thompson, played the saxophone and she played the piano both in and out of the church.

Thompson made such an impact on her students, they would come visit her on her Hill Street home for years after her retirement. She taught them that they were just as important as anyone else in this world and to value their future in light of their past.

“Life is full of inspiration and ideas waiting to be visualized,” said Thompson.

Annie Mae Jones Butler was portrayed by Odean Smart Mosley.

The fifth child to the late James and Mattie Jones, Butler started her education in Hampton and Aiken counties. Once she graduated high school, Butler attended S.C. State University in Orangeburg receiving her bachelor's degree in home economics. Her professional career began with Clemson University as a Home Demonstration Agent in Allendale County.

However, she is best known for opening Butler’s Florist on Wagner Street in 1950. Butler’s legacy lives on every time the door to Butler’s Florist opens and her daughter is waiting to greet customers with a smile. Her husband, Lewis Livingston Butler Jr., worked in education at the time she was running the flower shop. He would frequently send wayward students to work in the shop where they shared parts of their lives with Butler over cutting flower stems. Not only did she enjoy working with the children and giving them a sense of work ethic, but she enjoyed guiding them through the problems they may not have wanted to discuss with parents.

Butler was a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc., Fidelity Chapter #40 OES and Prince Hall Assembly #282. Butler was also an avid fisherman, and often kept a fishing pole nearby if she ever had the opportunity to cast a line.

Butler was born on February 20, 1914 and passed away at the age of 90 on October 20, 2004 following an extended illness.

Helen Aiken Stoney was represented by her daughter, Mae Helen Stoney Hartley.

“God is always in the midst of everything that I have done these 95 years here on this earth,” said Hartley, who still cares for her mother.

Stoney served as Allendale’s “favorite hometown nurse” while working at the local doctor’s office. She came into the healthcare field by chance when the previous nurse was set to retire and asked her to take her position. Stoney accepted the position, and for the next 37 plus years dutifully healed the people of Allendale County. Stoney began at the practice when the sides of the office were segregated, and “watched that Black and white come together,” said her daughter.

Every day she would walk to and from the doctor’s office which later served as a testament to the dedication she had in her work. While working full time, Stoney was raising five children as a single mother after her husband, Isaac, died at a young age.

The family lived on Pecan Street, and although a single parent, she did not raise her children alone.“Raising a child took the village, Pecan Street was my village,” said Hartley while portraying her mother. Her brother also played a large part in their upbringing.

Although Stoney only had a sixth-grade education, she made it a priority that each of her children received their high school diploma – which they all did. Stoney is a member of the American Legion Ladies Auxiliary in Allendale and occasionally spent her free time selling paper poppies on the weekends.

Both in the doctor's office and on Pecan Street, Stoney is always willing to help wherever she can.