Seattle’s Black community suffers a loss with the passing of Jacqueline E. A. Lawson, but her legacy lives on in perpetuity

Jacqueline E. A. Lawson (Photo Black Heritage Society of Washington State)

It’s hard to put into words the impact that the late Jacqueline E. A. Lawson, who passed on July 15th, 2021 at the age of 93, had on Seattle’s Black community. Lawson, alongside historian Esther Mumford, Lawson founded the Black Heritage Society of Washington State in 1977. The noted historian worked tirelessly to document the roots of individuals and the Black community as a whole in the city of Seattle, as well as becoming a prominent name in the genealogy community. 

Her own roots in the city stretched back to the 1880s. Her grandfather, Charles Harvey, was one of the founding members of First African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1886, in what is now Seattle’s Capitol Hill Neighborhood. FAME is the oldest Black church in the city, and pre-dates Washington’s statehood by three years. It was this deep connection to her community that current Black Heritage Society President Stephanie Johnson-Toliver said motivated Lawson to preserve its history. 

“Once you start that, once you go down that rabbit hole [of genealogy], there's no turning back,” Johnson-Toliver said. “All of that is what inspired her to learn more about her family and share more with others about her discoveries.”

The DuBois Dramatic Club comprised of First A.M.E. Church members, 1915 (Photo BHS)

Lawson with her mother, Irene Alexander, 1934 (Photo BHS)

Lawson used those discoveries and interests in her position as a founder of the Black Heritage Society, where she also served as the Collections Manager at the organization. More important than that, though, she inspired a generation of historians and activists to follow in her footsteps. 

“That really encouraged me to look harder at the history here in Seattle and statewide,” Johnson-Toliver said. “I just don't know how much more to say than every time I talked to her, I learned something new. There wasn't one single time when I communicated with her for the past 10 years that I didn't learn something.”

Jacqueline Lawson with Carol Peoples-Proctor and Stephanie Johnson-Toliver (Photo Black Heritage Society of Washington State)

Johnson-Toliver, of course, who is now the President of the BHS, has become a key voice in the preservation of Black history in Seattle and Washington State as a whole. She credits Lawson with much more than piquing her interest. 

“Jackie was that rock that I swam to whenever I needed it. Not only for her encouragement, but just her advice and wisdom around the history of Black people,” Johnson-Toliver said. 

Lawson’s impact wasn’t limited to the BHS. Prior to her passing, she received numerous awards, including the Lifetime Legacy Award from the American Association of State and Local History in 2019. Johnson-Toliver said Lawson was awed by her selection, and consistently appreciated the honors bestowed upon her but never seeked them out. 

Her contributions to the historical community were recognized again earlier this year, when she received an award from the Association of King County Historical Associations. 

“She received those awards and acknowledgments but she wasn’t the kind of person who felt that she was worthy of all of this attention,” Johnson-Toliver said. “Yet she embraced it.”

A letter recommending Lawson to the AASLH Awards Committee (Stephanie Johnson-Toliver)

Alongside her work documenting the Black experience in Seattle, she was also a published author. Many of her works are highly regarded in the historical community, including Let’s Take a Walk, which maps out the Central District in the 1920s and 30s and paints a picture of the community which once thrived there. She also published a guide for people searching for their family roots, which genealogists refer to as their ‘genealogy 101’. Lawson’s interest in genealogy extended past books, as she was also the co-founder of the Black Genealogy Research Group in 1995. 

“She dedicated her life to history and helping other people find their roots,” Johnson-Toliver said. “She inspired me to become the president of the Black Heritage Society.”

It is clear that Lawson’s legacy in the state will be felt for years to come. The work she did serves as a lasting reminder of the impact of the Black community state-wide, and that no matter who or where you are you can find community and family. 

“She would always say to me, Stephanie, never forget to tell people that we are open to taking legacy items and preserving them in perpetuity,” Johnson-Toliver said. “We hold the largest public collection of Black memorabilia in the state. I say follow your interest. Know your history, come to BHS. That was one of the things that she would always promote.”

There is an old African proverb that says “When an elder dies, a library burns to the ground” in the case of Jacqueline Lawson, her life’s work will live on forever through the Black Heritage Society of Washington State.

Lawson outside the reading room at BHS named after her (Photo BHS)