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CoastLine: Cynthia Brown on the legacy of 1898 and how ignorance of Wilmington's history perpetuates the harms of white supremacy

Cynthia Brown, descendant of the Howe family in Wilmington, in the WHQR studio February 2022
RLH
Cynthia Brown, descendant of the Howe family in Wilmington, in the WHQR studio February 2022

Even though she was born and raised in the Brooklyn section of Wilmington, it took years before Cynthia Brown learned details of the massacre that shattered families, gutted a thriving Black professional class, and caused her great-grandmother, from her deathbed, to grab Cynthia’s wrist and urge her to “run” if it ever happens again. 

The Cape Fear region continues to boom. In 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau reported Wilmington’s population at about 106,000 people. Just ten years later, the port city’s population had grown to more than 115,000. But one statistic is going in the other direction: the number of Black citizens who call Wilmington home.

In 2010, African-American people constituted almost 20% of the population. By 2020, that number had dropped to 18%, and the white population had grown proportionately.

The draws to southeastern North Carolina are easy to understand: beautiful beaches, milder weather, and friendly tax rates.

But according to one local resident, “Not knowing the history can be destructive to a community. When people have no sense of the ground they are standing on, they just keep perpetuating what has already occurred.”

This is what Cynthia Brown explained to Washington Post reporter Sydney Trent. It was October of 2020. Trent was writing about the parallels between the Wilmington, North Carolina coup d'état of 1898 and 21st century concerns about voter suppression in the upcoming presidential election.

Phillip Brown (left), Dr. Geoff Ward (middle), Cynthia Brown (right); descendants of Wilmington's Howe family
Cynthia Brown
Phillip Brown (left), Dr. Geoff Ward (middle), Cynthia Brown (right); descendants of Wilmington's Howe family

Even though she was born and raised in the Brooklyn section of Wilmington, it took years before Cynthia Brown learned details of the massacre that shattered families, gutted a thriving Black professional class, and caused her great-grandmother, from her deathbed, to grab Cynthia’s wrist and urge her to “run” if it ever happens again.

Alfred Howe was a leading citizen and builder in an era of strong black community and economic life in Wilmington who amassed a "fortune", according to the Wilmington Messenger in 1892.
photo courtesy of Cynthia Brown
Alfred Howe was a leading citizen and builder in an era of strong black community and economic life in Wilmington who amassed a "fortune", according to the Wilmington Messenger in 1892.
This is believed to be Mary Howe, wife of Alfred Howe.
photo courtesy of Cynthia Brown
This is believed to be Mary Howe, wife of Alfred Howe.

What Cynthia did know as a teenager: she wanted to shed Wilmington as soon as she could. And she did. After graduating from one of New Hanover High School’s first desegregated classes, she started college that very summer. She wasn’t sure she ever wanted to return to Wilmington, but she did. And today we’ll find out why.

Cynthia Brown is a retired Human Resources professional, a community advocate, and the historian and Christian Education Director for St. Stephen AME church in Wilmington. She is also the historian for the graduate chapter of her sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha.

Rachel hosts and produces CoastLine, an award-winning hourlong conversation featuring artists, humanitarians, scholars, and innovators in North Carolina. The show airs Wednesdays at noon and Sundays at 4 pm on 91.3 FM WHQR Public Media. It's also available as a podcast; just search CoastLine WHQR. You can reach her at rachellh@whqr.org.