Lillie Anna "Mother" James (June 1876 – November 3, 1957) was an American educator who established a school for African American children in Pensacola, Florida. Her son, Daniel James Jr., became the first black full general in U.S. history.[1] She is listed as a Great Floridian.
Biography
She was born as Lillie Anna Brown to William and Hattie (Crenshaw) Brown[2] in June 1876,[3] in Pensacola, where she lived her entire life. On December 23, 1894, she married Daniel James, a native of Alabama. They had 17 children, many of whom died young. Her son Daniel James Jr. would become a U.S. Air Force four star general.[4]
James established the Lillie Anna James Private School for her own children and other black youths in her community; it would become a prestigious middle school and junior high school.[1] Her 11th commandment was: "Thou shalt not quit", a call for her children to prove they could compete on an equal basis.[5] She died in 1957.[6]
Her former home, where she ran the school, is located at 1606 Martin Luther King Boulevard. Pensacola's Memorial Garden includes a marker in her honor.[7]
