Wicomico Co. Public Library spotlights Black history through living museum

SALISBURY, Md. – From inventions, to activism, Black individuals played a substantial role in making Salisbury history what it is today.

The Wicomico County Public Library hosted its first ever Black Living History Museum. Fellow aide at the library, Julia Hughey, said the museum showed a glimpse of the Black history timeline on the Eastern Shore.

“It is important to recognize that we as a people have contribute to America, and that all our contributions weren’t just done in one day, they were done over a period of time,” Hughey said.

Representing activist Billy Gene Jackson, Salisbury city council member, April Jackson, shared the story of how her father became a voice for the Black community in Wicomico County.

“What he did was he advocated for politicians, and to have our area in the city of Salisbury, which is now district 1, where we didn’t have a district like that,” Jackson said. “It was hard for us to get an African American in office.”

Continuing her father’s legacy through her own work as a council member, Jackson said hosting events like these helps preserve the Eastern Shore’s Black history, for it to be passed down to the younger generations.

“We do have a lot of history here on the Eastern Shore, and it gives the young people an insight on him, because the young people do not know who he is, and it gives them the opportunity to see who he is,” Jackson said.