Perry B. Jackson
Perry Brooks Jackson[1] (January 27, 1896 – March 20, 1986) was Ohio's first elected judge who was African American.[2]
Biography
[edit]Born in Zanesville, Ohio, Jackson was sworn in as judge in the State of Ohio in 1942.[2][3] He served Cleveland and Cuyahoga County for 44 years before his death in 1986.[3] Jackson married Fern Josephine Payne (d. 1983) in 1933.[2] They had no children.[2] Jackson died in Cleveland and was buried at Highland Park Cemetery.[2]
Education
[edit]After graduating from Zanesville High School, Jackson worked his way through Western Reserve University (now Case Western Reserve University) and eventually graduated magna cum laude.[3] Jackson earned his law degree from Western Reserve University School of Law in 1922.[4]
Career
[edit]Jackson began his legal career practicing law in the Cleveland area. From 1923 to 1927 Jackson worked as an editor for of the city's black newspaper, the Cleveland Call.[2][3] Jackson worked his way up to editor of the Cleveland Call.[4] He left the position when the Cleveland Call merged with the Cleveland Post to become the Call and Post.[4]
Public service
[edit]Jackson was elected to the Ohio Legislature in 1928, called the General Assembly, as an active Republican.[2][3] Jackson was the first African American to win a county-wide election in Cuyahoga County—the County in which Cleveland, Ohio sits, which was at the time a bustling metropolis.[3]
While a member of Ohio's General Assembly he was responsible for the adoption of permanent voter registration forms eliminating reference to color or race.[2][3] He also was responsible for legislation pinning down the function of notaries public.[3]
Jackson also served on Cleveland City Council.[3] He was later appointed assistant police prosecutor (serving from July 1934-Aug. 1941), eventually becoming chief prosecutor for the City of Cleveland.[2][3] From August 1941 to April 1942, Jackson served as secretary to the director of public utilities for Cleveland.[2]
Jackson was appointed to the bench in Cleveland Municipal Court in 1942 to take the place of David Moylan.[3] In 1945, Jackson won the first of three elections to the Cleveland Municipal Court, a six-year term.[2][3] He won the second and third elections in 1951 and 1957.[2]
In 1960, Jackson won election to the domestic relations division of Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, and subsequently was elected to terms in the Common Pleas general division.[2]
He died on March 20, 1986.
Legacy
[edit]Jackson was the first elected black judge in Ohio, and the first black American to win a Cuyahoga County-wide election. Not only did Jackson blaze electoral trails for black Americans, he also employed the legal justice system to combat segregation. Jackson was at a bar association meeting in the Hollenden Hotel in 1935, he sued the hotel, receiving $350 in damages after he was refused service.[2] He was involved in the local NAACP and Urban League of Greater Cleveland.[2] Jackson was very active in his community, serving in many organizations across Northeast Ohio, including the NAACP, the Cleveland Area Church Federation, Goodwill Industries and the Boy Scouts of America.[3] A scholarship in his name continues to assist Zanesville High School graduates with their college expenses.[3]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Perry Brooks Jackson | Kelvin Smith Library". hdl:2186/ksl:perrybrooksjackson. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "Jackson, Perry B. Entry". Encyclopedia of Cleveland History. Case Western Reserve University. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "The Hon. Perry Jackson Hall of Fame Winner". Zanesville City Schools. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
- ^ a b c Marsha Bragg (November 29, 2007). "Case Western Reserve School of Law to honor pioneer". News Center. Case Western Reserve University School of Law. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
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