Winifred Latimer Norman

Winifred Latimer Norman (October 7, 1914 – February 4, 2014) was an American social worker, active in efforts to preserve her grandfather Lewis Howard Latimer's legacy in Flushing, Queens.

Winifred Latimer Norman
Winifred Latimer Norman, from a 1971 newspaper.
BornOctober 7, 1914
Flushing, New York
DiedFebruary 4, 2014
Manhattan, New York
OccupationSocial worker, historical preservationist, author

Early life

Winifred Latimer Norman was born in Flushing, the daughter of Gerald Fitzherbert Norman and Jeanette Latimer Norman. Her father was a teacher. Her grandfather was inventor and poet Lewis Howard Latimer.[1][2] Her great-grandfather George Latimer escaped slavery in Virginia and was active in the abolition movement in Massachusetts.[3] She graduated from Flushing High School, and from Hunter College, where she was one of only 15 black graduates in 1935.[4] She earned a master's degree at New York University.[5]

Career

Norman was a social worker by profession, and lived in New York City. She represented the Latimer family at various events and commemorations throughout her life.[6] She and her brother Gerald[7] helped to lead the effort to preserve the Lewis H. Latimer House in Flushing;[8][9] their grandfather's home, where they played as children,[10] is now a museum on the National Register of Historic Places.[11] She and her brother were honored by the Duquesne Light Company in 1989, for their work in bringing Latimer's story to a new generation.[12] She co-wrote a middle-grades book about her grandfather,[13] Lewis Latimer: Scientist (1994, with Lily Patterson, foreword by Coretta Scott King).[14][15]

Norman was active in religious organizations, and served on the Board of Trustees of the Unitarian Universalist Association.[16] She was a member of the International Association for Religious Freedom and the International Association for Liberal Religious Women.[17] The Fourth Universalist Society in the City of New York created a Winifred Latimer Norman Award in the Area of Social Justice, in her honor.[18]

Norman was a charter member of the North Manhattan chapter of Delta Sigma Theta.[19][20]

Personal life

Norman died in 2014, aged 99 years, in New York City.[5] Her papers are included in the Latimer Family Papers at the Queens Public Library.[21][22]

References
  1. Fried, Joseph P. (1988-08-06). "A Campaign to Remember an Inventor". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  2. French, Kimberly (2006-10-30). "Lewis Latimer, African American inventor and Unitarian". UU World Magazine. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  3. George, Luvenia (1999-02-01). "Innovative Lives: Lewis Latimer (1848-1928): Renaissance Man". Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  4. "15 Colored Get Degrees at Annual Commencement of Hunter College, Wed". The New York Age. 1935-06-29. p. 3. Retrieved 2020-09-07 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Latimer descendant dies". Queens Chronicle. February 13, 2014. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  6. "Con Ed Exhibit Honors Black Inventor Latimer". Daily News. 1971-11-14. p. 257. Retrieved 2020-09-07 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Gerald L. Norman, 78, Administrative Judge". The New York Times. 1990-08-31. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  8. Queens Economic Development Corporation. "Lewis Latimer House and Its Historic Ride through Flushing". It’s In Queens. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  9. Terrazzano, Lauren (1994-09-28). "Dream Comes Nearer". Daily News. p. 637. Retrieved 2020-09-07 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. Bertrand, Donald (1998-03-31). "Home Shines in Flushing". Daily News. p. 563. Retrieved 2020-09-07 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. Sperling, Jonathan (November 19, 2019). "Deck the halls in Flushing this holiday season". Queens Daily Eagle. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  12. "Brother-sister honor". The Pittsburgh Press. 1989-02-16. p. 2. Retrieved 2020-09-07 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. Wood, George Jr. (October 6, 1993). "Dr. Winifred Latimer Norman To Honor Her Grandfather". New York Voice. p. 15 – via ProQuest.
  14. Norman, Winifred Latimer. (1994). Lewis Latimer. Patterson, Lily. New York: Chelsea House. ISBN 0-7910-1977-2. OCLC 27897571.
  15. "Norman, Winifred Latimer". Black Children's Books and Authors. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  16. "Unitarian Church Group Elects Blacks to Posts". Jet: 56. June 21, 1973.
  17. "Trustee to Talk on King". Hartford Courant. 1987-01-10. p. 36. Retrieved 2020-09-07 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. "A Tribute to the Rev. Joseph Ben-David" The Church of Humanism (May 3, 1997).
  19. "NMAC HISTORY | North Manhattan Alumnae". NMAC: Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  20. Passe-Rodriguez, Djenny (March 2, 2009). "Delta Sigma Theta hosts week of events at Columbia, Barnard". New York Amsterdam News. p. 31 – via ProQuest.
  21. Hwang, Karen Li-Lun (2015-03-06). "Lewis H. Latimer: Inventor and Early Advocate for Civil Rights". Researching NYC: Past and Present. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
  22. "The Latimer Family Papers". Queens Public Library Digital. Retrieved 2020-09-07.
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