Joan Coles Howard shares memories of life on Clarissa Street and how the Inner Loop changed it

Joan Coles Howard, a prominent member of the Rochester community, remembers growing up on Clarissa Street.

Her father, Howard Coles, founded the Frederick Douglass Voice in 1933 as a way to inform the Black community about what was going on in the city, such as elections, important meetings and events.

That means Joan’s family was at the center of a lot of news of the day during her time growing up in the then-Third Ward of Rochester.

Get to know the Black press: Black news outlets in Rochester told the stories others didn’t. And that work isn’t over.

During our Revisiting the Rochester Narrative fellowship at the Democrat and Chronicle, Georgia Pressley and I studied the impact of the Inner Loop highway on the city and its residents.

We spoke with Joan about her experiences in the Third Ward and how things changed. The purpose of our chat was to focus on memory so that her stories will never fade away and will always be with us.

How did Joan Howard Coles' family make Rochester's Third Ward home?

How did The Frederick Douglass Voice, created by Joan's father, cover the Inner Loop plan and construction?

Read more from the 2023 Revisiting the Rochester Narrative fellows:

Legacy of urban renewal: What does a church hope for when the Inner Loop gets filled in?

South Union Street: What does the neighborhood want to see happen in downtown Rochester?

Cultivating beauty: How neighbors urge attention for Rochester. We're noticing.

'Positive energy': Andre's Barbershop, Reunion examples of summer's community connection

'I still cry': Powerful Rochester mural captures what was lost in anti-urban destruction

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Joan Coles Howard remembers life on Clarissa Street in Rochester, NY