Righting the Past: Pensacola teacher Mary Higgins died unexpectedly in fire at her home

Robin Reshard
·4 min read
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​​Editor’s note: This is the eighth in a series of historical obituaries written today to honor the men and women of the past who were denied the honor at the time of their death because of discrimination due to their race and/or gender.

Mary A. E. Higgins, formerly of Pensacola, died tragically on March 29, 1946, of injuries sustained from an accidental fire at her home in Los Angeles, California. The retired school principal and teacher was 91 years old.

Mrs. Higgins was born Mary Ann Ward in Atlanta, Georgia, in May 1855. Her family history and early years in Georgia are mostly unknown, though later census records indicate she completed the eighth grade. Around 1869, she married Evigan Edwards from Alabama and together they built a life in Pensacola. They had one son, Elias Edwards, who died in 1900.

Mary Higgins
Mary Higgins

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By 1882, Mrs. Higgins was working as a school teacher with John A. Gibson at Public School No. 31. She would work with the well-known educator for about 15 years. She took pride in her craft and pursued professional development opportunities, completing summer courses and teacher examinations during this time. In 1896, she was listed as the sole teacher at School No. 8 in Molino, a school designated for the education of the Molino community’s Black students. By 1902, Mrs. Edwards Higgins had become principal of School No. 55, later known as A. M. DeVaughn Elementary School, in the historic Hawkshaw neighborhood.

While Mrs. Higgins worked in public service, Mr. Edwards worked in civil service as a janitor at the federal barge office, courthouse, and customs house. He later worked as a drayman, or wagon driver. They were both involved in community work, often advocating for education and higher education for African American students in the county. When the need for a high school arose in the early 1890s, Mr. Edwards helped lead the effort to expand education for all – even as some in the community and across the state of Florida questioned whether the “enormous expenditure for negro schools produce any good effect.” The Edwardses’ knew otherwise.

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Mr. Edwards served as the inaugural president of the Escambia High School Association, leading the six-year effort to raise funds, buy and clear the land and build a new Black high school. Named “Escambia High School,” it appears as the first high school for African Americans in the county. It opened on October 16, 1899, at the northwest corner of what is now Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Street and Jordan Street. The school operated for four years before closing. At the turn of the 20th century, the association worked to extend the school year for the county’s Black students whose school terms at that time were shorter than those of the White students.

During this time, Mrs. Higgins and her husband invested in real estate, buying, selling and holding mortgages for others. Mr. Edwards died on Sept. 9, 1907. He left his estate to his widow. She continued serving as principal of School No. 55 until around 1910, when she retired from a 30-year career in education. For the next decade, she managed her real estate portfolio.

On May 25, 1921, she married Alexander Higgins, a widowed father, longshoreman, grocery store owner and Civil War veteran. They lived above his store at 2428 North 12th Avenue, surrounded by his extended family who lived on surrounding blocks. Their residence and store would later house Me & Mom’s Hair Care Center for almost four decades. In 1924, an advertisement for their property described it as a “7 room residence and store, bath, with electric lights, two lots.” Despite their community bonds and material success, the Higginses decided to leave the Jim Crow South like millions of other Black Southerners. After settling their recently joined affairs in Pensacola, they moved to Los Angeles to enjoy retirement, living with Mr. Higgins’ youngest daughter, Julia Craig, and her husband David. Mr. Higgins’ brother would visit them in California, then return to Pensacola to regale stories of the train ride west and his time with his brother’s family.

Mrs. Higgins was widowed again when Mr. Higgins passed away at home at age 99 of heart and kidney disease on March 16, 1942. She lived with her daughter-in-law’s family until her unexpected passing four years later. No other family members were injured in the fatal fire. She was interred at Lincoln Memorial Park in Los Angeles on April 2, 1946.

Left to mourn the passing of Mary Ann Ward Edwards Higgins today are those many descendants of the Ward, Edwards, Higgins and Eagan (also spelled Egins, Eagans and Eagins) families, including Del Jupiter of Atlanta, C. Renea Brown of Pensacola, Harold Kelker, Jr. of Munson, and Barbara Glover of Milton.

With a life spanning nearly a century, Mrs. Higgins witnessed profound transformations. She experienced living through the Civil War, World War I and World War II, and she helped create educational opportunities for Black Pensacolians – opportunities denied to her during her childhood. Mrs. Higgins was an educator and a community leader who shaped generations of Pensacola students. She left a lasting legacy we celebrate today.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Righting the Past: Pensacola teacher Mary Higgins shaped generations