
Eartha Mary Magdalene White
1876-1974
Inducted 1986
The 13th child of a former slave, Eartha Mary Magdalene White was born in
Jacksonville. She attended several schools in Florida and in New York City.
An educator and publisher, she established the Clara White Mission, which served
the city's needy for decades, in honor of her mother during the Great Depression
of the 1930s. She also ran a prison mission and donated property for community
projects. In 1967, she began the Eartha M.M. White Nursing Home, which grew into
the area's largest employer of African-Americans.
White received numerous awards for her selflessness prior to her death in
Jacksonville at 97.