History is a hard sell. Many don’t care about the past. That’s why we treasure people like Gladys Turner. The 88-year-old from Dayton, Ohio, has dedicated herself to honoring Professor Joseph Corbin. Thanks to her efforts, many are celebrating the legacy of a pioneering Black educator who founded the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB).
Gladys had already succeeded in having Corbin’s gravesite in Forest Home Cemetery (FHC) placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The next step was to have a plaque made to show the gravesite is indeed a historic place.
We turned to the Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest for guidance. They recommended the business that had produced the plaque for the Haymarket Martyrs Monument (HMM). We spoke with Andrea Zimmerman, at Erie Landmark Co., who provided a mock-up of the plaque. The cost would be $355.
We next met with the manager of FHC, Dan Fitts, about having the plaque placed. Fitts surveyed Corbin’s grave and suggested affixing the plaque to Corbin’s headstone. He said FHC would charge $300 for this. He also gave us an affidavit to be signed by Corbin’s surviving heirs to allow the cemetery to make this alteration to Corbin’s grave.
In the meantime, Gladys traveled to Pine Bluff to be the moderator for “Professor Joseph Corbin Day.” The celebration marked the 150th Anniversary of the founding of UAPB. There, she met KATV personality Ashley Crockett, a descendant of Corbin’s sister who put Gladys in touch with her mother.
Gladys spoke with Ashley’s mom and learned the family had an oral tradition about Corbin but no documentation of their connection. They did not want be in the limelight or field inquiries about Corbin. They certainly didn’t want to sign the FHC affidavit.
This threatened to derail the whole project. Corbin’s children didn’t have any kids of their own. Like many families, this branch of the Corbin family had simply died out. When faced with an impasse, Gladys has adopted a simple motto: “Find a way, or make a way.” She proposed to FHC that she sign the affidavit in her capacity as Corbin’s biographer.
Fitts was agreeable to this and the historical society approved an expenditure of $655 to cover all the costs. It was decided the plaque presentation ceremony be held at Forest Home on May 1, 2024. Mayor Rory Hoskins has agreed to be one of the speakers. Gladys also wants Dr. David Ware, the Arkansas state historian, to be on the program.
Hoskins had already planned to showcase the cemetery during the Democratic National Convention in August. Many labor leaders want to visit the martyrs monument during the convention. He hopes the monument will put Forest Park on the map, as a centerpiece of the labor movement.
Celebrating Corbin on May Day is also appropriate. It recognizes how he brought higher education to Black residents of Arkansas, just as the Haymarket martyrs championed the rights of workers everywhere. The event will also highlight Forest Park’s rich and important history.
When Gladys was fighting her uphill battle to have Corbin’s grave recognized, the selling point for the National Registry was how active and involved our historical society has been. Local history isn’t a hard sell for us. It’s a passion.
We are blessed to have cemeteries that preserve our past. We are also blessed to have Gladys Turner, who is tireless in keeping the spirit of Joseph Corbin alive.
She is also planning to attend the May Day celebration. If she can come, the mayor could proclaim “Gladys Turner Day” in Forest Park.
