by Monroe Alphus Majors
MRS.
LAURA A. (MOORE) WESTBROOK. W. C. T. U. Advocate, Teacher and Lecturer. As
Tennessee has long been noted for its beautiful hills and mountain
sceneries, I imagine that somewhere among the forests of Tipton county, in
the year of 1859, was born the person of whom I shall attempt to write a
few things. Mrs. Westbrook's parents, Richard and Amelia Moore, were both
slaves, but her mother was free born and when a child was kidnapped by the
slave traders, carried away from her parents, and ever afterward remained
a slave until the emancipation of slaves. Her father is a mulatto, and is
also closely related to the old Georgia Cherokee Indians. Mrs. Westbrook's
father, being a great lover of knowledge, could not be satisfied after the
emancipation until he had succeeded, through the aid of his brother Edward
Harris, in obtaining one of Oberlin's best scholars as a tutor for his two
children, Laura and Vara Lee, the baby. Under the tutorship of Miss Rachel
Alexander — for this was the name of the lady who consented to leave
home and friends and even dared to come South when brave men would tremble
to think of such a thing at that time — Mrs. Westbrook, after five years
of hard study, made herself a good scholar in the primary branches. There
being a great demand for teachers in the South at this time. Mrs.
Westbrook, who was greatly in advance of many of her race, though only
eleven years old, was called upon to go and impart to her suffering
sisters and brethren the light which she had already received. She had
already received that great wisdom which cometh down from above, which
makes us wise unto salvation, and being filled with a great missionary
spirit, she readily accepted the call. She, after laboring with her people
two years, felt her inability to execute the work as it should be, and to
meet the demand of the future she made application and entered the Central
Tennessee College in 1872. Under the fatherly care of Dr. J. Braden and
his noble corps of teachers, after four years of hard toil and undaunted
courage, she completed the normal course of that institution in the year
of 1876, during which time she had proven herself an enthusiastic and
studious young lady, full of moral courage and Christian piety, which won
for her the esteem of her teachers and schoolmates. Her teachers, seeing
she was capable of doing much good for her people, urged her not to stop
with the normal course, but to continue her studies until she would have
finished the regular classical course, which victory she did achieve in
the year of 1880, graduating with a class of four, she being the only
female. Mrs. "Westbrook was honored by her Alma Mater in the year of
1885 with the degree of A. M. which degree she heartily deserved. Mrs.
Westbrook continued to teach during vacation until she had completed her
course of study, and by this means, with the assistance of her parents,
she was enabled to continue in school. Her education being finished, she
entered fully into the work of teaching. On the Fourth of July in the year
of 1880, she was married to a classmate of hers, Rev. C. P. Westbrook, of
Aberdeen, Miss. After teaching in Tennessee a short time, they were urged
by the president of the college. Dr. J. Braden, to take charge of two
schools in Texas. Mrs. Westbrook, being full of the missionary zeal,
quickly answered to the call, and in December of 1880 they arrived at
Victoria, Texas, where Mrs. Westbrook took charge of the Victoria city
school, as principal, while her husband assumed the principalship of the
Goliad city school, Which was afterward known as the Jones' Male and
Female Institute.
Mr. West brook's school having increased so rapidly at Goliad, Mrs. Westbrook was compelled to give up being principal at Victoria to assist her husband. After teaching in the Jones' Institute for four years, Mrs. Westbrook came with her husband to Waco, where she entered actively in the W. H. Mission work for two years teaching a mission school in which much good was done, during which time she was appointed corresponding secretary of W. H. Mission Society of the West Texas conference, which position she still holds, and has traveled quite extensively throughout the bounds of the West Texas conference of the M. E. church and lectured in the interest of the W.H. Mission cause. In 1888, Mrs. Westbrook went as a delegate to the W. H. Mission convention which convened in Boston, Mass. Mrs. Westbrook has labored in the public school work as teacher for twenty years. She has taught twelve years in the Texas public schools and is now engaged in the public school of the city of Waco, where she has taught for four years. She has been instrumental in doing a great amount of good among her people and she hopes in the future to be able to do a much greater work for them.
She is known as a tireless and aggressive woman in maintaining the rights of her race. She has many times been honored in conspicuous instances and under very flattering circumstances owing to her undaunted courage.
She has served at various times upon the examining board of the twenty-second senatorial district for Texas, examining' colored young men and lady applicants for State scholarships at Prairie View State Normal Institute. She has distinguished herself as a member of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, traveling through various Southern States lecturing, electrifying and inspiring our youths, and teaching temperance and Christianity. Her motive to do good far surpasses her vanity, except when her race is attacked, then, manlike, she with the pen strikes back, and even goes beyond her loyalty to serve, but makes lasting impressions upon those who are so unfortunate to get within her range. She is a firm believer in the true, the pure, and the beautiful.
Her daily life is characteristic of her essays and lectures. The hardships and obstacles which we daily encounter are no strangers to Mrs. Westbrook. She is yet in the blooming morn of life, with many of us, who will exert our energies to keep along by her side.