Mattiebelle Woods

1902-2005

Journalist

For more than half a century, newspaper columnist Mattiebelle Woods documented the vibrant black social scene in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Her columns not only kept Milwaukee's African Americans up-to-date on black groups, clubs, and social events, but helped to promote community unity and pride. Warm, sincere, and spirited, Woods became a beloved figure in her home city and beyond as she devoted her seemingly endless energy to supporting charities, working for voting rights, and building self esteem in African-American youth. Her lifelong love of fun and festivity prompted friend and fellow journalist Eugene Kane to write in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel upon her death, "For her, there was nothing better than a crowded room filled with talk and music, old friends or new friends and names to put in the newspaper. Remembering the late, great Mattiebelle Woods, I can imagine her first words in heaven: ‘What time does the party start?’"

Mattiebelle Woods was born on October 31, 1902, in Louisville, Kentucky, the only child of Ira and Annabelle Woods. When Woods was around three, the family moved to the city of Milwaukee, on the shore of Lake Michigan. Though she was not born there, Woods would always consider herself a native of Milwaukee.

Annabelle Woods worked as a cleaner, both at the historic Astor Hotel and in the homes of wealthy German immigrants. She often brought her daughter with her to work, and Woods grew up in the company of these white families. She attended West Division high school in Milwaukee, and, at the age of 19, married George Beard. Soon after the marriage, Beard was killed in an automobile accident, leaving Woods alone with their baby daughter Kathryn. She worked at a variety of jobs to support her small family and married again in 1925. That marriage ended in divorce, and Woods determined to remain on her own, saying with characteristic playful directness: "The second husband cured me of marriage," as quoted in Jet. After her divorce, she returned to using her maiden name, though she would not change it back legally until 2004.

By the 1940s, Woods had raised her daughter to adulthood, and she began to look for other places to devote her considerable energy. Already very concerned about the welfare of her people, she became involved in the earliest phases of the civil rights movement. She also began to write for local black newspapers. Though she had never attended college or studied journalism, Woods was a natural writer who had a lively style and a genuine interest in people. In 1952, she introduced the column that she would write continuously for the next five decades. "Partyline," an account of club meetings, social events, and parties in Milwaukee's black community, was first published by the Milwaukee edition of the African-American weekly the Chicago Defender.

In addition to her column in the Defender, Woods wrote for the Milwaukee Star, another local African American publication, and worked as a freelance Milwaukee correspondent for the prominent national magazines Jet and Ebony. Though much of her writing was devoted to covering the activities of her own community, Woods met and interviewed many famous people, including W.E.B. DuBois, Eleanor Roosevelt, Ray Charles, and Martin Luther King, Jr., who stayed at her house when he visited Milwaukee.

Some readers who did not know Woods and her fierce devotion to supporting her community approached her column with a scornful attitude, assuming that the social events she wrote about were of little importance. Woods responded to these critics by pointing out that most black people could not hope to see their name printed in the white press unless they had been arrested. By printing the names and celebrating the activities of ordinary black citizens, Woods hoped to increase pride and self-confidence within her community and to foster lasting connections by publicizing African-American culture.

Woods expressed her hopes and vision for her community in her other activities as well. Beginning with her early civil rights work during the 1940s, she became deeply involved in voter registration programs, insisting that voting was a civic duty of all concerned citizens. A staunch member of the Democratic Party, she campaigned for progressive black candidates and worked at the polls during elections. She also worked in a wide variety of charitable organizations, becoming co-chair of the United Negro College Fund in 1954.

Of her many civic activities, Woods was perhaps most devoted to nurturing and supporting the young people in her community. A mentor and adviser to many generations of Milwaukee's black youth, she used her words and her example to promote confidence and self-esteem among young people who often had little other encouragement to believe that they could succeed. Hoping to encourage self-respect and poise among African American girls, she founded and directed the Ms. Bronze Milwaukee pageant in 1955 and the Miss Black Teen Wisconsin contest in 1970.Woods became such an important figure in the city she loved that, on her 98th birthday, Milwaukee mayor John Norquist proclaimed "Mattiebelle Woods Day."

Though she devoted herself to many serious causes, Woods also loved to have a good time. Five feet tall and petite, she attended many of the social events she wrote about, usually wearing an elegant evening gown and high heels. Even into her old age, she was renowned as an agile dancer. At the age of 101, she wowed the audience when she appeared on television's Showtime at the Apollo and performed the "electric slide" on stage, dropping to the floor and rising again effortlessly.

Mattiebelle Woods died in Milwaukee on February 15, 2005. She was 102 years old, and, during the last week of her life had typed out her final "Partyline" column on her typewriter as she had every week for over fifty years. The Tuesday before her death was an election day, and she had assisted at the polls as usual. She had been a dynamic public figure in her adopted city for decades, and her death made an impact on the entire Milwaukee community. Mayor Tom Barrett mourned her loss with the rest of the city, saying, "She went a hundred miles per hour for a hundred and two years," according to JS Online. Woods's unique contribution to documenting the life of Milwaukee's black community was honored in 2006 when the J. William and Mary Diederich College of Communication at Milwaukee's Marquette University established the Mattiebelle Woods Scholarship.

At a Glance …

Born Mattiebelle Woods on October 31, 1902, in Louisville, KY; died on February 17, 2005; married George Beard, 1921 (widowed); married 1925 (divorced); children: Kathryn Bedford. Religion: African Methodist Episcopal Church.

Career: Milwaukee Globe, Milwaukee Star, society reporter and columnist, 1940s; Chicago Defender, Milwaukee edition, society reporter and columnist, 1952-?; Jet Magazine, freelance contributor, 1956-?; Ebony Magazine, freelance contributor, 1956-?; Milwaukee Courier, society columnist and editor, 1964-2005.

Selected memberships: National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; United Negro College Fund, chair, 1954; Urban League.

Selected awards: NAACP, President Award, 2002; Wisconsin Black Media Association, Lifetime Achievement Award; Wisconsin Legislature, 2005 Senate Joint Resolution 6 Honoring Mattiebelle Woods, 2005; Black Women's Network, Woman of Color Honoree, 2005; Milwaukee Press Club, Legend of Milwaukee, 2007.

Sources

Periodicals

Jet, November 15, 2004, pp. 60-4; March 14, 2005, p. 57.

New York Amsterdam News, March 3-9, 2005, pp. 10-11; October 12-18, 2006, p. 10.

On-line

"Journalist and Activist Mattiebelle Woods," U.S. Senator Herb Kohl, www.senate.gov/~kohl/press/statements/2005303507.html (June 5, 2007).

"Milwaukee Legends Announced at City Birthday Party," Milwaukee Press Club, http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:UnXLEFFf5fwJ:www.milwaukeepressclub.org/news/view/24+mattiebelle+woods&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=27&gl=us&client=firefox-a (June 5, 2007).

"100 Miles Per Hour For 102 Years: Courier Columnist May Have Been Oldest Working U.S. Journalist," JS Online,www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=303103 (June 5, 2007).

"Richard Prince's Journal-isms: Mattiebelle Woods, Working Journalist, Dies at 102,"The Maynard Institute,www.maynardije.org/columns/dickprince/050218_prince/ (June 5, 2007).

"Woods Was the Life of the City's Parties," JS Online,www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=302970 (June 5, 2007).