Emma Stark
Born
Emily Arabella Stark

(1856-02-17)February 17, 1856
California, US
Died(1890-07-31)July 31, 1890 (aged 33)
Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada
NationalityCanadian
EducationSalt Spring Island Central School and Nanaimo high school, Teacher's certificate
OccupationTeacher
Years active1874–1890
SpouseJames Clarke (m. 1878)

Emily Arabella "Emma" Stark[1] (born February 17, 1856) was a Canadian teacher.[2] She was the first Black Canadian teacher in Vancouver Island[3] and the first teacher in the new North Cedar School, in 1874.[2]

Early life

Emily Arabella (Emma) Stark was born on February 17, 1856, in California, United States, to parents Louis (1816–1895) and Sylvia Stark (1840–1944),[1][4] who had been slaves in the United States.

In 1860, Stark arrived with her family on Salt Spring Island, B.C.[2] While on Salt Spring Island, her siblings John Edmond (1860–1930), Abraham Lincoln (1863–1908), Hannah "Anne" Serena (1866–1888) and Marie Albertine (1867–1966) were born.[1] The Estes-Stark family moved to Cedar, Nanaimo, in 1875, where Stark's youngest sister Louisa Edna was born (1878–1971).[1]

Education

Stark attended Salt Spring Island Central School, and she completed secondary school at Nanaimo high school.[1] Her instructor was primarily John Craven Jones, a graduate of Oberlin College.[5] Afterwards, Stark graduated high school; she trained to be a teacher.[1][6]

Career

Stark became a teacher at the age of 18 years.[1] In August 1874, she was hired to teach in a one-room school in the Cedar District;[1] her starting salary was $40 per month.[2]

She lived in a cabin that was provided for the teacher.[1] Students who lived a long way from the school boarded with Stark, including her younger sister Marie.[2]

Personal life

Stark married James Clarke on December 28, 1878.[1][2][7]

Death

In 1890, Stark died at the age of 33 from tuberculosis.[8][1][2][7]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 blackhistory. "Emma Stark – BC Black History Awareness Society". Retrieved 2022-02-10.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "First Black Teacher on Vancouver Island: Emma Stark". British Columbia’s Black Pioneers. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
  3. ↑ Claxton, Nick XEMŦOLTW̱; Fong, Denise; Morrison, Fran; O’Bonsawin, Christine; Omatsu, Maryka; Price, John; Sandhra, Sharanjit Kaur (2021). Challenging Racist British Columbia: 150 Years and Counting (PDF). University of Victoria and The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (BC Office). p. 31. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
  4. ↑ Sandwell, Ruth Wells (2005). Contesting Rural Space. McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. p. 186. ISBN 9780773528598. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
  5. ↑ Kilian, Crawford (February 6, 2009). "BC's Black Pioneer Women". The Tyee. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
  6. ↑ "Estes - Stark Collection". www.saltspringarchives.com. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
  7. 1 2 Kilian, C. (2020). Go Do Some Great Thing: The Black Pioneers of British Columbia. Canada: Harbour Publishing Company Limited.
  8. ↑ Kilian, Crawford (March 15, 2016). "What BC Women Should Be on Canadian Banknotes?". The Tyee. Retrieved 29 May 2022.

Further reading

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