Gala Organized to Preserve Town Founded by George White, a Formerly Enslaved Person and Congressman

The Whitesboro Historical Foundation and the Whitesboro Historic Preservation Project will host its inaugural Black History Gala at Congress Hall in Cape May, New Jersey.

The evening event on Saturday, March 15th, will feature live music and performances and recognize individuals who helped promote the Preservation Project’s cause, such as Britnee Timberlake, State Senator for District 34.

Senator Timberlake will be honored at the foundation’s first Black History Month gala, mainly for her work in educating the public about land trusts.

The Whitesboro Historical Foundation established the Whitesboro Historical Preservation Project in 2023 with a distinct mission: to preserve the legacy and future of Whitesboro, New Jersey. 

The Project aims to restore Whitesboro, which has a population of 2,946 according to the 2023 census, to its glory days as intended by its original founders.

Project members say that Whitesboro is not recognized as an incorporated New Jersey town and is being systematically erased.

The gala is meant to serve as a means to bring awareness to a tedious task for project members, who told NJ Urban News that they need answers. 

Shirley Green, founder and executive director of the foundation, outlined the task specifically and asked the question directly: “How did Middle Township suck up Whitesboro?”

A locality search shows that Whitesboro, a 3.6 square mile area combining rural and suburban characteristics in Cape May County, is recognized as a New Jersey community within Middle Township.

Green explained that in 1901, George White, a Black former U.S. Congressman and investor from North Carolina, co-founded Whitesboro with other Black investors, including Booker T. Washington. Born into slavery in 1852, White served in Congress from 1896 to 1901, before the Jim Crow era.

To escape persecution in the south, White and several investors purchased almost 4,000 acres of land, approximately 10 miles north of Cape May City  – in what is now Whitesboro and part of Wildwood. 

It was a planned African American town, not just for the southern investors, but also as a place to live for Black residents in Cape May City who were experiencing racism.

The Historic Preservation Project member Felicia Simmons explained that statutes changed after 1901 as to how a town is incorporated in New Jersey.

The Project continues to research these laws as they pertain to Whitesboro, including the reassignment of land to Middle Township. “How did Middle Township get Whitesboro under its charter? We haven’t found that yet,” Simmons stated.

She said incorporation laws for boroughs started in 1928 in New Jersey.

The Project found that a meeting was held in 1928 to discuss the incorporation of Whitesboro, but a vote was held against the measure.

Since then, Green described a slow extermination of Whitesboro over the years.
An example is the reclassification of lot and block numbers as well as zip codes used by Whitesboro residents. According to Green, residents were simply notified one day to start using a Middle Township zip code.

Once a distinct and thriving community of its own and a safe haven for Blacks escaping oppression, Whitesboro had its own school district, fire, and police departments.

All services now fall under Middle Township. “It’s taxation without representation,” declared Simmons.

Green and her colleagues have tried to bring the importance of restoring Whitesboro to its original independence to the attention of lawmakers, activists like Larry Hamm, and gubernatorial candidate and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka.

Bringing awareness and raising funds for the Preservation Project’s plan of action makes the gala so important, stressed both Green and Simmons.

“We’ve been talking with attorneys,” said Simmons, as a next step in the process of finding answers to what she says, “how Whitesboro is being wiped away on paper.” 

If you are interested in attending the gala on March 15th or for more information on the Whitesboro Historic Preservation Project, please visit www.preservewhitesboro.org.