Brief Description:

The William H. Turner papers documents Turner’s career as a Dade County School Board member and Florida state senator.  The most extensive part of the collection is Turner’s correspondence from his time as an elected official, predominantly incoming professional correspondence, with small amounts of outgoing and personal correspondence as well.  The collection also includes newspapers and newspaper articles that Turner collected, including the Miami Herald, Miami Times, Miami News, Liberty City News, Miami Courier, Miami Today, Model City News, and two high school newspapers.  Some of these articles are directly linked to Turner, and some are on issues that he was interested in.  Additionally, the collection includes event programs, other printed material (such as newsletters), photos, and other miscellaneous materials. 

The Turner papers provides information about the Miami-Dade public school system and the workings of the school board and state senate, containing correspondence between Turner and other elected officials, constituents, and advocacy organizations.  The collection provides insight into the career of a black elected official, documenting his state senate campaign and elections, his communication with many other elected officials, the events he attended, and political campaigns and organizations with which he was associated.  Particular subjects which are documented in the collection include: black history month events, school crime, Turner High School, Dade County Public Schools personnel matters, Overtown historic preservation, Bethune-Cookman College alumni events, Hurricane Andrew, the 1976 Jimmy Carter presidential campaign, and the 1996 Bill Clinton presidential campaign.

Record Series Number: 01/BAF MS_00011

Created by: Turner, William H. (1931-2002)

Volume: 3.75 Linear Feet

Arrangement: The collection is divided into 7 series: Correspondence, Newspapers, Printed Material, Events, Personal and Biographical Material, Subject Files, and Photos.  The Subject Files series includes three folders: Dade County Public Schools, Education, and Overtown.  Original order was maintained for the Correspondence series, resulting in a rough chronological order.  The other series were arranged chronologically.  The Correspondence series contains some photos and printed material, which were retained with the other correspondence.

Biographical Note for Turner, William H. (1931-2002) : William H. Turner was born in 1931, in the Overtown community of Miami, FL.  He received a Bachelor of Science degree from Bethune-Cookman College in Daytona Beach, FL, in 1956, a Master of Education degree from the University of Miami in 1969, and a Doctor of Law degree from Faith College in Birmingham, AL, in 1982.  Turner began his career working as a police officer (1956-1957) and public school teacher (1957-1971) in Dade County.  In 1971, he was elected to the Dade County School Board, becoming the first African American to serve on the board.  His first term on the school board ended in 1978, when he was defeated in a re-election bid, but he was re-elected in 1982.  He then served on the school board until 1992, serving as board chair from 1989-1991.  In 1992, Turner was elected to the Florida State Senate, representing District 36 in Dade County, and served as a state senator until 1998, when he was defeated in a Democratic primary.  William H. Turner Technical Arts High School in Miami-Dade was named for him in 1993.  Turner passed away in 2002.

Access Restrictions: There are no access restrictions on this collection.

Subject Index

Languages of Materials

Rights/Use Restrictions: (c) 2010 The Black Archives, History and Research Foundation, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.  Permission to publish materials must be obtained in writing from the Director of The Black Archives, History and Research Foundation, Inc.  An image license agreement must be signed prior to recording or copying images.

Related Materials: Education collection, Overtown collection, Dade County Public Schools Bi-Racial/Tri Ethnic committee records