Carrie Allen McCray
Encyclopedia
Carrie Allen McCray was an African-American writer born in Lynchburg, Virginia
, whose published works include Ajös Means Goodbye (1966), The Black Woman and Family Roles (1980), and her first-person memoir, Freedom’s Child: The Life of a Confederate General’s Black Daughter (1998). Her poems have appeared in such magazines as Ms.
and The River Styx
. Ota Benga Under My Mother's Roof, her last collection of poems (edited by Kevin Simmonds) is forthcoming from the University of South Carolina Press. In October 2006, a theatrical adaptation of the collection (with original music by Simmonds) debuted at the Columbia Museum of Art with McCray as narrator.
McCray was one of the founders and first board members of the South Carolina Writers Workshop, and was the namesake for its literary award. She was also a member of the Board of Governors of the South Carolina Academy of Authors.
McCray, who made her home in Columbia, South Carolina
, since 1986, was the widow of John H. McCray, a South Carolina journalist and civil and political rights activist. She died on July 25, 2008, aged 94.
Lynchburg, Virginia
Lynchburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 75,568 as of 2010. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains along the banks of the James River, Lynchburg is known as the "City of Seven Hills" or "The Hill City." Lynchburg was the only major city in...
, whose published works include Ajös Means Goodbye (1966), The Black Woman and Family Roles (1980), and her first-person memoir, Freedom’s Child: The Life of a Confederate General’s Black Daughter (1998). Her poems have appeared in such magazines as Ms.
Ms. magazine
Ms. is an American feminist magazine co-founded by American feminist and activist Gloria Steinem and founding editor Letty Cottin Pogrebin together with founding editors Patricia Carbine, Joanne Edgar, Nina Finkelstein, and Mary Peacock, that first appeared in 1971 as an insert in New York magazine...
and The River Styx
River Styx Magazine
River Styx was launched in St Louis, Missouri, U.S.A. in 1975 after earlier poetry readings and musical sessions among enthusiasts had begun in the early 1970s. The magazine is produced three times a year and is available in bookshops and other outlets and by subscription...
. Ota Benga Under My Mother's Roof, her last collection of poems (edited by Kevin Simmonds) is forthcoming from the University of South Carolina Press. In October 2006, a theatrical adaptation of the collection (with original music by Simmonds) debuted at the Columbia Museum of Art with McCray as narrator.
McCray was one of the founders and first board members of the South Carolina Writers Workshop, and was the namesake for its literary award. She was also a member of the Board of Governors of the South Carolina Academy of Authors.
McCray, who made her home in Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
, since 1986, was the widow of John H. McCray, a South Carolina journalist and civil and political rights activist. She died on July 25, 2008, aged 94.