I have a feeling that everybody is important, every individual is special. —Ada Simond

Among her many accomplishments, perhaps Ada Simond's most significant legacies are as historian and storyteller. After a career in teaching and public health, she launched a new career as a writer. Inspired to share her experiences as an African-American, Simond wrote a series of children's books that chronicled the life of a fictional black family living in East Austin at the turn of the century. In her weekly Austin American-Statesman column, "Looking Back," she shared with all of Austin the history and heritage of the local African-American community. She was a founding member of the W.H. Passon Society, a local historical organization devoted to preserving African-American history, and in 1986 was inducted into the Texas Women's Hall of Fame.

Return to Defining Legacies: For Love of Austin.