Muriel Fortune Bush, the daughter of Walter Fortune (her mother died in childbirth), was born on July 28, 1905, in Long Island, New York. Fortune attended a boarding school outside of Baltimore, and later graduated from Miner Teacher's College in...
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Muriel Fortune Bush, the daughter of Walter Fortune (her mother died in childbirth), was born on July 28, 1905, in Long Island, New York. Fortune attended a boarding school outside of Baltimore, and later graduated from Miner Teacher's College in Washington, D.C. In 1935, Fortune married Paul Bush from Louisiana. They had no children, however they adopted a racially mixed child, June Cross. During the Second World War, Paul was stationed overseas with the United States Army. The couple moved to Atlantic City, New Jersey from Washington, D.C. early in the marriage when Mrs. Bush accepted a position to teach at the Indiana Avenue School in the Atlantic City school district. She worked in the school district for 47 years. Though not documented in the collection, Muriel Bush was an amateur photographer. "Aunt Peggy", as she was affectionately called by her family, took pictures of Atlantic City's Black community, especially children. One of her photos was featured in Deborah Willis's book,
Reflections in Black: A History of Black Photos, 1840–Present. Two main subject areas for her photography were grade school classes at the Indiana Avenue School and weddings in the community. The Bush Family letters consist of a small body of correspondence among members of the Bush extended family and friends. Included are letters from adopted daughter June Cross, other relatives, and Private Leonard Burwell to Paul, June 24, 1944; vacation postcards; and condolence letters to Muriel Bush following the death of her husband.
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