Savannah Omegas Help Dedicate Historical Marker

L-R: Brother Darryl Toots, Brother Williams E. Stiles, Sr., Brother James Gilliard, Brother Michael Pope, Brother Robert E. James I, Brother Henry Perry, Jr., Brother Bernard Y. Conyers, I
L-R: Brother Darryl Toots, Brother Williams E. Stiles, Sr., Brother James Gilliard, Brother Michael Pope, Brother Robert E. James I, Brother Henry Perry, Jr., Brother Bernard Y. Conyers, I

On June 7, 2018, several Brothers of Mu Phi Chapter of Savannah, Georgia joined Brother Robert E. James and a large crowd of Savannah community leaders in dedicating a Historical Marker saluting the founder of Carver State Bank, Louis B. Toomer. The Toomer Historical Marker is the first such tribute to an African American by the Georgia Historical Society in the Historic District of Savannah.

Carver is the oldest bank headquartered in Savannah, and one of only 22 African-American owned commercial banks in the United States. It was established in 1927, as the Georgia Savings and Realty Corporation to serve the financial needs of the African-American community in Savannah. This company later became Carver State Bank. Brother James has served as the bank’s President since December 1, 1971. He is the African American with the longest tenure of service as a bank president in America.

Brother James said that the bank commissioned well-known historian Vaughnette Goode-Walker to research Toomer’s life and present the idea of a historical marker to the Georgia Historical Society where it received unanimous approval. Subsequently, the marker was also approved unanimously by the Savannah

Chatham Historic Site and Monument Commission on February 1, 2018, and the Savannah City Council on March 15, 2018. The action by the City Council was the final step in the approval process.

Toomer was one of the area’s prominent business and civic leaders. He was appointed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to serve as Register of the U.S. Treasury from 1953-1956.

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