The city of Santa Cruz has wanted to correct an error made for years, and it looks as though that will start to take place soon. The Santa Cruz Historic Preser vation Commission plans to discuss the renaming of the Louden Nelson Community Center….to the London Nelson Community Center. That after historians determined his true name to be London.
Nelson was a Black man who was enslaved in South Carolina, before he bought his freedom. His slave owner, William Nelson, was known for naming his slaves after English cities. Shortly after purchasing his freedom, Nelson traveled to Santa Cruz and rented land eventually purchasing that land and donating his fortune to the city of Santa Cruz to keep the schools open.
The Historic Preservation Committee is set to meet at 7 p.m. tomorrow. Those wishing to comment can do so prior to the meeting at cityofsantacruz.com/pc. Or they can call-in during the meeting.
Interested parties can also watch the meeting via Zoom, using the meeting ID number: 932 7626 5759.
