Obituary: Leona Cooper Baker

A lifelong resident of Coconut Grove who worked to preserve the history of the Little Bahamas neighborhood, Cooper Baker was 87 years old.

Leona Louise Cooper Baker, a lifelong resident of Coconut Grove who helped to preserve important elements of the Grove’s Black history, died peacefully on December 14. Born on December 26, 1936, she was less than two weeks from her 88^th birthday.

A viewing will take place from 5 to 7 p.m. on Sunday December 22, followed by a Litany service at 7 p.m. at Christ Episcopal Church, 3481 Hibiscus Street. A funeral service will be held Monday December 23 at 10 a.m. at the church.

One of nine children and a descendant of Coconut Grove’s original Bahamian settlers, Cooper Baker is survived by numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews, including her niece Clarice Cooper, also a lifelong resident of Coconut Grove and president of the Coconut Grove Village West Homeowners and Tenants Association (HOATA).

Cooper Baker lived in the Golden Gate neighborhood in what many people think of as the West Grove, although technically it is part of the City of Coral Gables.

She was born in a house her parents built after migrating to Miami from Eleuthera, in the Bahamas. Although the original house, across the street from George Washington Carver Elementary School, was replaced in the early 1960s by a newer structure, Cooper Baker was proud to tell people that she lived in exactly the same location her entire life, except for when she went away to college.

For many years, Cooper Baker worked to preserve the history of Black and Bahamian Coconut Grove and Coral Gables’ Golden Gate subdivision and MacFarlane Homestead Historic District.

She assembled an extensive archive of historic photographs, books, and articles. Many are mounted on trifold display stands, some have been framed, and some have been digitized. The collection has been housed at the Lola B. Walker Foundation Community Center on Florida Avenue.

Cooper Baker was happy to share the collection with visitors by appointment. According to Clarice Cooper, a decision will be made soon about how the collection will continue to be curated and displayed.

At the end of Black History Month in 2021, the Spotlight featured Cooper Baker and her collection. Read the Spotlight article on Leona Cooper Baker here.

View a video interview with Leona Cooper Baker, part of a series titled “Stories of Resistance from Black Miami,” created by HistoryMiami.

Read the transcript of a podcast on “The Rich and Forgotten History of Black Coconut Grove,” developed by Vizcaya Museum & Gardens.