JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – It’s been over six decades since Johnnie Mae Chappell was killed in Northwest Jacksonville, but her family is ensuring that her life and legacy are not forgotten.
Monday evening, Chappell’s family and members of the community came together at New Kings Road and Flicker Avenue to remember the 35-year-old mother of 10. That’s where Chappell was walking on March 23, 1964, as she searched for her lost wallet.
As she was walking, a car carrying four white men pulled up, and one of the men shot her. Chappell died as she was being taken to a hospital.
“She went to go get ice cream after leaving work, thinking of how to celebrate her children,” said Shelton Chappell, who was just 4 months old when his mother was killed. “It’s a heavy weight, but we’re still commemorating her and honor her as a family should.”
Johnnie Mae Chappell was murdered around the same time a violent protest erupted downtown over racial segregation. Investigators at the time said one of the four white men in the car had been driving around when someone said, “Let’s get a (expletive).” They shot Chappell and discarded the gun.
The man who fired the gun, J.W. Rich, was convicted and served three of 10 years for manslaughter after it was determined the jury thought the bullet ricocheted before hitting Chappell’s body. The other passengers were never charged.
Now, 62 years later, Chappell’s life is being remembered at a historical marker at the site where she was killed.
“A mother is everything, everything to you. Nurse, doctor, teacher - she does everything for her children. And for us not to take homage to her, we’d be less than,” said Shelton Chappell. “I’d be less than a son. Less than a father. Less than a friend. I want to honor my mother. We will honor my mother.”
The marker was unveiled outside the Lincoln Villa Senior Center last year, with city officials and Chappell’s family in attendance. In 2005, the Florida Legislature set up a “Johnnie Mae Chappell Parkway” sign on New Kings Road.
“It’s a great honor to know that people care. My mother hasn’t been forgotten, and that means a lot,” said Shelton Chappell. “It means a lot. And I appreciate that.”