Gerald Criswell was Alachua’s first black mayor
The Rev. Gerald Criswell, whose impassioned leadership in community issues made him the first African American to hold political office in Alachua as well as the city’s first black mayor, died Sunday. He was 74.
Criswell shook racial stigma in 1977 when he ran for the Alachua City Commission and was elected by a community that trusted him to invest in positive changes for all races, said former City Manager Clovis Watson Jr.
“He cared about all of the community, not just the African American community but all of the community,” Watson said. “But he paved the way for all of us. He opened that door and took that challenge when no one would. When it wasn’t popular for an African American to run for office, he got out there and did it for everyone.”
He continued on to become Alachua’s first black mayor in 1978 and served on the commission until health issues led him to retire in 1999.
Those not ready for a black leader doubted his intellect and ability, Watson said, but even more supported him for his deep connection to Alachua’s residents. He caught a disparage of racial opposition in his running, others say, but also helped move the community away from that era into integration.
But before being a politician, Criswell was above all a reverend, his family says. He most recently preached at Greater Elizabeth Baptist Church in Lake Butler, but his sermons also echoed in Lacrosse’s St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church and New Shiloh in Alachua.
In politics he was instrumental in bringing today’s wastewater treatment facility to the city in the late 1970s, which is currently under expansion and has created hundreds of jobs in the process. Criswell is also known for cleaning up Alachua’s Main Street by helping launch the Community Redevelopment Agency there and designating it a taxing district where businesses could thrive.
But many also remember the dynamic reverend for his outreach to the community outside of government, religion and race. He was a tremendous champion for children’s rights, said Commissioner Jean Calderwood, who filled the vacancy left by Criswell when he stepped down from the commission in 1999.
“He did not want children to be neglected,” Calderwood said. “If he saw a child out on the street during school days, he would approach the child from the standpoint of ‘hey, shouldn’t you be in school?’ He would talk with the child and talk with the family to say ‘this child doesn’t need to be in the streets.’”
Criswell earned his following by simply strolling through Alachua neighborhoods and downtown, talking with kids, business owners and residents about their needs. He was a mentor for future political leaders like Calderwood and Watson, who remember evening chats on his front porch.
“I would stop by his house and talk with him on his porch, either standing or sitting with him,” Watson remembers. “We talked about everything, everything! Politics, personal things, his illness, family, Alachua and division.”
Criswell was also a father and husband, whose daughter Jennifer described as “warm, friendly and always funny.” He is survived by his wife of 45 years Johnnie May Criswell of Alachua; son Gerald Criswell Jr. of Alachua; four daughters Jennifer Criswell of Alachua, Connie T. James of Gainesville, Sabrina N. Criswell of Alachua, and Phobee Jones of Alachua.
Funeral services will be held Saturday, Feb. 27 at 3p.m. at the Female Protective Temple located at 12610 N.W. 39th Ave. in Gainesville. Burial will follow in St. Matthews Cemetery. Visitation will be held Friday at Chestnut Chapel from 2p.m. to 7p.m. and on Saturday at the Female Protective Temple at 2p.m.