Miriam DeCosta Seabrook and Herbert U. Seabrook papers

Miriam Fiorella DeCosta was an African American educator born in Charleston, South Carolina in 1896, the fifth of eleven children born to Benjamin and Anna DeCosta. She graduated from the Avery Normal Institute in 1914. In 1923, Miriam married Dr. Herbert Ulysses Seabrook, an African American physician practicing medicine in Charleston. After the death of her husband, Miriam returned to school and in 1946 received a Bachelor of Science degree from State Teachers College in Montgomery, Alabama. In 1953, she received a Master of Arts from State Agricultural and Mechanical College, Orangeburg, South Carolina. She taught school for the Charleston Negro School District, and later Charleston County District 20. Miriam retired from teaching in 1961, but was rehired for one additional year from 1963-1964.

Miriam DeCosta Seabrook was active in community organizations and clubs, including the Centenary United Methodist Church; the Charleston Medical, Dental and Pharmaceutical Auxiliary; Entre Nous Bridge Club; Future Teachers of America; and Links, Inc. She died in 1992.

Herbert U. Seabrook was born in Charleston, South Carolina. He was the son of William Seabrook (died circa 1890) and Amerintha Alston Seabrook (1852-1922). Amerintha was the daughter of the Alston Plantation's owner's son and Dinah Alston Drayton (born circa 1838), a slave on the Alston Plantation in Georgia. Dinah and Amerintha moved to Charleston after the Civil War where Dinah married Abadiah Drayton, a freed slave from the Drayton Plantation.

Herbert was sent to live with an aunt in Georgia after financial concerns caused Amerintha to move to New York. Eventually, Herbert joined his mother and siblings in New York where he graduated from public school. He then attended South Carolina Sate College in Orangeburg and Shaw University for medical school. He earned his medical degree from the University of West Tennessee's Medical College. Herbert began his private practice in 1919 on Spring Street in Charleston. He also worked as the director for the Hospital and Training School for Nurses. Dr. Herbert U. Seabrook, Sr., died in 1941.

Miriam and Hebert Seabrook had one child, Herbert Ulysses Seabrook, Jr., who was was born in Charleston in 1924. He was a graduate of Avery Institute and then Talledega College. He joined the Navy after World War II and served as a swimming instructor. In 1953, Herbert Seabrook, Jr. earned his medical degree from Meharry Medical School. He eventually moved to Dayton, Ohio with his wife, Virginia, and there, he opened a practice as a pediatrician. They had one son, Kenneth Seabrook. Dr. Herbert U. Seabrook, Jr., died in 1970.