HARTFORD- Hundreds gathered in Hartford Wednesday to honor someone who contributed to Connecticut history, Carrie Saxon Perry.
A memorial for former mayor Carrie Saxon Perry was held after her death in 2018 mysteriously went unannounced.
Perry is a well-known political activist, civil rights leader and the first African-American woman elected mayor of a major northeast city. She passed away at 87-years-old in November of 2018 due to a heart attack, but her death went unannounced until nearly one year later.
When news finally broke, FOX61 spoke to close friend and previous Mayor of Hartford, Thirman Milner. He shared family members wanted to keep her death a secret, but wished the city had been notified so they could have honored her memory-which is exactly what the city of Hartford did Wednesday, hosting a memorial at the Artists Collective.
“The Mayor's legacy is not just about the barriers she broke, but it’s about the bridges that she built,” State Treasurer Shawn T. Wooden said.
Perry served as the city’s 63rd mayor, winning three elections starting in 1987. Lawmakers, friends and family attended the service, all paying homage to a legend from the Capital City.
“As a young black woman growing up in the city of Hartford, I was very proud to know that I was a part of a city where a woman was making history,” Jennifer Stephens said.