In 1975, Earth, Wind, and Fire, a funk and soul band headed by lead singer Maurice White and best known for their hit song “September,” visited Florida A&M University. According to the caption in the yearbook in which these images were featured, the group drew “the largest crowd to ever crowd Gaither Gym.”
Eartha M. M. White’s letters to President W. H. Gray covered scholarships for women and land purchases for FAMC’s Jacksonville expansion. She was honored as the “Angel of Mercy” for her humanitarian work, with continued dinner invitations from President Gray to discuss her impactful efforts in shaping FAMC's future.
Joseph Delaney, younger brother of Beauford Delaney, was a Harlem Renaissance artist from Knoxville, TN. East River depicts the waterway that separates Queens from Manhattan. The impasto piece shows Queens and two boats by the Queensboro bridge with Manhattan in the distance.
Warren L. Harris was a draftsman from Brooklyn, NY. East River is a watercolor painting of its namesake in New York City. Harris captures a scene of multi-floor buildings, a water tower, phone lines, and a factory along the bank of the river. There are several boats in the water.
Leroy C. Weaver was an artist and art educator from Prarie View, TX. East Texas Oil Field is a print depicting an oil field in East Texas. The print features several oil rigs and workers' living quarters. In the background, a landscape of forest and trees is visible. The drawing shows the oil field from a pilot's perspective.
Henri Linton was an artist and art professor from Tuscaloosa, AL. Easy for One, Hard for Two is a polyptych depicting the domestic labor expected of wives. The husband sits at the table while the wife's feet and calves are visible as she prepares food for the family in the well-kept house she cares for.
Mr. McElroy was born in 1891 and was a lifelong resident of Clinton. He talks about being the son of a former slave and discusses the oral traditions around the Clinton Riot as well as his education and childhood.
Ed Perry served as a Democrat in the Mississippi Legislature from 1968-2000, later serving as House Clerk for 4 years. In this interview Mr. Perry discusses his educational background and how he landed in the Mississippi government and his experiences working with Robert Clark.
Eddie Smith was founder and first director of Institute of Community Services Head Start program that originated in Marshall County, Mississippi, through Rust College. He talks about how he first got involved with the Child Development Group of Mississippi (CDGM) and Head Start and his work organizing since the Civil Rights Movement.
Edna Jordan Morris was born in 1908 in Pachuta, Mississippi. She retired in 1973 after a 25 year teaching career. Ms. Morgan talks about her childhood and the games she played, her education, and church experiences. She also talks about her memories of encounters with White people. The transcript contains handwritten edits
Edward Lee moved to the Farish Street District in 1925 and went on to own several restaurants in the area. He also booked and promoted dances and concerts for clubs and dance halls in the district. Mr. Lee talks about his education, life on a farm, family, and his youth. The transcript is heavily edited with handwritten notes.
Edward Lee moved to the Farish Street District in 1925 and went on to own businesses in the district including The Crystal Palace restaurant and lounge and the Edward Lee Hotel. Mr. Lee talks about his experiences with owning businesses in the district and gives advice to future Black business owners. Transcript is edited with handwritten notes.
Lois Mailou Jones was an artist and art educator known for her costumes, textile designs, watercolors, paintings, and collages from Washington, D.C. Egyptian Heritage presents a genealogical and cultural heritage between contemporary Blacks and Ancient Egypt. Jones uses Ancient Egyptian scenes and hieroglyphics in the background.
This painting depicts an older Black man sitting and reading a newspaper. The dimly lit scene is minimal and the man, his chair, and the paper are the only aspects visible, highlighting the focus of the painting. The artist cleverly incorporates real newspapers into the piece's media.
Cleinmann’s mural displays multiple generations of Black women, a manifestation of Biggers’ teachings about their importance. The mural is one of the few unfinished murals in Hannah Hall. Typically, unfinished murals were painted over. The mural was recently restored by conservators.
Senator Leroy Johnson of Atlanta, GA, was a member of the Civil Rights Movement in Atlanta, and came to Tuskegee University in 1965 to speak with the students about the upcoming Georgia election and how to use their voice while voting.
In this interview, Texas Southern art alumnus Elizabeth Montgomery Shelton discusses her experiences as a student in the class of 1971. She was a disciple of Professor Carroll Harris Simms and discusses learning to create clay sculptures from him. She went on to teach in Houston public schools for 37 years after her graduation from Texas Southern.
Native Jacksonian, Elizabeth Thames discusses her experiences as the owner of Boot's Flower Shop on Farish Street, where she worked over 25 years as designer, manager and owner. She talks about the effect of the Civil Rights Movement on the general welfare of the people in the district as well as the effects on her business.
Ellie Steward attended Lane College in Tennessee and returned to Benton County, Mississippi, in 1966 to become director of the county’s first Head Start program. She discusses the training she and others received in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, as well as some of the prejudice she experienced when applying for the position of director.
Elsie Slaughter was a years-long homeowner in the Farish Street District. She talks about her parents' background and occupations and her education. She discusses how White people were able to buy large amounts of property in the district by paying delinquent property taxes and how this was a different experience from most Black property owners.
Elzena Harris moved to the Jackson area in 1892 when she was 4 years old. She was the youngest of twelve children and she talks about her childhood, mentioning the games they would play. Ms. Harris also discusses her education from grade school through college at Jackson State. The transcript contains handwritten edits and is incomplete.
Elzena Harris moved to the Jackson area in 1892 when she was 4 years old. She became a member of the Lynch Street C.M.E. Church in 1909 when it was organized. The purpose of this interview was to discuss the function of the church in the community. The transcript contains handwritten edits and is incomplete.
Elzie Collins was one of the first Mississippi employees of the Head Start program and went on to have over 25 years of experience with the organization. In the interview, she breaks down the organizational structure of the early program.
Emma Jones talks about her experiences with early childhood education (through Head Start) when she was younger and the advantages that gave her entering into primary education. She also talks about the Head Start Program in general and how she sees it growing in the future.
Emma Mason began as a nurse with Head Start in 1965. She initially worked in Jackson, Mississippi, then in Edwards, Mississippi. She returned to Jackson and eventually worked in all 16 Head Start centers in the city. She talks about the health needs she saw with the students and discusses how workers were recruited for the program in Jackson.
Ms. Wheeler worked at Head Start from 1967-1977, first as a disbursement clerk, then bookkeeper, and eventually assistant director. In the interview, she talks about some of the things the students learned as part of the program and the role parents of students played in the program.
Case Data and Exhibits for Brown III, a relitigation of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education (1954) that corrected resegregation issues caused by open enrollment school choice in 1992. Charts and maps showing enrollment and attendance area breakdowns for every school in the Topeka Public School System from 1950-1985.
Case Data and Exhibits for Brown III, a relitigation of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education (1954) that corrected resegregation issues caused by open enrollment school choice in 1992. Spreadsheets of enrollment in elementary, junior, and high schools by Black, white, & other from 1951 to 1983 with handwritten analysis of the data, by William Lamson.
Jewell Woodard Simon was an internationally acclaimed artist, teacher, and poet from Houston, TX. Ensenada Passage illustrates a mountainous path to Ensenada, Mexico. A bridge leading to the city is in the foreground, roads lay in the middle ground, and the mountains build up towards the sky, creating an atmospheric perspective.
