African American Studies 190

I have gained an overwhelming understanding of African American history this semester as I have taken trips across the East Coast, researched the past, and seen interesting historical sites. Until I actually took the initiative to go out on my own and discover African American history first hand, I never had such a great appreciation and understanding for the past and struggles of blacks. Through visiting the National Museum of American History, the F. W. Woolworth “sit-in” site in Greensboro, and a North Carolina plantation. I gained knowledge and an even greater respect for the African American culture.

Field to Factory exhibit

When I visited the Field to Factory exhibit at the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., I learned a plethora of information about the Great Migration and the lifestyles of African Americans throughout history. The exhibit started by explaining the mentality of African Americans in the early 1900s. In 1915, three-fourths of the black population lived in the rural South, mostly concentrated in Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, and South Carolina. The states with the next highest populations of African Americans were Louisiana, North Carolina, Texas and Virginia. In 1910, blacks made up 30% of the population in the United States.
It was shocking to me to read that three-fourths of the black population lived in the South in 1910. I had always thought that there was a more proportional amount of blacks in the North. It is ludicrous to think that basically seventy-five percent of African Americans in this country were enslaved or working in near-slave conditions in 1910. Knowing that there were so many blacks in the South makes me even more excited about the Great Migration because there was so much more opportunity offered to blacks in the North.
In the 1930s in the South, the farming was dominated by cotton. Late winter and early spring of each year were characterized by plowing and planting, but the summer provided an opportunity for African Americans to get away from farm labor and earn money to pay off their debts. In the South, industrial jobs were available including work in sawmills, construction, factories, shipyards, private homes and logging camps. During the low season, Southern cities such as Birmingham, Savannah and Memphis drew the most African Americans from rural areas to work.
In the South, most blacks did not profit from their farm labor, and only 10 percent of blacks owned the land they farmed in 1910. The other 90 percent of African Americans who did not own their land were wage laborers, renters or sharecroppers. When sharecroppers moved from one farm to another, the managing farmer from the previous farm would often pass the worker’s debt to the next farmer. The sharecropper would move every few years with his debt preceding him, thus perpetuating his inability to make money.
The exhibit showed all types of various dwellings of African Americans in the rural South. One popular style of housing was the tenant house. The tenant house was two stories high, containing two bedrooms, one side room and another room that was used for the kitchen, dining room and play room. Although they were two stories, the tenant houses were not very big, and they kept the family in close quarters.
Another popular house was the dog trot house, which was comprised of two log cabins positioned next to one another. Dog trot houses started in 17th century Virginia and were made of two log cabins. A passageway connected the houses in the center. Dog trot houses had porches on each side and a chimney at each end. The porches and ventilation from the passageway provided shade and comfort in the hot, humid climate of the South.
Shotgun houses were originally seen in New Orleans, built by black Haitian refugees starting in 1809. These dwellings were one room wide and four rooms deep. The term “shotgun” comes from the idea that you can shoot a shotgun from the front of the house and it would go straight through the back door of the house. These shotgun houses were made of wood and were topped with a metal roof. Like dog trot houses, shotgun houses were intended for warm climates, as the design allowed breeze to blow through the house. The open hallway and porch were very nice to have in the hot summers because they gave offered both breeze and shade.
Big families were a major part of the farming culture because parents needed a lot of help in the field and in the house. The small houses reinforced the interdependence of the family, as the family members were in close quarters and constantly working together. By age five, the role of each child gained great importance in the household. They became a major part of the family in terms of labor and contribution. Boys worked on the farm, and girls mainly helped their mothers in the house and raising children. Sometimes the women would even work in the fields during prime farming periods to help with the load.
World War I brought new interest and opportunity to blacks through northern industrial work. At the beginning of the war, blacks were not drafted for help, therefore creating a shortage of white industrial workers in the North. Immigration was cut also off during the war. All of these circumstances led to the beginning of the Great Migration, when blacks moved from the South to the North to find better work and opportunity.
Southern African Americans heard about the labor shortage in the North through labor recruiters, word of mouth and newspapers. The promise of higher wages and regular work caused many blacks to question whether or not they should leave the security of their homes and families in the South.
I cannot imagine being faced with such a decision. There is the promise of a better life in the North in monetary and labor terms, although there is a lot to factor into the decision. I feel as though I would be compelled to move especially if I was a young adult, but if I were older and established, I would feel obligated to stay and maintain my family life. It would be hard to see family members make the trip north and think that I may never see them again.
Regular work and higher wages were not the only compelling reasons for migrants to move north. Education for their children was a prime motive for African Americans to move because the South did not allocate adequate funds to education, especially to education for blacks. The African-American schools in the South offered inadequate supplies, insufficient buildings, poor maintenance, overcrowded rooms and low salaries for teachers.
“When I was a boy, the State didn’t even give you but three months to go to school. That’s all. Three months, well, you could barely learn the alphabet in three months,” said Hughsey Childs, a black student from North Carolina.
Not only were the schools inadequate, but parents were often pressured by their landlords and overwhelming responsibilities to take their children out of school before 6th grade.
I can definitely see school as being a major factor influencing the decision to move north. With an education comes awareness, thus people realize that oppression and cruelty are not acceptable in society. If more blacks had been educated, movements such as the sit-ins and civil rights would have taken place much earlier.
The Slater Fund, Rosenwald Foundation and Jeanes Fund were three establishments that provided money for the better education of African Americans. These organizations hired better-trained teachers, built better schools and hired supervisors to promote better education. There were also three private schools in the South that were well known for the quality of education they provided for blacks. They were the Palmer Institute in North Carolina, Avery Institute in South Carolina and Piney Woods School in Mississippi.
Even though education was improving for black Americans in some situations, African-American rights were not improving in any aspect. The constitutions of many southern states deprived blacks of the right to vote. The Supreme Court passed the 15th Amendment in 1875, saying that no citizen’s voting privileges may be denied because of color.
In the South, whites found ways around the 15th Amendment through the use of poll taxes, literary tests and the grandfather clause. In 1896, the Supreme Court case of Plessy v. Ferguson basically passed legal segregation with the allowance of “separate but equal” facilities for African Americans. Jim Crow laws, forcing second-class citizenship on blacks, continued to dominate southern society with the utilization of separate playgrounds, hotels, restaurants, theatres, barbershops and schools.
“We won’t stop colored from voting if he want to vote, but a bullet would follow him out the door,” said a Georgia man to James Plunkett of Virginia.
This quote encompasses the mentality of many southern whites, thus explaining the perpetuation of inequality of blacks in the South.
I am literally appalled at the attitude of many white Southerners including this Georgia man’s quote. It is ridiculous to imagine voting rights being restricted on the basis of color. Basic rights reserved in the Constitution should have protected all citizens, not just those who are white, educated, wealthy, etc.
1915 was a devastating year for blacks in Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia and Florida with the Mississippi River floods and the strike of the boll weevil. These natural calamities ruined the cotton fields.
I was interested in what exactly a boll weevil was, and it turns out to be a small beetle with a long, thin snout. They can range in color anywhere from a dark, brownish-red color to dark brown or black. These beetles live in cotton and have caused devastation around the country in many farming states. Since boll weevil females lay many eggs at one time, it is difficult to eradicate them. The Mississippi farmers in 1915 did not have nearly the supplies they needed to fight the devastating bugs.
Lynching, hangings and mob activity provided considerable devastation to blacks in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. From 1889 to 1922, 3,436 African Americans were lynched. Between 1918 and 1921, 28 people were burned by American mobs, including the Ku Klux Klan. The KKK also experienced resurgence after World War I, making the South a more dangerous place for non-whites.
For me, the most devastating part of the Field to Factory exhibit was the KKK and white supremacy section. It is hard enough to see the struggles, hardships and unfair treatment of blacks, but then whites worsened the situation by killing blacks and making them fear for their lives. African Americans in the South were constantly trying to stay above ground, pay off debts, and become more educated-- all to make better lives and gain equal rights. It is hard to picture other people making life so much more difficult for African Americans and simply hating people because of their coloring.
Another thing I was taken aback by was the registration form to join the KKK was on display. I was not aware of the rigidity of the KKK and how official and formal the membership was. The membership form contained paragraphs talking about the protection of white supremacy and the importance of the KKK regimen that shocked me.
Because of all the tragedies taking place in the South, the North was looking more ideal to blacks as the years went on. Many southern blacks received letters containing optimistic reports from friends who had traveled north, compelling them to make the same journey. Few blacks left the South without any type of plan devised for going north. Most of the people who made the trip followed a trail that had already been established.
Labor recruiters also provided inspiration for blacks to move north. They made many promises including higher salaries, cheap living and guaranteed jobs. Because white southerners were so opposed to these labor recruiters, many of the recruiters posed as insurance salesmen to access the blacks. Labor recruiters were on salary from northern recruiting companies and got bonuses when they convinced people to move north.
Newspapers including the Pittsburgh Courier and the Chicago Defender also encouraged migration to the North. Robert Abbott, editor of the Chicago Defender, advertised for what was to be the Great Northern Drive. On May 15, 1917, many thousands of African Americans planned to seek greater opportunity by going north on the free trains that Abbott promised. The trains never ended up coming so the Great Northern Drive never panned out, but the free train offer and advertising showed the great willingness of oppressed southern blacks to migrate north in search of a better life.
Porters were a major source of information to blacks who were considering journeying north. Some porters secretly distributed the Chicago Defender and they also passed on information to migrants about jobs, living conditions and people/organizations that could help them in the North.
I think it would have been a very fulfilling experience to be in any situation where I helped African Americans move north. Making plans to help blacks migrate, passing on information about helpful people, or most of all, actually being a person that assists anyone brave enough to make the lifestyle change, would all have been wonderful experiences.
Organizations were a major help to migrants who were trying to adjust to their new lifestyle in the North. Many migrants left their families and comfort zones in the South, so they had a hard time becoming acquainted with the differences in working, housing and social aspects of the North. Urban League, Traveler’s Aid Society and church groups gave aid to migrants who had recently moved north and needed assistance.
World War I had already provided African Americans with job opportunities in the North, but later it gave thousands of them a chance to join the armed forces. In 1916, African Americans entered the draft to help with the war. Serving in the war and fighting for the United States allowed blacks to prove themselves as citizens and increased their patriotism. The equal treatment of African Americans by the European residents gave many of them an awakening, forcing some soldiers to move north upon returning. They could not return to or accept their poor treatment in the South.
I was glad to read about the treatment of African Americans by the Europeans, because it was probably the only exposure that a lot of blacks had to equal treatment. This equality opened the eyes of many African Americans to see that they were just like other human beings and deserved equal treatment.
Despite the poor treatment of many blacks in the South, the church offered an escape from the work and torment of the outside world. Children and adults alike loved going to church to see friends, have fun and lift their spirits. The multi-purpose churches served as the center of most social activities and were even used for schools, meetings, homecomings, picnics and fairs.
Ministers in African-American churches also played a huge role the members’ lives. Some ministers discouraged migration to the North with disheartening information from people in the North. Other ministers encouraged migration on the principles of opportunity and good experiences of those who had made the trip.
Migrants mostly traveled north by train. Some well-known trains during the Great Migration were Illinois Central, The Pennsylvania and New York Central. Railroad workers were provided with free train passes and would often give these passes to friends and family members to use. Although trains were the most popular transportation north, buses, cars, trucks and ships were also used to make the journey.
The Great Migration and urban living situations presented the emergence of large, predominantly black enclaves. Harlem in New York and South Side in Chicago are prime examples of these new living areas. A new sense of community was formed in the North from the closeness provided by this city living. After moving north, the “New Negro” emerged from black urban society, possessing self-confidence and racial pride.
It is nice to think about the new relationships formed by migrants in the North. Considering that many people left their families and comfort zones, the black community provided a “family” much like the huge families back in the South. Another encouraging idea is that of the “New Negro,” partly stemming from education gained in the North and also stemming from the realization that blacks are not an inferior race, but can hold their own and become successful.
Many blacks owned their own businesses, such as newspapers, funeral homes, beauty parlors, savings and loans, drug stores and insurance companies. This sense of control over their own business was an empowering feeling for African Americans, as many of them had never had the opportunity to choose a field of work or experience self-employment.
One Detroit company was progressive in terms of African-American employment. Realizing that blacks offered as much intelligence and diligence as workers of other races, the River Rouge automobile plant, owned by Ford Motor Company, had hired more African Americans before 1935 than any other manufacturer. They were also the only company to employ blacks in assembly line positions.
African-American women also received new experiences as domestic servants. Not having to wear uniforms and returning from an out-of-home job gave black women new confidence and feelings of independence. Although World War I also created job openings for African-American women, they continued to be discriminated against in terms of race and sex. This discrimination restricted the industrial opportunities for women even in the northern cities.
My favorite part of the Field to Factory exhibit was the part that showed pictures and examples of blacks migrating north. It seems so liberating, and it was great to see blacks open their minds to new possibilities. I loved reading about the new occupations and businesses that African Americans became a part of in the industrial north.
The various experiences of African Americans after the Great Migration often presented them with the question of whether or not they were satisfied with their northern move. According to the Field to Factory exhibit, it depends on who you ask as to what the answer is. Some people had wonderful and life-altering experiences, making the move worth their while. In terms of salaries, African Americans were making at least two to three times more money in the North than holding comparable jobs in the South. Some migrants still could not deal with the lifestyle changes and challenges of the North and traveled back to the South. Regardless of African-American opinions of the Great Migration, the decision of many blacks to move north changed the North and the South forever, as well as American history.
The Greensboro Sit-ins
I was never aware of the fact that Greensboro, N.C. was so rich with African-American history. Downtown Greensboro, also known as the “Birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement,” is full of amazing history and great accomplishments. The infamous lunch counter sit-ins originated in Greensboro by four students from North Carolina A&T State University.

On February 1, 1960, David Richmond, Franklin McCain, Jibreel Khazan (Ezell Blair, Jr.) and Joseph McNeil decided to take a stand and order coffee at F.W. Woolworth, an all-white lunch counter. After being denied service, the four students continued to sit in their seats at the lunch counter and suffer unmerciful treatment in silence.
“I’ve never felt so good in my life. I truly felt as though I had a going-to-the-mountain top experience,” said McCain.
The four men had no idea that their brave actions would begin a national movement in which their sit-in would be emulated in 54 other cities.
“The Greensboro sit-ins constituted watershed in the history of America,” said historian William Chafe.

As I saw the pictures lining the site of the sit-in and entered the building where F.W. Woolworth used to be, I felt overwhelmed with various feelings. First, the feeling of disgust crossed over me as I could not imagine a time when people were discriminated against on account of their skin color. Secondly, I felt embarrassment simply for being a member of a race that treated other human beings in such a disgraceful way. Third, I was overcome with feelings of joy and pride while looking at the pictures of the four men who were so brave to take a stand for what they knew was right.
I cannot imagine the pride they must have felt because they showed such dignity, made a bold statement and started a movement that had a major effect on civil rights. Another amazing factor concerning the sit-ins is the peaceful nature of the blacks involved. While whites were harassing and abusing them, the African-American protestors sat with pride as the better people.
“We have a definite purpose and goal in mind, and with God on our side, then we ask, ‘Who can be against us?’” said McNeil.
The pictures outside the site of F.W. Woolworth do show some white supporters of the Civil Rights movement, holding up signs reading “Eliminate the Double Standard” and “Wanted Equal Rights.” It was refreshing to see that some whites understood what needed to happen in terms of civil rights.

February 1, 1960 marked the very first day of the sit-ins. The inspiration for the movement came from Joseph McNeil. After spending the Christmas holiday at home, McNeil took the long train ride from Wilmington, N.C. back to school in Greensboro. He could not wait to get food when he arrived at the train station, but he came to find that blacks were not served at Union Station. Upon his arrival back at N.C. A&T State University, McNeil recruited his roommate, Franklin McCain, to join in the fight against segregation.
“I was getting tired of talking about it and McNeil said he was too,” said McCain.
The frustration had built up long enough, and the boys gained two other supporters for their cause and decided respond with an act of civil disobedience. The boys targeted the F.W. Woolworth store because of its double standard. Blacks were allowed to shop at the store, although they could not sit at the lunch counter and be served. Even though the cooks and janitorial staff in the kitchen were black, African Americans still would not be served. I think it is so ridiculous that blacks worked behind the lunch counter and they were not even allowed to sit and eat at the same counter.
After purchasing merchandise at the counters where blacks were accepted, the four students sat down at the lunch counter and were ignored and denied service. The boys refused to leave the store and remained seated until F.W. Woolworth closed that night. The boys were unaffected and returned to their university to recruit more protesters.
The next day, Feb. 2, the boys returned with two more reinforcements, Billy Smith and Clarence Henderson. They sat at the lunch counter studying from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. The word had begun to spread around town about the sit-in. News reporters and cameramen arrived to catch the action, and the sit-ins gained publicity and momentum. Six people would soon turn this movement into something bigger than any of them ever imagined.
That same night, the students met with college officials and interested citizens to form the Student Executive Committee for Justice. The committee mailed a letter to the President of F.W. Woolworth in New York and asked him to “take a firm stand to eliminate discrimination.” The NAACP also had their monthly meeting that night and voted to give 100 percent support to the protesters.
On the following day, over 60 students showed up at the store, filling up every available seat at the lunch counter for the entire day. Students even came from Dudley High School and Bennett College in support of the movement.

Ku Klux Klan members even showed up on the third day, including the state chaplain George Dorsett. The KKK members and white patrons hassled the students as they sat in protest.
A letter came that day from national headquarters in New York stating that the company policy was “to abide by local custom,” meaning to continue denying service to blacks.
On Feb 4, black students continued to fill every available seat in F.W. Woolworth, and they were even joined by three white enthusiasts, Genie Seaman, Marilyn Lott and Ann Dearsley. These three supporters were students from the local Women’s College, now UNCG. The police kept the 300 people downtown relatively calm as the protest spread to another lunch counter, S.H. Kress & Co. Meetings were held that night by representatives from the two stores, and they stood strong in their convictions to keep the lunch counters segregated. Ending without a breakthrough, the students left the meeting still resolving to protest until there was a change.
Conflict continued into Feb. 5 as 50 white males occupied seats at the Woolworth lunch counter, and protesters took the remaining seats. More white students joined the movement, and some people were arrested for unruly conduct. Blacks and whites were escorted from the store because of increasing tension and conflict.
Another meeting including students, store officials and school representatives took place on Feb. 5. The store officials did not understand why the students targeted only two stores and also asked the school representatives to end the sit-ins. In response to this plea, the school administrators said they had no control over the private choices and activities of their students.
On Saturday, Feb. 6, 1,400 N.C. A&T students met in Harrison Auditorium and voted to maintain the protest. The students went to F.W. Woolworth and filled every seat at the lunch counter. Soon, counter-protestors, against the sit-in movement, entered the drug store. By noon, there were 1,000 people in the store. One hour later, a caller said he had placed a bomb in the store that was to go off in 30 minutes. The store quickly cleared out and closed.
The crowd migrated to S.H. Kress and Co., which was promptly closed. The manager of F.W. Woolworth declared that the store would be closed on account of public safety, and people were arrested outside of both stores.
A 1,600 student rally was held that night at N.C. A&T and they voted to postpone the protest for two weeks. Dean Gamble said this suspension would allow stores the time make decisions regarding the food service for blacks. It amazes me to think that students are responsible for starting this movement and adults later became a part of the protest.
During the next week, sit-ins and protests were held in various cities across North Carolina, including Winston-Salem, Durham, Charlotte, Raleigh, Fayetteville and High Point. These protesting students let the Greensboro protesters know they were not alone in their fight. Protests even spread into Florida, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and even Woolworth stores in New York City!

I think it is so amazing that the ambitious students of N.C. A&T University started this entire movement across the East Coast. Upon hearing about the bravery of Greensboro students and citizens, other students were inspired and realized that they had the power to make a difference too.
In the following week, from Feb. 15-21, City Council member Edward Zane tried to reach a compromise with the students. The mayor decided to form a committee to tackle the issue and the protestors agreed to work with the committee. Many organizations in Greensboro rallied in support of integration, including The Board of Directors of the Greensboro Council of Church Women, the YWCA and ministerial associations. It is hard for me to understand why all of these groups did not stand up for integration before the blacks stood up for them. It took young college students to speak out against segregation to make citizens see their faults.
The Woolworth and Kress lunch counters reopened during the week of Feb. 22-28, but maintained segregation. Zane, chairman of the mayor’s Greensboro Advisory Committee on Community Relations, actively encouraged citizens to support integration and write letters expressing their beliefs on the racial situation. By this time, the sit-in movement had reached 15 cities in 5 states.
By March of 1960, the Advisory Committee had received 2,000 letters from citizens, 73% of which were in favor of lunch counter integration. In lieu of the citizen response, Zane met with representatives from each lunch counter and from other stores downtown. All of the business still neglected to integrate their stores. The storeowners would not be able to resist integration much longer, as the nation was catching onto the movement, which had now spread to 54 cities in 9 states.
On April 1, the students returned to the Woolworth and Kress lunch counters for their sit-ins, and the next day, both stores formally closed their lunch counters. On April 3, Thurgood Marshall, NAACP legal council, spoke at Bennett College and encouraged protesters not to settle and to keep fighting. Local leaders also arranged an economic boycott of Woolworth and Kress.
In mid-April, 45 students were arrested and charged with trespassing for sitting at the Kress lunch counter. Blair, Jr., McNeil and Richmond were among those students, and they had continued the campaign for equal rights. It amazes me that these boys had such conviction to continue fighting and sitting-in at the lunch counters as much as two and a half months after the first sit-in. I really admire their relentless efforts and how they never stopped pursuing their dreams.
On July 21, Clarence Harris, the manager of F.W. Woolworth, met with Zane and told him “that Woolworth would soon serve all properly dressed and well behaved people.”
Four days later, on July 25, the Woolworth and Kress lunch counters openly served African Americans. Charles Bess, Mattie Long, Susie Morrison and Jamie Robinson, all African-American Woolworth employees, were the first blacks to eat at the newly integrated lunch counter.
The sit-ins had such a major impact across the nation that over 70,000 people had participated, and over 3,000 arrests had taken place by August of 1961. Three years after the sit-in movement, in 1964, the Civil Rights Act declared lunch counter segregation unlawful.
As a college student, I often feel as if my opinions and feelings do not matter, but it is so inspiring to think that four college students made such a difference back in 1960. Their bravery is still spoken of today, and even seen as inspiration for the Civil Rights Movement.

Mendenhall Plantation

I visited the Mendenhall Plantation site in Jamestown, N.C. This plantation was built around 1811 by a Quaker named Richard Mendenhall. The plantation was a part of the “other south,” meaning the part of the south where the landowners did not have slaves. I took a tour of the plantation, and it showed the harsh life of living and working in the 1800s and 1900s. Although the Mendenhalls did not have slaves, there was an interesting African-American artifact at the Mendenhall Plantation.
The Underground Railroad was a major transportation system that secretly moved slaves from the South to freedom in the North. The Mendenhall Plantation houses perhaps the only vehicle left in North Carolina that was used to transfer slaves in the Underground Railroad before the Civil War. Because it was illegal for people to assist slaves toward freedom, code words had to be used to refer to people, houses and cars used in the transportation of the slaves. Houses involved in the Underground Railroad were referred to as “stations,” vehicles were called “trains,” drivers were called “conductors” and the runaway slaves were called either “baggage” or “cargo.”
It was amazing to see a wagon that had actually been a part of the Underground Railroad, especially the only vehicle left in North Carolina that was part of the network. Seeing the wagon made me wonder about all the lives that were changed because of people, both black and white, taking risks and transporting slaves to the North. I wondered what types of people had ridden in the wagon, and I could not even imagine their excitement and anxiety about making the courageous trip. The wagon also looked very uncomfortable, and I cannot envision hiding out in the back under covers and riding for days at a time. As I already said, I had an excellent time doing research and sightseeing this semester. I find it hard to believe how much there is that I was unaware of in terms of African American history. Although I have only tapped the surface of black history, I am thrilled to have made these trips and to have had these experiences. I have an overwhelming sense of respect for the struggles and choices made by African Americans throughout history. The Great Migration proved strength and pride in black culture and the Greensboro sit-ins started a necessary and nationwide movement for African-American rights