Carrie Washington was born in 1895 and moved to the Farish Street District in 1933 and has lived there since. Ms. Washington talks about her time in the district and her experiences working in the homes of white people. She also talks about businesses and buildings in the district and the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927.
This photograph shows a young Carroll Harris Simms, with many of his sculptures, as an art student at Cranbrook Academy of Art. Simms received his BFA and MFA from Cranbrook, where he was the first African American graduate. Simms recalled the way student and faculty advocates helped him integrate the school. In 1950, Simms came to Texas Southern to help Dr. John T. Biggers run the art department; Simms taught pottery, sculpture, ceramics, and jewelry making classes.
Charoennimuang’s print shows three women wearing babies on their backs and carrying baskets atop their heads. Two of the women’s faces are turned away from the viewer, while the closest gazes back fiercely. All three women’s hair is braided. This print highlights some of the varied and essential types of labor that women carry out.
Attorney Carsie Hall moved to Jackson in 1921 to attend Jackson College. He passed the bar exam in 1953 and operated a law firm in the Farish Street District. He talks about a case he worked with the Freedom Marchers during the Civil Rights Movement. He discusses the effect of desegregation on Black businesses and current revitalization efforts.
The vintage "Black Jockey Boys" bank is a collectible item depicting a stereotype of African American jockeys, often characterized by exaggerated features and playful expressions. While intended as a whimsical decoration, it reflects the racial caricatures prevalent in the early 20th century.
This maquette, created by an unknown Texas Southern University art student, shows a feline creature at attention. There are various swirl patterns and textures on the figure. The swirls are a required component for the maquette project, as Carroll Harris Simms pushed his students to richly embellish their works.
Leonard Jones was an artist from Winston-Salem, N.C. Cathedral is a cubist depiction of a cathedral and the town surrounding it. Jones uses a variety of light and dark colors that resemble the aesthetic of stained glass.
Richard Dempsey was a painter known for his abstractions and portraits of prominent African American leaders from Washington, D.C. Cathedral and Choir is an impressionist depiction of the inside of a church. The yellow brushstrokes create a tall organ alongside stained glass; the layered reds, blues, and black show the congregation and choir.
Documents listing last names of Rosewood descendants from the Fourteenth and Fifteenth U.S. Census. These records were essential in establishing population numbers and verifying residency in 1923, serving as key evidence for families seeking justice and compensation following the Rosewood Massacre.
Ceolia Herman was born in McGee, Mississippi, in 1904 and came to Jackson in 1919 to go to high school while living with her sister until getting married and moving to Chicago. She moved back and worked as a nurse and then in a cleaners. She recalls the "Good Old Days" as days when she was younger and didn't have to worry about anything.
John Arterberry was an artist who worked in the art department at Langston University from Tallahassee, FL. Ceres depicts the Roman goddess of agriculture, grain crops, and fertility, looking toward the sun. Ceres wears a crown of wheat stalks and holds a pitchfork in one hand and a bouquet of poppies in the other.
A letter from the university’s fourth president, Dr. Luther Hilton Foster, to Charles G. Gomillion, asking him to serve as Chairman of the Division of Sciences in the College of Arts and Humanities at Tuskegee University.
A letter from Rev. Ralph Abernathy to Chaplain Wynn expressing sorrow for the loss of the chapel and offering to be the Youth Day Speaker on 04/11/1957.
Guy L. Miller was an artist from Los Angeles, CA. Character is a sculpture of the head of a bearded Black man. His eyes are closed, and he looks as if he is in a deep slumber. The marble sculpture head has a deep black color, invoking fortitude and calm.
Criner’s senior notebook includes his written philosophy of art, photographs of the artist’s works and his process, and a copy of his senior exhibition brochure. As a part of the Texas Southern art curriculum under Dr. John T. Biggers and Professor Carroll Harris Simms, students would create these notebooks to explain their artistry and showcase the works they created as students.
Walker’s bust was created during his time as an art student at TSU. Under the instruction of Professor Carroll Harris Simms, artists would create self-portraits embellished with textures, like those seen in the hair of this sculpture. While most were made from terracotta clay, this one is made from plaster. These busts are inspired by Nok terracotta sculptures and Ife busts, which Simms saw during his travels to Western Africa.
Mr. Peterson was born in 1891 and was a lifelong resident of Clinton. He talks about his parents being born into slavery; the Clinton Riot; his Christian faith; and his education, specifically giving an overview of the curriculum of his school at the turn of the century.
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 spreadsheets analyzing the estimated capacities for student instruction for Topeka, Kansas, area schools for the 1980-1981 school year.
Hals’ drawing shows two women chatting on the street. Their environment, filled with shotgun homes and tall grass, resembles Houston’s Third Ward, the historically Black neighborhood that Texas Southern University calls home. TSU art students, at Dr. Biggers’ instruction, often looked to their surroundings for inspiration.
A newspaper article from The Home News about Stanley Cohen, the chief defense counsel in the murder trial of Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) for the 1973 killing of a state trooper, being found dead in his Manhattan apartment. At the time of reporting, the cause of death was unknown.
A newspaper article from The News Tribune about testimony on ballistics and gunshot trajectories given by two different expert witnesses in the trial of Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) for the 1973 killing of a state trooper. The judge in the case barred the jury from learning that one of the experts was hired by the defense.
A newspaper article from The News Tribune about an administrative hearing for Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) being scheduled for July 27th. The hearing will determine if Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) should be moved out of solitary confinement and into women's general population. She was on trial for the 1973 killing of a state trooper.
A newspaper article from The Rutgers Daily-Targum about the defense team for Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard), who was on trial for the 1973 killing of a state trooper, opening their case by calling for dismissal of the murder charge on the grounds that she cannot be convicted since Clark Squire has already been convicted of the killing.
A newspaper article from The News Tribune about defense attorneys for Assata Shakur (JoAnne Chesimard) filing suit to move her trial for the 1973 killing of a state trooper to the federal court. They contend that her civil rights are being violated in at least two ways. The litigation came during jury selection.
