Field notes (San Antonio, Texas): Reports and interview transcripts, circa 1954

Fisk University’s Social Sciences Department conducted extensive field work in a variety of areas both through faculty and student research; however one of the most significant instances of sociology field work conducted was done from the mid-1950s through the 1960s during the era of protest to pursue southern desegregation. The department, coordinated under Dr. Preston Valien sent faculty and students to the hot spots of the civil rights movement, from its inception after the United States Supreme Court Decision, Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas in 1954 to desegregate the public schools.

The bulk of the documentation within this series of materials detailed the events of the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1956 and include reporting from the Montgomery Improvement Association/NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) joint meetings, the White Citizens Council Rallies, civil rights trials, transcripts of observations, and informant interviews with individuals and participants from the black and white communities in Montgomery, Alabama. Coordinated mainly on the ground by Fisk faculty members, Inez Adams and Anna Holden, the records also include detailed daily chronologies of the events, statistical data on population and participation. Of interest, are transcript reports from The Montgomery Advertiser (1955-1956).

The documentation detailing southern desegregation and integration efforts beyond Alabama covers the southern states of Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Washington D.C. Also included are materials for the 1955 South-wide Integration Conference. The materials are mainly in the form of reports and interview transcripts, with early materials for analysis and planning for integration efforts throughout the south.

Topics: integration of public transportation and public schools.