Lewis Family papers

The papers of the Lewis Family (circa 1860-1977; bulk 1880-1950) from Natchitoches, Louisiana, contain significant documents related to Louisiana’s Reconstruction and Post-Reconstruction eras, extensive examples of late 19th and early 20th century portraiture, and the relationships and achievements of an African American family across generations. Family members represented throughout the collection include patriarch John G. Lewis Sr. (1849-1931); his wife Virginia Thompson (1864-1931); and some of their children, Beatrice Lewis Breda (1887-1974), Ruth Lewis Hedrick (1889-1943), Lambert L’Ouverture (Beau) Lewis (1894 - ?), Scott A. Lewis, Sr. (1891-1941), and John G. Lewis, Jr. (1904-1979); as well as some of their grandchildren, extended family, and friends. The collection is littered with correspondence between three generations of the family and it reveals the close relationships shared by certain individuals.

John G. Lewis, Sr., and his sons, Scott A. Lewis, Sr. and John G. Lewis, Jr., were Grand Masters of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons of Louisiana from 1903 until 1979. The documents within the family papers are mainly personal in nature, but often the Lewis's work as Masons is referenced throughout.

The earliest items in the collection from John G. Lewis, Sr. highlight Louisiana’s Reconstruction and Post-Reconstruction eras. During this time, Lewis, Sr. was active politically and served in the Louisiana Legislature as a Republican from 1876-1878. An 1876 Louisiana Republican ticket in the collection for Natchitoches Parish includes the name of Lewis as a candidate for the House of Representatives. He also received a position in 1880 as a Night Inspector for the New Orleans Customhouse through Louisiana Senator William P. Kellogg. He was appointed as a Deputy United States Marshall in 1876. As an educator, Lewis Sr.’s teacher’s reports are located in the collection along with photographs related to the Natchitoches Parish Training School. Additional items reference the Rooms Migration and Relief Association that urged African Americans to migrate out of the South due to the violence and intimidation they had experienced at the hands of whites in Louisiana. John G. Lewis, Sr. served as the secretary for the Association. A document from April 28, 1879, references that Blacks should stay put until they could properly “investigate common carriers in regard to the transporting the [colored] people to Kansas.”

John G. Lewis, Jr.'s papers within the collection highlight his work in civil rights and community activism and include items such as a 1931 publication titled, Resume of Job Campaign for Colored People in Gary, Indiana, As Clerks; a report by John G. Lewis, Jr. “South Regional Office of the National Urban League” (1965), as well as Lewis, Jr.’s letters to his sister Vinita Lewis (1928-1933). Documents representing Scott A. Lewis, Sr. (Anderson Scott) mainly refer to his estate after his unexpected death in 1941, as well as John G. Lewis, Jr.’s support of Scott’s son and daughter. Additional records for Scott A. Lewis, Sr. include his certificate of rank in the United States Army (1918); and personal estate, financial, and insurance records (1930s-1970s).

Of note are letters and photographs regarding Vinita Lewis’ work with the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) in the 1940s. She was a UNRRA Child Care Officer working with orphanages in Peiping (Beijing), China in 1946. In the collection, one can find extensive correspondence between the Vinita and John Jr. that spans over 10 years. There are three letters dated from January to February 1941 from Ruth Lewis Hedrick to her mother Virginia Thompson regarding her search for “Beau,” her brother Lambert L’Ouverture Lewis who had disappeared. The estate records from 1946 show the family had not been able to locate Beau.

Also, of interest is correspondence from Ocie Lee Smith, Sr., father of jazz musician O.C. Smith and who worked for the U. S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Security Administration, and a typescript commentary from Dr. Louis J. James, an army doctor referencing the 1953 Baton Rouge Bus Boycott and his experiences of segregation outside the armed forces. Of note, are letters from Theodore R. Moses detailing his experiences in basic training at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina in 1943, his many months of illness at the U.S. Naval Hospital in San Francisco, California, in 1944, and his return to Camp Lejeune in 1945.

Photographs (circa 1860-1970) are a significant portion of the papers and mainly consists of late 19th century and early-to-mid 20th century portraiture of the family, as well as friends and unidentified individuals. Identified photographs are arranged in alphabetical order by personage, with photographs of unidentified individuals following and arranged by type, such as tintype, carte-de-viste, and cabinet cards. Of note are portraits of Lambert L’Ouverture (Beau) Lewis who went missing during World War II. Additionally, the photographs provide examples of photographers and studios throughout Louisiana, such as Clarke’s Southern Photographic Gallery (New Orleans), J. Frazier Photographer, (New Orleans), W.W. Washburn (New Orleans), Kerr’s Studio (Natchitoches, Louisiana), and Bauer & Robertshaw Photographers (Shreveport, Louisiana), and many more.