Glad Tidings 2013: Wonderful Students and a Christmas Sermon from Reverend Black

It has been a while since I've posted, and things have been very busy with the Claude and ZerNona Black Papers project. We've finished work on one grant, and are beginning work with another grant-funded 16mm film preservation project. Preparations are underway for a busy Spring 2014 semester, which includes an official unveiling celebration of the Claude and ZerNona Black Papers; an academic panel discussion of the legacy of Reverend Black; and increased use of the collection in classes in the curriculum.

Along with my two exceedingly industrious student workers, Brandi Russell ('15) and Darcie Marquardt ('16), we have met our halfway mark to get 5,000 additional digital files into the digital collections.  Before I share the Christmas sermon, I want to share the goal-marking poster that Brandi was inspired to create completely on her own initiative -- it provides encouraging words along the way, and helps us appreciate our progress. With young people like this, we need not worry (as much!) about the future...Needless to say, it is a gift to have both Brandi and Darcie working on the project.

 

In the last few months we have put in hundreds of digital files of sermons into the digital collections. In this undated Christmas sermon entitled "Hours of God" from Sermons by Bible Book: Matthew (part 3) [image 14], Reverend Claude W. Black, Jr. preaches that the practice of love is redemptive of all the woes in the world:

The family experiences of love expressed at Christmas in giving and receiving gifts should be recognized as possessing world possibilities....."God so loved the world"  Love is not simply a family experience but can embrace the world as a redemptive power....

Love releases our gifts...

Love determines the character of our gifts...

Love is for you

With these thoughts to ponder, I wish all to have a celebratory season and a prosperous new year!

-- Donna Guerra

Quiet Solidarity and Theft: Remembering JFK at Trinity

Though President Kennedy’s assassination was an event that rattled the consciousness of the nation before even some of our parents were born, I doubt you could find any student on campus who can’t visualize the Zapruder Film. I still cringe when I see Jackie, prim in a pink pillbox, crawling along the back of the car, so it’s difficult for me to imagine what people must have been feeling in the immediate aftermath.

In the spirit of remembrance, I turned to the library archives to see how Trinity responded to the assassination; at first I was surprised by how little information there seemed to be. Because JFK was shot on Friday afternoon, that day’s issue of the Trinitonian had already been published. Then (just like this year) Thanksgiving fell the next week, which meant Trinity had to wait until the 6th of December to address the President’s death. It’s clear that by the end of the two week interim-which students and faculty no doubt spent reflecting with their friends and family-everyone had gotten to the business of pulling themselves together and starting over. While there is a brief but affectionate tribute on the front page and an editorial discussing a memorial flame being erected at the Alamo, most articles in this issue deal with the typical: on-campus events, pre-registration, parties, greek life. There is nothing to be discerned about student sentiment, and it seemed to me that a facet of our Trinity history was lost. I was disappointed.

Having given up, I started absently scanning the shorter articles and untitled sound bites. There, to my delight, was what I had been looking for. It seems that the red, white and blue decorations that had been purchased for Trinity’s Homecoming (an event cancelled in light of the shooting) had been filched by students and used to decorate their dorm buildings. Memorial pictures of the President, which had been placed in the Student Government Office also mysteriously vanished. I should have guessed, of course. There is no mention of politics, no finger-pointing or vitriol, just quiet solidarity. And theft.Though the article was meant as an admonishment, a call for the pilfered items to be returned before Student Council was forced to foot the bill for rented materials, I have to admit I was a little proud.

--Kate Cuellar ‘15

--If you found this post interesting, please explore the Trinitonian archive here: http://lib.trinity.edu/lib2/dig_coll.php in the library’s digital collections.

Or visit Special Collections and Archives on the second floor of the library to take a look at some of our Kennedy ephemera!

"Capitols, Washington and Austin," August 28, 1963

This week marks the 50th anniversary of the March for Jobs and Freedom (known as the March on Washington) in Washington, D.C., August 28, 1963. Commemorative events are planned from August 21 - August 28, and may be followed at the anniversary Twitter account and  hashtag: #MLKDREAM50.
The original Washington march was attended by approximately 250,000 people, both African American and white. A quote from that day by Josephine Baker, the only official female speaker at the March on Washington, conveys something of the spirit of the occasion:

"You are together as salt and pepper, just as you should be; just as I've always wanted you to be, and the peoples of the world have always wanted you to be."

(begin at 22:37 mins., from Celebrity Participation in the March on Washington, see sources and audio link)

On the same day as the March on Washington, Reverend Black, along with other black, white, and brown Texas civil rights leaders, participated in a sympathy march in Austin, Texas. This post is about that particular march.

The Claude and ZerNona Black Papers contain many audiotape reels, the majority of which have now been digitized through a Summerlee Foundation grant. One of these reels is pictured here:

We are very grateful that with the gracious permission of Mr. Greg Martin, Director of Operations, Border Media/KTSA Radio, we are able to stream this important audio that documents the Austin march, Austin Civil Rights March, Speeches, and Interviews, 1963.

This recording was produced by a reporter from KTSA Radio, San Antonio, Texas. The tape begins with an interview by the reporter with Bob Joiner of the Indignant White Citizens Council (IWCC). The recording also includes a fragment of a speech on Mt. Sequoyah, Arkansas; speeches by Reverend Claude W. Black, Jr.; Booker T. Bonner; Moses LeRoy; Attorney William J. Durham, Dallas, president of the Texas Council of Voters; and an interview with Booker T. Bonner (the total playing time is 39:18 minutes).

In an informative chapter by Martin Kuhlman titled "The Civil Rights March in Austin, Texas, 1963," from the book Bricks Without Straw: A Comprehensive History of African Americans in Texas (see sources below), we get a clear sense of the Texas context of the Austin march. Then Texas Governor John Connally, well-known as a segregationist, presented opposition to the civil rights bill being proposed in Washington. The Democratic Coalition, comprised of African American, Anglo American and Mexican American leaders across Texas, was working against the poll tax and the rhetoric that Connally and other segregationists were using that encouraged "voluntary" integration. Reverend Black puts the point eloquently in this excerpt from his editorial, "The Decision Takers":

"Voluntary integration leaves the Negro where he has always been - subject to the will of another man, for no other reason than the color of his skin. Voluntary integration compels the Negro to cultivate the favor of the white individual in an effort to receive those benefits that should be granted to him as a responsible citizen. It is at this point that the Negro citizen must weight the benevolent attitude of the white politicians. I am sure that many Negroes are weary, as I am weary, of those programs that require that I play the part of a second class man in order to survive in a white community."

Included in the additional and many writings of Reverend Black available in our Digital Collections is a commentary with his reflections on the significance of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, in Washington, D.C. as well as on the Austin, Texas Civil Rights March. His comments stress the ramifications for Negros who assume roles as leaders. 
Capitols, Washington and Austin, by Reverend Black, 1963

And, through the important film digitization work of the Texas Archive of the Moving Image (TAMI) in Austin, Texas, there is also a video from the Gordon Wilkison collection, Civil Rights Demonstration in Austin, 1963, that provides visual documentation of the Austin march.

In this time of commemoration of civil rights marches in 1963 and the issues represented, we can also celebrate access to the historical documents that  make study of them and social justice movements possible, and our appreciation for archives, donors, and all those who safeguard the evidence of our diverse history.


Sources:
Celebrity Participation in the March on Washington. (08/28/1963). Boston, MA: WGBH Media Library & Archives. Retrieved 20 Aug 2013
http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/march-bc109d-celebrity-participation-in-the-march-on-washington

Kuhlman, M. (1997). Chapter 9: The Civil Rights March on Austin, Texas, 1963. In, Bricks Without Straw: A Comprehensive History of African Americans in Texas (p. 153). Eakin Press (a.k.a. Sunbelt Media).  Retrieved 20 Aug 2013
(Permalink): http://libproxy.trinity.edu:80/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tih&AN=19177376&site=ehost-live

Texas State Historical Association, "Civil Rights." Retrieved 20 Aug 2013
https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/pkcfl

Spring Fever Fades to Summer

Memorial Day, as you know, is the unofficial start to summer. But, we still have a few more weeks of Spring. So, stop by the Archives and take a look at our celebration of spring, three student displays focusing on three of our favorite aspects of the season. You've already heard about Fiesta and Graduation. Next up is Kate's ode to the season...

I like doing these displays because they’re a means of showcasing some of the interesting materials we have in Archives. In assembling my collection, I chose to focus on the presence of spring on art and literature so that I could display as many types of material as possible. Our Dicke art collection provided a lot of classic paintings to choose from; the impressionist art was especially bright and cheerful.

Don’t you just wish you were outside?

Claude Monet, Essai de figure en plein air: femme a l’ombrelle tournée vers la gauche (Study of Figure Outdoors: Woman With Parasol Turned to the Left), taken from Paintings in the Musée d’Orsay

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And what would springtime be without flowers? Special Collections holds a surprising number of botanical photography books, and I found some surprisingly exciting photos of vibrant spring flowers.

   Color explosion Christopher Baker, Keizerskroon from Tulipia: A Photographer’s Botanical

Finally, I went to look for some literature. This is dangerous territory for me because I tend to get lost in the first editions of novels or children's books, but I managed without irritating Amy too much. Most of the spring-related materials were books of poetry, and the selection is eclectic. Horizontal Yellow is a collection of poems by Spud Johnson, evoking the spirit of the Near Southwest, and our copy is one of 400 printed as Writer’s Editions and signed by the poet. A lovely copy of Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman is also on display as well as a strange and fascinating collection of irregular haikus, unbound and printed on long strips of paper. This funny little collection is entitled High Kukus and was written by James Broughton, who intended the work as an experiment, reconciling humanity with nature.

I thought these haikus were so unique that I decided to display them despite the fact that only a few of them relate to spring. Many of them focus on mundane items like kitchen utensils and old trucks.

The hardest part about putting together this display was the excitement I experienced in even thinking about being outside and the end of the year and all of the other lovely things that come along with springtime. Looking at the art and setting up the display case made the close of the semester seem even further away. But spring has sprung, and before we know it, it will be the heat of summer. So enjoy spring fever before it’s over!

Kate Cuellar '15

New Beginnings

Well ladies and gentlemen, it’s that time of year again to whip out your tissues and get ready to send our lovely seniors into the real world to make us all very proud. As they walk the Laurie Auditorium stage on May 18, 2013, they will be ending one adventure and starting a new one (cheesy...I know). One of our very own down here in Special Collections, Faith Bradham, will be starting her new life in August at Indiana University, attending graduate school to become a librarian and spreading her love of books to everyone she can. Your Special Collections family is very proud of you, Faith-- now go do awesome things and never forget that we’ve always got your back!

Trinity University diploma from the Waxahachie campus

Although the beginning and ending ceremonies are held in Laurie Auditorium both freshmen and senior year, it was not always this way. Previous ceremonies on the Skyline campus were held in the Sunken Gardens, located directly across the 281 highway and walking distance from campus.

Trinity University Spring Commencement at the Sunken Gardens

Due to lack of space (and probably the unbearable Texas heat), the ceremonies were eventually moved inside. Because, lets be honest, who wants to sweat up a storm under one of those polyester graduation gowns in the 100 degree temps? Not me. However, that has never stopped friends and families from enjoying the outdoors as they take photographs outside by the Miller Fountain and the Trinity Tower to commemorate this important day.

Trinity students have been known to add a personal touch
their graduation day attire

In addition to walking the stage on graduation day, graduating seniors also have the opportunity to leave their mark on Trinity, specifically on the iconic Trinity Tower. As wide-eyed first years, students climb the Trinity tower, taking photographs at the top with the University’s president. When graduating, students climb the tower once more, this time signing a brick at the top (which will cost $20.13 this year--see what they did there?). Therefore, while graduating, seniors participate in similar ceremonies as they did four years ago, this time transitioning out of college life and into a new phase in their lives.

As we creep closer and closer to graduation, seniors are getting closer to holding that much deserved diploma. Just as those who walked across the stage at the Sunken Gardens in the 1950s before their friends and family, 2013 seniors will walk (or stumble) across the Laurie Auditorium stage with the support of all their friends and family. The seniors of 2013 will be dearly missed next year, and campus will definitely not be the same without them. Congratulations friends, and never forget that your Triniland family is here cheering you on!

Oh, and try not to trip...

--Angeline Bottera '15

Student Days -- Reverend Black at Andover Newton Theological School, 1940s

Here at Trinity University, all anticipate the end of the semester, and student and faculty life is abuzz as projects and papers are due, and seniors wrap up their undergraduate life.  The digital collections contain two sets of photographs that represent Reverend Black's own time as a student at Andover Newton Theological Seminary (as it was called in those days) in Newton, Massachusetts, which he attended from 1940 to 1943.  The photographs are candid snapshots, primarily of Reverend Black and his fellow students studying, or enjoying leisure time and each others company in their residential dormitory.
Over the years of his life, Reverend Black often remarked that his time at the school was the first time he had ever lived in a non-segregated society. The experience was no doubt similar for other African Americans from the South attending Andover Newton Theological Seminary in the years before desegregation of the South. As is seen in the second photo, Samuel H. James, Jr. was also at the school at the time. He became Reverend S.H. James of the Second Baptist Church in San Antonio, was the first African American elected as councilman to the San Antonio city council, and was a founding civil rights leader in San Antonio in his own right.
Others who went on to become influential ministers also appear in some of the photographs, such as Alfonso Leon Lowry and Edward McCreary. The Trinity Digital Collections provides access to the thesis Reverend Black wrote to gain his degree, Communism as a Religion, made available by kind permission of the Franklin Trask Library at Andover Newton Theological School.

Claude W. Black, Jr. at study
Andover photos, part one 

Samuel H. James, Jr.

Andover photos, part one

Group photo
Andover photos, part one 

Student reflections Andover photos, part one

Playing chess

Andover photos, part two

Fiesta at Trinity!

Spring is in full swing in San Antonio, and we all know what that means--it's Fiesta time! This beloved festival takes place over a 10 day period each spring in San Antonio, featuring events such as Night in Old San Antonio, the River Parade, Oysterbake, and, the oldest and perhaps the most cherished event, the Battle of Flowers. 

The largest parade of Fiesta, the Battle of Flowers meanders over two and a half miles of downtown San Antonio and is made up of uniformed bands, color guards, and many, many gorgeously decorated floats. Here in Special Collections, we decided to look into the history of Fiesta and Trinity's involvement with it, particularly as regards the Battle of Flowers, and create an exhibit with our findings.

So, I delved into the archives and discovered that Trinity has a thirty year history of submitting floats to the Battle of Flowers--I found several fun photos of floats we constructed, and I also found some interesting tidbits of information about Trinity student's interest in and love of Fiesta. Last but not least, I made sure to display Trinity's collection of Fiesta medals, since they perfectly represent Trinity's great way of getting into the Fiesta spirit!

Make sure to stop by Special Collections this month and check out our Fiesta exhibit! 

--Faith Bradham, '13

Love is in the Air... of the Archives!

 

In the spirit of Valentine's Day, Special Collections & Archives has created a new exhibit entitled "Love in the Archives"--a tripartite collection of romantic materials culled from the collection by Angel, Kate, and me (with Amy's guidance, of course!).

I quickly claimed any love letters we might have, since I find the correspondence between lovers fascinating. Love letters offer a unique glimpse into a person's character and into their inner emotions, thus showing a different side of a person than the public may normally see. I composed a display called "Enveloping Desire" that contains materials ranging from war letters written to sweethearts to poetry written to historical women. Unfortunately, the letters in our collection seem to have a depressing theme of unrequited love: from Sam Houston's letters to a young lady who rejected him for one of his best friends to the poetic passion of a 12th century nun for the general that left her alone for the rest of her life, hardly any of Special Collections' romance seems to end happily.





Thankfully, Kate chose a happier topic, concentrating on the various romantic productions that Trinity's Theatre department has staged throughout the years. Kate was inspired to create her display by the fact that these plays, whether modern or Shakespearean, proclaim the same transcendent power of love; a topic both contemporary and ancient audiences can agree on. She focused on Trinity's production of Romeo and Juliet in 1978, Candida in 1989, The Importance of Being Earnest in 1977, and A Midsummer Night's Dream in 1978.

Finally, Angel combed through the Dicke Smith collection for her display, "Mastering the Art of Love," which exhibits romantic instances of visual art found in the collection. Each of the books that Angel used in this display showcase a different type and era of artistic expression. Examples range from a collection of glamour shots of Hollywood stars to the Postsecret book (which is made up of selections from the Postsecret blog of anonymous postcard confessions) to selections from Renoir's achingly beautiful portraiture.








Make sure to stop by while the exhibit is up and enjoy these choice specimens from Special Collections & Archives! As always, questions and comments are appreciated.

--Faith Bradham, '13 

The "Lunch Bunch"

Thanks to Jeremy Donald, our Faculty Technology Liaison Librarian, a "blog/share" button has been added to the all of the images in the Trinity Digital Collections to allow embedded sharing of images in blogs or websites. Below I have shared a photo from the Claude and ZerNona Black Papers, using the button:

Reverend Claude W. Black and the Lunch Bunch group, 2001

Link

A post on the blog of Elias Tzoc, a Digital Initiatives Librarian at Miami University, talks about the PHP and Java code he put together for this function, and I thought it would great to see if it would work with our collections. Happily, it does. If you use CONTENTdm and are interested in using this feature, Elias provides instructions for creating the "share-it" button.
The button provides greater potential for student and researcher access, as by clicking on the word "Link" below the image, it links back to the image in the Digital Collections, providing the information necessary to understand and properly credit the source.
The image seen here portrays a meeting of the "Lunch Bunch" (a monthly gathering of a variety of friends interested in local activism and social justice, and that Reverend Black met with from the 1960s at least until 2006). This particular 2001 meeting photo includes (from left to right) Arnold Flores, Herschel "Herky" Bernard, Reverend Black, Albert A. Peña, and Charles [surname undetermined].