African Americans in Long Beach and Southern California: A History

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African Americans in Long Beach and Southern California: A History

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Racial discrimination and unrest are intertwined with the history of Long Beach and Southern California in Ms. Burnett’s latest book. African Americans in Long Beach and Southern California begins in the 1800s and continues to 1970, reaching into later years to describe what that history has led to today. Ms. Burnett spent over five years researching recently digitized African American newspapers which has allowed her access to the black perspective on issues rarely written about in the white press or by other authors. Personal stories, legislation, Southland history and possible solutions to decades old problems are presented, making for an interesting and informative read. It is a unique, seminal work, sure to open the eyes of many.

Here’s a sample of what you will find:

FORMER SLAVES

  • Gold rush pioneer Nate Harrison who escaped slavery, fleeing to Southern California.

  • Abram and Amanda Cleag, who persevered despite severe tragedies.

  • Jefferson L. Edmonds, owner/editor of the African American newspaper the Liberator, born a slave in Virginia who considered how fortunate he had been to have kind owners.

HISTORY

  • How Willmore City became Long Beach and the growth of the city.

  • Advent of the railroad in Southern California.

  • The Ku Klux Klan.

  • African Americans in the Civil War, Spanish American War, World Wars I and II, and Korea.

  • Long Beach Earthquake of 1933 and the 1932 Olympics.

HEROES

  • D. H. Hoyt, who led rescue efforts to help those trapped in the Hotel Virginia collapse, despite his own injuries.

  • Warren Jordan, a decorated Army veteran who became Long Beach’s first African American police officer.

  • Bailey Johnson, a doorman at the Breakers Hotel, who proudly wore his Croix de Guerre with Palm, and a Purple Heart awarded him for heroic service during WWI.

LEGISLATION

  • Fugitive Slave Law.

  • Atlantic Compromise of 1895.

  • Civil Rights Acts.

  • Rumford Fair Housing Act.

  • Affirmative Action.

KILLINGS

  • Anthony Wilkins shot by an off-duty LA policeman at the Hollywood Bowl.

  • Ron Settles found dead in a Signal Hill jail cell.

  • Rev. William Hardy who, in helping a parishioner, was convicted of murder.

  • R.C.O. Benjamin murdered while helping register blacks to vote in Kentucky.

ACTIVISTS

  • Ernest McBride, Lavade Jones, Roscoe Hayes and Nathan Holly who brought the NAACP to Long Beach.

  • Darthula Bouggess and Willie White who established the Roland Hayes Political Study Club and an educational scholarship for African Americans.

  • Elijah Lane, who led a protest against a game on the Pike known as “Drowning the Nig***”

  • George H. Hawkins who helped form the Colored Business Men’s League of Los Angeles.

Comments such as this one have been received from local African Americans: Charles Brown, community advocate, who received an advance copy writes:  I couldn’t wait…  I just completed a “quick scan” of your draft, and I am overwhelmed by the thoroughness and clarity of what I did have chance to survey.  I can tell you now that it is the most definitive coverage of African American History in the Long Beach/Southern California area, I have read.   I was struck by the depth of documentation and resources you had available to you to not only validate the information you imparted, but also provided the context and “flavor” of the times it was written.  Again, thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of the soon to be growing tribe of aficionados of your work.

View what Gary Metzger had to say about the book.

Watch the video of author Claudine Burnett discussing her book.

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

BEGINNINGS 1800s-1900

The American Colony

Slaves in the Gold Rush and in the Civil War

Willmore City Becomes Long Beach

African Americans Move West

Spanish American War

A NEW CENTURY 1900-1920

Earning a Living

Fighting for Respect and Justice

Religion

World War I

 

THE GREAT MIGRATION 1920-1940

Change

The Newcomers

Social News

Ku Klux Klan

Leisure

The Great Depression

A New Deal and an Earthquake

THE SECOND GREAT MIGRATION 1940-1970

Preparing for War

US Enters the War

African American Servicemen and Women

USO and Other Entertainment

Adjusting to a Short-Lived Peace

Seeking Equality

Convention Troubles

Police Corruption and Brutality

Education

Achieving Success

INDEX

A

Actors & Actresses. See Entertainers

Affirmative Action. See Legislation

African Methodist Episcopal Church. See Churches:African Methodist Episcopal

African Mexicans, v, 9

Afro-American League, 56, 68, 77-80

Agriculture, 4, 15, 26, 33, 42, 53-56, 57-58, 83, 94, 117, 121,

Airport, 203, 208, 211, 224, 233, 237,

Alabama, 75, 77, 86, 229, 251

Alcohol, iii, 18, 25, 73, 129, 146, 172, 198, 204, 253- 254, 256

Alexander, P. J., 58

American Civil Liberties Union, 293

American Colonization Society. See Back to Africa movement

American Colony, 1, 5-6, 25-26

American Federation of Labor. See Unions

Anaheim, 1, 5, 50, 53

Anderson, Chester H., Rev., 91-92

Anderson, Claude E., 273-274

Anderson, Marian, 203, 239

Antigua, 82-83

Apartments, 22, 84, 122-123, 141, 180, 266, 273, 277, 278, 282-283, 289, 294, 327, 348

Apostolic Mission. See Churches:Apostolic Mission

Arkansas, 4, 21, 114, 128, 129, 131, 147, 252, 280, 348

Armstrong, Louis, 142

Auto industry,181, 188, 213-215, 271, 347

Azusa Street Revival, 99, 101

B

Back-to-Africa movement, 103-106, 145

Bailey, Clarence R., 122

Bailey, Herbert Jr., 252-253

Bailey, Pearl, 177

Balboa Film Studio. See Films

Baltimore, Charles, 112

Banks, 35, 188, 195, 261

Banks, U. C., 204

Barner, Ida, 64

Barner, John, 64-65, 203

Barner, Theodosia, 203

Barnes, Walter, 257

Bass, Charlotta, 141, 225, 264-265, 275-276

Bass, J. B., 171

Bay View Hotel. See Hotels:Bay View

Beason, James H., 231

Beauty contests, 168-169, 304, 307-311, 317, 318,

Bedley, Jim, 72

Begley, Carrie. See Jackson, Carrie Begley

Begley, Robert, 131

Bellflower, 125

Belmont Heights, 72-73

Bendy, Ernest. See Jackson, Dynamite

Benjamin, R .C. O., 81-84

Birth of a Nation. See Films:Birth of a Nation

Bixby Hotel. See Hotels:Virginia

Bixby Knolls, 131, 181, 277, 289-291 314,

Bixby, Jotham, 5, 6, 56-57, 60

Black Lives Matter, 14, 328, 365

Black Students’ Union. See Schools:Long Beach State College

Bliss, Warren A., 97

Bonner, Clark J., 279

Borden, Thomas C., 84-86, 88

Bouggess, Darthula, 128, 131-132, 179, 179, 202

Bouggess, George, 131

Boyd, Mildred, 169

Boyd, Sina. See Stubblefield, Sina

Brammlet, Joe and Lena, 91

Brenner, Bernard D., 313-314

Brooks, Willie B., 128

Brown, Caroline, 239

Brown, Ferris, 184

Brown, Marcia, 137

Brown, Otie, 86-87

Brown, Romeo, 18

Brown, Sheila, 137

Bruce’s Beach, 161-166

Brusso, Noah and Julia, 182-184

Bryson, Roger, 334

Buduit, Harold, 283-284

Buffalo soldiers. See U. S. Army: Buffalo soldiers

Bull, Sara, 91

Burgess, William C., 173-174

Burke, Theodosia. See Barner, Theodosia

Burns, Joseph, 132-134

Burns, Tommy. See Brusso, Noah

Butler, Mamie and Oliver, 130

Butterfield, James I., 154, 155-156

C

Cafes

Dude Ranch, 204

Hayes Brothers, 203

House of Rhythm, 257

Little Brown Jug, 251-253, 256

Royal Palm, 348

Wave, 203-204

California Immigrant Union, 4-5

California Recreation Center. See Ernest McBride Park & California Recreation Community Center,

Cambodians, 366

Campbell, E. B., 319

Canada, 11, 101, 113, 182, 183,

Carlton, Wilbur, 73-75

Carver, George W., 239

Catley, Elizabeth, 164

Central Long Beach, iii, 80, 95, 115, 124, 179-180,196, 226, 246, 252, 274, 280, 287, 294-295, 297, 299-300, 366

Ceruti, E. Burton, 151-152

Chambers, Bobbie, 333

Chambers, Clarence, 253-254

Charles, H. B., Rev., 274-275

Chinese, 13, 33, 71-72, 179, 366

Churches

African Methodist Episcopal, 82, 98-99, 101-103,

Apostolic Mission, 99-101

First Christian, 149-150

Grant Chapel AME, 90, 101-103, 130

Mt. Sinai Baptist, 130

Non-Sectarians, 160

Second Baptist, iv, 18, 64, 69, 81, 90, 91-98, 129, 131, 135, 172-177, 202, 274-276,

Second Baptist Church of Los Angeles, 91-94, 95,

St. Anthony, 61, 183

St. John’s Baptist, 117

Tabernacle Baptist Church of Los Angeles, 91

Zion Hill Baptist, 172-173

Cidalise-Montaise, Ginette, 304, 307-310

Citizens’ Committee. See USO Citizens’ Committee

City College. See Schools:City College

Civil Rights Acts. See Legislation

Civil War, v, 12, 13, 15, 16-23, 41, 43, 44, 53, 57, 77, 78, 109, 134, 147

Claproth, H. A., 100

Clark, Hal R., 166-167, 170

Clay, Alexander and Marie, 130-131

Clayton, Rhea, 130

Cleag, Abram, 16-19

Cleag, Amanda, 17-19

Cleag, Sallie. See Pierce, Sallie

Clifton, Ruth, 248

Cole, Charles C., 155-156

Colleges. See Schools

Collins, Lee, 321

Colored Business Men’s League of Los Angeles, 77-78

Colored Citizens League, 129

Colored Elks Club. See Elks:Colored

Community Improvement League, 297-298, 311, 343

Compton, 274, 284-285, 289, 306, 333, 343

Congo Room. See: Elks: Congo Room

Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). See Unions

Cooper, Larkin Y., 123

Cox, Hiden T., 342

Craw, Henry, 43

Crawford, Charlie Mae. See Lomax, Charlie Mae

Crenshaw, Aileen, 333

Crothers, Scatman, 257

Cuba, 41-45

Cypress, CA., 58

D

Daniels, Clarence, 3-4, 180

Daniels, Dora Robinson, 3-4, 114, 180-181

Daniels, Everett, 321

Daniels, Geraldine, 4, 181

Davis, Hazel, 169

Day, Aaron, 346, 350

De Cuir, Benny R., 219-221

Delmonico Hotel. See Hotels:Delmonico

Democratic National Convention, 305-306

Denkey, John, 95-98

DeVries, Martin, 239

Discrimination, 70-72, 79-80, 128, 142, 149, 165, 202, 294, 300-302, 305-306, 307-310, 321, 324, 332, 333, 361-362, 366

Employment, 65-66, 72, 186, 200-201, 214-215, 224-245, 272-273, 280, 297

Housing, 69-70, 95, 132, 215-216, 276-277, 281-284, 289, 297, 298-299, 348

In the military, 45, 112, 114, 233, 263, 266-267

Douglas Aircraft, 211, 218-219, 224, 233-234, 236, 237, 245, 248, 258, 265, 273

Douglass, Frederick, 21,

Dovalis, John, 273-274

Doyle, Clyde, 306

Drake, Charles Rivers, 59, 60,

Drake Park, 84-85

Du Bois, W. E. B., 148-149, 151, 366

Dumas, Audrey, 333

E

Ealey, James, 252

Earthquakes, Long Beach: 194-197, 198, 213

Echols, Charles, 204

Edmonds, Jefferson Lewis, 57-58, 138-140

Education, 76, 77, 117, 149, 230, 248, 274, 287, 296, 297-298, 331-334, 336, 341-343, 344, 348, 349, 366

Edwards, Alonso, 112

Edwards, Arthur, 257

Edwards, B. E., Rev., 101-102

Edwards, Cora, 282-283

Edwards, Esther, 129

Elks,

Colored, 247, 253, 254-256

Congo Room, 251-253, 254

Emancipation Proclamation, 21, 46

Empire Day disaster, 116

Employment, 17, 51-53, 54, 60, 63-66, 77, 78, 80-81, 86-87, 94, 121, 124, 135, 137-138, 140, 179, 181, 190, 197, 200-202, 211, 224- 225, 235, 270, 271 279-280, 296-297, 347

Civil service, 87, 117, 138, 271-272, 348,

Salaries, 2-3, 33, 86, 186-188, 205, 300

Unemployment. See Unemployment

Employment discrimination. See Discrimination:Employment

Entertainers, 65, 168, 175, 200, 203-204, 239, 255, 257,

Ernest McBride Park & California Recreation Community Center, 129, 136, 216, 220, 247, 249, 250, 276, 298, 324

Eureka Villa. See Val Verde

Evans, Daniel Webster, 46-47

F

Fair Employment Practices Committee, 224-225, 294

Fair Housing Foundation. See Housing:Fair Housing Foundation

Farming. See Agriculture

Federal Emergency Relief Administration, 197

Federal Housing Authority (FHA). See Housing: Federal Housing Authority

Films, 168, 169, 175, 181-182, 248, 307

Birth of a Nation, 162-163

Finch, Harry Jr., 316-317

First Christian Church. See Churches:First Christian

Fleming, Marvin, 289

Florida, 45, 101, 317, 328, 365

Floyd, George, 323, 327, 343, 344, 363

Ford Motor Company. See Auto industry

Fugitive Slave Law. See Legislation

G

Gambling, 171-172, 250, 253

Garcia, Genero, 338

Garden Grove, 283-284, 332

Garland, Helen and Jay, 314-317

Garland, Jayda. See Whittier, Jayda

Garvey, Marcus, 106, 145, 148-149

Georgia, 56, 92, 150-151, 156

Gibson, Althea, 286

Gilmore, Effie. See Sanders, Effie

Gilmore, Otto, 114-115, 180

Godfrey, George, 251, 252

Gold Rush, 9-11

Gordon, John, Rev., 91-92

Gordon, Roscoe, 225

Gordon, Stewart C., 320-321

Grant Chapel AME Church. See Churches:Grant Chapel AME

Gray, John Wesley, 134-135

Gray, Priscella, 91, 134-135, 231

Green, Louis, 13-14, 25

Green, Melvin Joe, 287

Green, Roy, 152-153

Griffin, Milton, 256

Grosselfinger, Edmund, 247, 250

H

Hall, Howard, 216

Harbor, 35, 37-38, 62, 91, 94, 105, 181, 211, 213, 237, 271, 349

Hardy, William, Rev., 95-96

Harlem Hellfighters. See U. S. Army: Harlem Hellfighters

Harris, Gerard, 283

Harris, Grant, Rev., 173

Harrison, Nate, 9-13, 14-16

Hart, Joseph J., 100-101

Hawkins, George W., 56-59, 76-78, 81, 82, 84, 122

Hayes, J. Vance, 203

Hayes, John, 203

Hayes, Roland. See Roland Hayes Political Study Club

Hayes, Roscoe, 203, 215, 216

Hayes, Theo, 203

Hayes, Willie May, 141

Haynes, Charlie and Ethel, 347-348

Haynes, Sam and Henry, 151-152

Hays, Rogers W. C., 217-218

Henderson Hotel. See Hotels:Henderson

Henderson, Horace, 257

Henderson, J. Raymond, Rev., 262

Henry, Raymond, 316-317, 349

Herrington, Aaron and Maycie, 229-230, 353

Hill, Archie, 73-75

Hill, Birdie, 333

Hispanics. See Latinos

Holly, Nathan, 215, 216

Homestead Act of 1862. See Legislation

Horn, Stephen, 342

Horne, Lena, 175

Hotels

California Ocean View, 123

Del Coronado, 29

Delmonico, 30,51

Henderson, 36

Iowa Villa, 30

Long Beach, 24, 26-28, 29-30, 35, 60

Mission Inn, 27

Palms, 123

Seaside Inn, 42-43

Virginia, 61-63, 128

Housing, 273-274, 276-279

Cabrillo, 207, 274, 280, 281-283

Carmelitos, 206

Fair Housing Foundation, 298-299

Federal Housing Authority (FHA), 205-206

Rent control, 273, 278

Savannah, 207

Truman Boyd Manor, 280, 281

Housing discrimination. See Discrimination:Housing

Howard, David, 43

Howard, Katherine Newsom Wright, 87

Howard, Levi, 86-87, 142-143, 167

Howard, Otie. See Brown, Otie

Hoyt, D. I., 62

Hudson, Henry C., 165

Hughes, Langston, 150-151

Human Relations Committee.

Long Beach, 291-292

Los Angeles County, 334, 336, 361-362

Hunter, Harry P., 128

Huntington Beach, 166-171

I

Immune regiments. See Spanish American War

Imperial Valley, 57-58

Inglewood, 154, 237, 320

Inkwell Beach, 166

International Beauty Congress. See Beauty contests

Interracial marriage. See Legislation

Iowa Villa Hotel. See Hotels:Iowa Villa

J

Jackson, Carl, 112-113

Jackson, Carrie Begley, 131

Jackson, Dynamite, 184-185

Jackson, Henry, Rev., 131

Jacobs, Louis L., 82

James, Elijah, Rev., 275

Japanese, 55, 62, 164, 179, 211, 212, 223, 224, 232, 233, 261, 267

Japanese Americans, 224, 274

Jarret, Flo, 257

Jim Crow. See Discrimination

Johns, Itaska, 130

Johnson, Bailey, 116

Johnson, Dick, 63-64

Johnson, Dumas, 171-172

Johnson, Jack, 184

Johnson, John Lester, 182

Jones, Edward Smyth, 109-110

Jones, Enoch, 87

Jones, Lavade J., 215, 216-217

Jones, Louisa, 52

Jones, R. P., Rev., 102

Jordan, Warren, 316-317, 349

Juvenile delinquency, 238, 241, 248-249

K

Kansas, 43, 56, 99, 103, 131

Kennedy, Claude, 203-204

Kentucky, 11, 20, 21, 83, 255, 327

Kesic, Miroslav, 288-289

King, Martin Luther Jr., 277, 322, 340

King, Rodney, 327

Korean Conflict, 114, 145-148, 153, 154-157, 162-163, 265-266, 267-268, 299

Ku Klux Klan, 114, 145-148, 153, 154-157, 162-163, 299

L

Lacey, Della, 333

Lake Elsinore, 173-174

Lakewood, 198, 213, 277, 278-279, 291

Lane, Elijah, 51, 52, 65-66, 80-81, 84

Lane, Mary, 51, 52, 80-81, 84

Latinos, v, 54, 55, 62, 159, 179, 185, 205, 238-242, 332, 338, 362, 363,

Lecesne, Adolphe, 254

Lee, Archy, 10-11

Lee, Jason, Rev., 94

Lee, Robert E., 262

Lefebvre, Richard R., 319-321

Legislation, iii, 9, 12-13, 14, 20-21, 33, 72, 79-80, 81, 149, 195-196, 254, 271, 277, 280-281, 293-297, 300-301, 302, 306, 318, 331-332, 340, 347, 363-365

Lewis, James E., Rev., 104-106, 145-146

Lewis, Milton, 124-125, 162

Liberator newspaper. See Newspapers

Liberia, 103-106

Libraries, iv, 287, 322, 344

Lindsey, Perry W., 230-231, 354

Locke, Emma and Oree, 138

Lofland, Trusten, 349

Lomax, Charlie Mae, 173, 174, 176

Lomax, Estelle, 173, 176

Lomax, Thurston, Rev., 172-177

Long Beach police See: Police, Long Beach

Long Beach Board of Education. See Schools

Long Beach Civil Rights Committee, 272

Long Beach Hotel. See Hotels:Long Beach

Long Beach Neighborhood Youth Corps, 338-339, 343

Long Beach State College. See Schools:Long Beach State College

Los Alamitos, 56, 213, 237, 279

Los Altos, 277

Los Angeles, vi, 1-2, 3, 6, 9, 12, 13-14, 17-18, 23, 24, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 46, 51, 52, 56, 57, 58-59, 72, 75-76, 77, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 91-92, 93-95, 98-99, 101, 102, 105, 109, 110, 124, 130, 135, 137, 138, 139, 140, 146, 151, 157, 159, 160, 162, 165, 169, 172, 173, 175, 179, 187, 200, 201, 204, 213, 226, 233, 238, 239-241, 245, 273, 276, 298, 310, 313, 317-323, 324, 325, 326, 333, 338-340

Los Angeles River, 38, 51, 295

Los Angeles Terminal Railway Company. See Railroads:Los Angeles Terminal Railway Company

Los Cerritos, 56-57, 77

Louis, Joe, 175, 286

Louisiana, 83, 92, 117, 128, 134-134, 280, 291

Lyles, Geraldine, 333

Lynche, Sylvester, 142, 255

Lynchings, 14, 74, 80, 114, 145, 149

M

MacDonald, Gwendolyn, 333

Mack, Holland, 98

Manhattan Beach, 161-166

Marsh, L. B., 127

Marshall, Thurgood, 266-267, 277

Martin, John, 252

Martin, Ola, 141

Martin, Trayvon, 328

Martinique, 96, 307-310

Mason, Biddy, 98-99

Mason, Harry, 60

Mason, Mitchell H., 313-314

Matthews, George Jr., 252-253

McBride, Ernest, 215-217, 249, 346

McBride, Lillian Veal, 132, 215

McCauley, Joseph, Rev., 99-101

McConley, Mack, 60

McCowen, Adolph, John David and Lodusky, 231

McCowen, Delores and Martha, 333

McCowen, Mary Nancy, 135, 231

McCowen, Walter II, 127, 135, 231

McDaniel, Hattie, 175, 222

McGinest, Crawford, 253

McIntosh, Carl, 301, 302, 341-342,

McLendon, Ben, 152-153, 154, 156

McNeil, Samuel, Rev., 46

McQueen, John, 232

McReynolds, Samuel, 52

McVea, Jack, 204

Medak, George, 320

Medals. See War medals

Metcalfe, Ralph, 192

Mexican-American War, 20

Mexicans. See Latinos

Miles, Earl and Rose, 129

Miller, Clifford, 261

Miller, Frank Augustus, 27

Miller, Johnny, 204

Miller, Loren, 265, 276-277, 291

Miller, Russel, 333

Milligan, Louis, 91

Minister’s Alliance, 216

Miss America contest. See Beauty contests

Miss Universe. See Beauty contests

Miss USA. See Beauty contests

Mission Inn. See Hotels:Mission Inn

Mississippi, 10, 46, 55, 109, 139, 257

Missouri, 4, 11, 28, 116, 130, 131, 140, 230, 232, 277

Mongomery, Art, 342-343, 355

Montaise, Ginette. See Cidalise-Montaise, Ginette

Moore, Bobby, 301

Moore, Elizabeth, 53

Moore, John H., Rev., 147-148

Moore, Sally, 56

Morris, O. W., 232

Morton, Theophilus B., 79-80

Mott, Thomas, 13-14

Movies. See Films

Mt. Sinai Baptist Church. See Churches:Mt. Sinai Baptist

Murder, 12, 36-37, 73-75, 83, 85-86, 95-98, 287-289, 313-314, 325-327, 328, 362, 363

Murray’s Dude Ranch, 174-177

Musicians. See Entertainers

N

NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People),76, 151, 152, 163-165, 215-217, 219, 242, 266, 276, 279-280, 289, 292, 294, 296, 314, 315, 319, 350

National Council of Negro Women, 325, 348

National Negro Congress, 276-277

Native Americans, 13-15, 44, 179

Negro District, See Central Long Beach

Negro Victory Committee, 220, 225, 242, 271

Neighborhood Adult Participation Project, 299-300

Neil, Gene and Elinor, 129

Neimore, John, 141

Nelson, Earl, 239

Newport Beach, 170, 171

Newspapers, iii-iv, 41, 82, 99, 127-128, 137, 138-142, 147, 253-254, 256, 257, 264, 285, 305, 307-308

Nickerson, Helen, 167

North Carolina, 20, 33, 43, 70, 229

Nunley, Dora, 114, 180, 181

O

Oakland, 102, 179

O’Brien, Jack, 182

Oil, 120-122, 185, 187, 211, 216, 233, 258, 271

Oklahoma, 117, 129, 231, 280, 290, 293

Olympics. See Sports:Olympics

Owens, Jesse, 192

P

Pacific Beach Club, 166-171

Pacific Coast Club, 198, 219-220

Pacific Electric. See Railroads:Pacific Electric

Palomar, 12-13, 14-16

Parker, Andrew (Jack), 91

Parker, Betty, 333

Parker, Eliza, 91

Peck, George, 161-164

Perdue, Jissha B., 140

Philippines, 42, 46, 236, 262-263

Pickett, Tidye, 191-192

Pierce, Avalon, 18, 19

Pierce, Richard, 17-18

Pierce, Sallie, 17-18, 19

Pike, 59, 60, 65-66, 84, 159, 241, 256-257, 327

Placentia, 283

Police, 111-112, 164-165, 198, 285, 323, 327, 343, 344, 362-363

LA County Sheriff, 320, 325-326, 328

Long Beach, 36-37, 62, 63-64, 84, 87, 95-98, 99-100, 132, 151-156, 223, 241, 252-253, 254, 288, 290, 313-316, 319-320, 324, 327-328, 335, 337-338, 340, 349, 363

Los Angeles, 74, 81, 240, 241-242, 317-318, 320, 321, 325, 327, 338-340

Signal Hill, 325-327

Political office, 149, 150, 171, 348

Pomona, 27-28, 75

Population, 9, 16, 29, 60, 110, 121, 124, 127, 137, 179, 205, 211, 226, 238, 275, 285, 287, 295, 322, 332, 362-363

Poor Farm, 26, 132-16,133

Port. See Harbor

Potts, Daniel Leander, 92-93

Powell, Elizabeth and Diane, 282

Powell, Ralph, 84-85, 87

Preacely, Earnest, 297

Price, Lillian, 141

Prince, Wesley, 266

Progressive Citizens of America, 276-277

Prohibition, 73, 121, 171, 198

Q

Queens Historical Society, 311

R

Racism, iii, v, 70-71, 81, 91, 103, 111-112, 113, 132, 148-149, 225, 239, 251, 262, 289-293, 300-302, 305-310, 321, 337, 338, 365, 366

Railroads, 26, 54-56, 138, 166, 179, 185

Los Angeles Terminal Railway Company, 34-35, 160

Pacific Electric, 57, 59-60, 62-63, 73-74, 92, 94, 166, 167

Salt Lake, 62, 160

Santa Fe, 2, 28, 122-123, 124

Southern Pacific, 1-3, 4, 28, 53, 54, 166, 167

Union Pacific, 180, 234

Rambo, John, 192-193

Ramsey, Albert, 254

Ramsey, Elinor. See Washington, Elinor Ramsey

Ramsey, George, 73

Rancho Los Alamitos, 5, 53, 59

Rancho Los Cerritos, 5

Rationing, 224, 264

Rattlesnake Island. See Terminal Island

Recall of city officials, 188-189

Redd, Alton, 204

Rent control. See Housing:Rent control

Restivo, Peter, 152-153

Rice, George, 151-152

Richards, Bill and Roy, 157

Richardson, Donald, 334

Richardson, Evelyn, 127

Riots, 114, 241, 238-242, 285, 323, 325, 327

Long Beach, 241, 295, 298, 319, 326, 327

Watts, 299, 312, 317-323, 340, 343

Riverside, 27, 63

Roberts, Frederick M., 171

Robertson, Peter, 91

Robeson, Paul, 142

Robinson, Dora. See Daniels, Dora Robinson

Robinson, Bill “Bojangles”, 175, 192

Robinson, Jackie, 286

Robinson, Lue, 114-115, 180

Robinson, Sarah, 96, 97

Roland Hayes Political Study Club, 132, 202

Rose, Mary Lee, 348

Ross, Johnny, Rev., 91

Rumford Act. See Legislation

Russell, Clayton, Rev., 225

S

Salazar, Ruben, 325

Salvation Army, 99, 187, 197-198, 245, 348

Sam, Alfred, 104

San Francisco, 14, 18, 19, 30, 33, 43, 46, 78, 83, 179, 341-342

San Pedro, 34, 35, 37-38, 91, 105, 130, 167, 274, 283

Sanders, Effie, 4, 114-115, 116, 180-181

Santa Monica, 27, 166, 302, 327, 333

Saxton, Lilian Brikbeck, 334

Schools, 76, 78, 130, 181, 196, 199, 203, 213, 216, 230-231, 248-249, 296, 298, 320, 322, 331-334, 344

City College, 198, 255, 292, 294, 333

Long Beach State College, 300-302, 325, 341-343

Poly High, 95, 127, 128, 203, 231, 287, 319, 324, 333, 334-335, 336, 337-338, 348

Sororities, 300-302, 324

University of California, 364-365

Schwartz, Eugene, 283-284

Scott, Emerson, 204

Scott, Walter L., 249

Seaside Inn. See Hotels:Seaside Inn

Second Baptist Church. See Churches:Second Baptist

Second Baptist Church of Los Angeles. See Churches: Second Baptist Church of Los Angeles

Second Confiscation Act. See Legislation

Segregation, 44, 114-115, 131, 159-160, 202, 205, 206-207, 229, 231-232, 233, 235, 238, 263, 267, 272-273, 281, 291, 296, 331-332, 334, 336, 340, 364

Settles, Ron, 325-326

Shankle, John, 69-70, 91

Shaw, Hattie, 91

Shenk Rule. See Legislation

Shepard, Joysteen, 301

Shepherd, Huey, 225

Shilling, Cecil, 206

Ships

Ark, 104-106

Booker T. Washington, 76

Northampton, 232

Pleasure boats, 171-172

USS Missouri, 261

Shipyards, 38, 47, 87, 131, 137, 138, 142, 211, 233, 241, 253, 258, 265, 273, 280, 283, 347, 349

Sifford, Charles, 286

Simon, James D., 232

Simonsen, Donald, 342

Sims, Jimmy, 127, 128

Slavery, 9-10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 20, 23, 44, 56, 57, 96, 99, 133-134, 138, 163

Sororities. See Schools:Sororities

Southern Pacific. See Railroads:Southern Pacific

Spanish American War, 41-47

Spencer, Willie Ardele. See White, Willie

Sports

Baseball, 127, 274

Boxing, 175, 182-185, 191, 251, 252

Football, 127, 229, 287, 324, 325, 333, 341, 349

Golf, 189, 213, 279, 286

Olympics, iii, 190-192

Soccer, 127

Tennis, 286

Track and Field, 191-192, 333, 334, 349

St. John’s Baptist Church. See Churches:St John’s Baptist

Steele, A. G. D., Rev., 102

Stephens, Amanda, 128

Stewart, Gladys Nadeau, 334

Stewart, Robert W., 81

Stokes, Louise, 191-192

Stubblefield, Harry, 20-23

Stubblefield, Sina and Peter, 20, 22

Sugar beets, 53-54, 58, 279

Sunset Beach, 161

T

Taubman, George, Rev., 149-150

Taxes, 64, 71, 78, 95, 170, 188, 189, 219, 285

Taylor, Breonna, 327

Taylor, Clyde, 342

Teamsters. See Unions

Teel, Courtney, 246

Tennessee, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 52, 64

Terminal Island, 34, 60, 104-105, 159-160, 211-213, 224, 237, 246, 258

Terminal Railway. See Railroads: Los Angeles Terminal Railroad Company

Terry, Charles and Ruby, 289-292, 314

Texas, 17, 19, 46, 55, 69, 92, 99, 103, 104, 111-112, 132, 180, 204, 217, 231, 280, 317, 347

Thiele, James, 316-317

Thomas, Joseph T., Rev., 274, 275

Thomas, Sakkara Ingrid, 310-311

Thomas, Sam, 84-86, 88

Thompson, Carl, 73

Thompson, Gale, 169

Thompson, Marjorie, 333

Thornton, Joe, 333

Titsworth, Delores, 333

Tolan, Eddie, 192

Tomerlin, Jackson, 252

Topsy-Elvord, Doris, 348

Townsend Plan, 199-200

Truman Boyd Manor. See Housing:Truman Boyd Manor

Turnham, Edyth, 204

Tuskegee Institute, 75, 111, 229-230

U

U. S. Air Force, 230, 283, 265, 266, 284, 290

U. S. Army, 17, 21, 23, 45, 110, 114, 116, 206, 223, 224, 229, 231, 232, 262, 266, 347, 349

Buffalo soldiers, 43-44, 110, 266, 267

Chemical Division, 233-237, 245

Harlem Hellfighters, 113

U. S. Navy, 42, 110, 114-115, 206-207, 223, 224, 231, 232, 233-234, 263, 281

Los Alamitos Naval Air Station, 237

Roosevelt base, 211-212, 233, 237, 246, 258, 265

Seal Beach Weapons Depot, 237

WAVES, 238

Unemployment, 185-190, 200, 202, 297, 321, 323, 338

Union Pacific. See Railroads:Union Pacific

Unions, 2, 19, 147, 148, 150, 217-219, 271, 273

United Automobile Workers. See Unions

United Services Organizations (USO), 103, 245-247, 249-250, 251, 348

Universities. See Schools

Utt, Lysander, 11

V

Val Verde, 174

Van Orman, Chester, 43

Vaughn, George L., 277

Veal, Dennis, 132

Veal, Lillian. See McBride, Lillian Veal

Villa Riviera. See Apartments

Virginia, 79, 137-138, 232

Virginia Hotel. See Hotels:Virginia

Virtue, Rhue Hope, 333

Voting, 9, 13-14, 25, 28-29, 72, 139, 195, 199, 218-219, 278, 296, 305, 306, 309, 325, 331, 340, 364-365

W

Wagner Act. See Unions

Walker, Booker T., 231

Walker, Florida, 128-129

Walker, George, 97

Walker, Joe, 321

War medals, 45, 116, 231, 349, 353

Washington, Anna Belle, 169

Washington, Ariana, 192

Washington, Arthur Edward 127-128

Washington, Booker T., 52, 75-76, 117, 149, 151, 229, 239

Washington, Elinor Ramsey, 140

Washington, Frank, Rev., 130

Washington, Leon, 142, 201-202, 305-306

Washington, Norman, 140

Waters, George, 36-37

Watts, 102, 124, 250, 299, 317-323

Wesley, Lillie Mae, 348-349

West Long Beach, 207, 274-275, 280-281, 287, 294, 295, 311, 349

White, Henry Clay, Rev., 102-103

White, Reuben Benjamin, 117

White, Willie, 178, 202-203, 247

Whitlock. F. LeMoyne, Rev., 287

Whittier, Jayda, 314, 333

Widney, Robert M., 13-14, 25

Wilbur, Frank, Rev., 60

Wilcox, Samuel, 272-273

Wilkins, Anthony, 338-340, 341, 343

Williams, Feab Sylvester. See Godfrey, George

Williams, Herb, 204

Williams, Otis and Etta, 292-293

Williams, Paul, 210, 212-213

Willmore City, 6, 25

Willmore, William, 1, 4, 5, 7, 9, 14, 26, 132

Willowbrook, 274, 322, 333

Wilmington, 1, 129, 182, 184, 215, 320

Wilson, Adrian, 212

Wilson, Faye, 253

Winfield, Joanne, 301

Wing, Kenneth, 206

Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service. See U. S. Navy: WAVES

Wood, Leon, Rev., 338

Wooley, Johnnie, 252

Woolwine, Thomas Lee, 155

Works Progress Administration (WPA), 174, 200-201, 217

World War I, 96, 109-117, 206

World War II, 47, 103, 114, 128, 131, 223-245, 263, 271

Y

YMCA, 75, 203, 325

YWCA, 202, 287, 288, 325

Z

Zion Hill Baptist Church of Los Angeles. See Churches: Zion Hill Baptist

Zoot Suit riot, 238-242

READ AN EXCERPT

In the early 1920s many in the local African American community believed the Klan was doing them no harm. They listened when Jamaican born Marcus Garvey preached his Back-to-Africa doctrine envisioning an end to European colonial rule across Africa and the political unification of the continent. They believed the circulars advising them that Garvey and the Ku Klux Klan were their two best friends and that they should beware the Church of Rome and the radical groups within the race. These propaganda circulars were attempting to make African Americans fall in line with the Garvey program and instill a deep desire to do so, according to the California Eagle.

 Leaflets mailed to whites said the KKK planned to see that all people of African descent were chased out of the United States. To do this the Klan sent agents among the black community telling them of the delightful climate, and the rich soil in Africa. Their African homeland was a place where cotton and all kinds of fruit grew wild, where there were no white men to rape their women and lynch their men, where they could have officers and make their own laws and where freedom would be as unlimited as the sunshine which was above their heads. To achieve this they needed to get there, which is why Long Beach’s Reverend James Lewis, mentioned earlier, was successful for so long in trying to secure subscriptions to his Liberian Transportation and the Living God shipping line.

One approach to pacify blacks was to guarantee them a place in American society once Catholics, Jews and foreigners were dealt with. In 1922, Baptist minister John H. Moore explained the aims and purposes of the Klan at a well-attended meeting at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium. The Arkansas preacher also discussed the attitude of the organization toward Catholicism, blacks, Jews, labor unions, people born in foreign countries and immigration.

 Using text from the Bible, Moore attempted to prove a philosophy that reasoned that God had held back the development of America for several centuries as part of a divine plan intended to make the United States the stronghold of Protestantism and prevent the settlement of Catholics in this country. As part of this plan, as seen by Moore, it was the divine desire to have the Anglo-Saxon element dominate. In discussing white supremacy, he declared the Klan proposed that African Americans take second place.

Moore claimed no organization ever set up in America was as good a friend to blacks as the Ku Klux Klan. The group attempted to protect African Americans from labor unions and against efforts to make them Catholic.  The Klan, simply stated, would guarantee African Americans a “second place” in American society, with no fear of competition from Jews, Catholics, or immigrants. This was the country the Klan was going to create, and the role blacks would have if they chose to remain in America.

 Shortly after Moore’s speech in Long Beach, the California Eagle published an editorial condemning black preachers who seemed to think it was God’s plan for the KKK to wage war on the Catholic Church, and the Jews, and that through this medium African Americans would be able to take their place as citizens in this country.

We realize that mob violence is as much in evidence now as it was before we went to France to fight for Democracy, hence we cannot agree with our preacher brothers that the reorganization of the KKK is destined to give the Negro absolute freedom. Too well do we remember why this organization was born and too well do we realize that so long as there is a Klan there will be mob violence and if we abhor unlawful punishment for ourselves, then we do not advocate it for Jews and Catholics. There should be one law for allblack and white, Jew and Catholic.

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