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Stephen R. Best (1926-2014): Interview Contact Sheet/Check List, Biographical Information and Family History, Items from Best (4), Interview Summary and Context, Index of Topics, Transcript (Tape 1/Side A, 16 pp.; Tape 1/Side B, 12 pp.; Tape 2/Side A, 12 pp.; Tape 2/Side B, 5 pp.). Best was a native of Rock Island, Illinois; attended Harvard; and came to St. Louis in 1950 with Cecil Henshaw’s Peace Army. He discussed joining CORE; training; strategies for desegregation; integrated residences and being a straw party for a couple who purchased a home in a traditionally white neighborhood. Interview and release signed (2 audio cassettes)., 2004 Nov 15

 File — Box: 1, Folder: 2

Scope and Contents

From the Collection:

The collection contains oral history interview transcripts, interview summaries and context synopses, topics indexes, biographical information and family history forms, and other documentation relating to the Unknown Soldiers/Unsung Heroes Oral History Project. Additionally, there are items such as leaflets and yearbook pages provided by some interviewees to help tell their stories. Gwen Moore, historian at the Missouri Historical Society, conducted all 17 interviews in 2004 and 2005. The files are arranged alphabetically by interviewee name. The interviews often began with questions about family and personal history and then addressed the interviewees’ awareness of the racial climate. Discussions revolved around motivations for joining CORE and the NAACP Youth Council, training and philosophy, activities and demonstrations, other individuals in the organizations, and the impact the involvement in civil rights demonstrations had upon their lives. The CORE interviews are particularly rich in detail concerning motivations, organizational philosophy and structure, training, and activities. The five Elizabeth White Garlington interviews differ from the other interviews. She was not a member of CORE, nor was she a student at the time of the activities, but she was active in civil rights and professional organizations for decades. Garlington was a life-long member of the NAACP and moved to St. Louis in the 1930s to work as a social worker. African American social workers in St. Louis either moved to St. Louis from other cities, like Garlington, or they left St. Louis to earn their degrees as Washington University did not allow Black people to enroll in its School of Social Work. Garlington worked with young people in the NAACP’s ACT-SO (Afro-American Academic Cultural, Technological, and Scientific Olympics) program in the early 1970s.

Dates

  • 2004 Nov 15

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research use.

Extent

From the Collection: 0.5 Cubic Feet ( (1 box))

Language of Materials

English

Creator

Repository Details

Part of the Missouri Historical Society Library and Research Center Repository

Contact:
225 S. Skinker Blvd.
St. Louis MO 63105 United States
314-746-4510