Charlotte Hawkins Brown and Palmer Memorial Institute: What One Young African American Woman Could Do / Edition 1

by Charles W. Wadelington, Richard F. Knapp

Overview

In the fall of 1901, Charlotte Hawkins Brown (1883-1961) jumped off a Southern Railway train in the unfamiliar backwoods of Guilford County, North Carolina. She was black, single, and barely eighteen years old and had come alone from Cambridge, Massachusetts, to begin her first real job as a teacher at a small, struggling school for African Americans.

She stayed for over half a century. When the failing school was closed at the end of her first year, Brown remained to carry on. With virtually no resources save her own energy and determination, she founded Palmer Memorial Institute, which she would lead for fifty years. As other black private schools across the state vanished, Brown built Palmer up to become one of the premier academies for African American children in the nation.

A remarkable example of achievement in the face of segregation and discrimination, the story of Charlotte Hawkins Brown and her school continues to provide a model of educational success born of dedication and hard work.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807847947
Publisher:	The University of North Carolina Press
Publication date:	11/29/1999
Edition description:	1
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	1,115,629
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.72(d)

About the Author

Charles W. Wadelington is associated with the Historic Sites Section of the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resourcesand is minority interpretations specialist.

Richard F. Knapp is associated with the Historic Sites Section of the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources. and is curator of research.

Table of Contents

CONTENTS
Preface
Introduction
1 From North Carolina to New England and Back
2 Bethany Institute Becomes Palmer Memorial Institute
3 Brown's Hopes and Dreams
4 A New Respectability
5 From Tragedy to Triumph, 1918-1922
6 The New Palmer, 1922-1927
7 The AMA Years, 1927-1934
8 Independence and Stability, 1934-1952
9 In Brown's Shadow, 1952-1971
Epilogue
Appendix 1: Chronology
Appendix 2: Selected Newspaper Articles on Charlotte Hawkins Brown and Palmer Memorial Institute
Notes
Bibliography
Index

Illustrations

Charlotte Hawkins Brown, 1952
Artist's depiction of Brown arriving in Guilford County, 1901
Charles B. Aycock
James Y. Joyner
Brown, circa 1905
John D. Hawkins
Jane A. Hawkins, circa 1887
Artist's depiction of African Americans waiting to leave North Carolina, 1890
Caroline Hawkins Willis, 1924
Ray Greene Huling, circa 1893
Alice Freeman Palmer
Manuel L. Baldwin
Palmer's first classroom and dormitory building, circa 1917
Bethany Congregational Church, circa 1903
Charles D. McIver, circa 1900
Memorial Hall, 1917
Brown and faculty, 1907
Palmer family, circa 1907
Grinnell Cottage, circa 1917
Palmer's campus, circa 1915
Brown in her wedding gown, 1911
Dairy barn on Palmer's farm, 1917
Brown and colleague, circa 1911
Galen L. Stone, circa 1920
Class of 1916
Brown examining produce from the school farm, circa 1916
Students in dining hall, circa 1916
Palmer baseball team, circa 1916
Carrie M. Stone
Alice Freeman Palmer Building, circa 1922
Brown in faculty room, circa 1930
Students in library, circa 1930
Wellesley Auditorium, circa 1930
Agricultural and vocational classroom, circa 1930
Domestic science class in cooking, circa 1930
Brown in front of Canary Cottage, circa 1935
Social function at Canary Cottage, circa 1940s
Galen Stone Hall, circa 1950
Kimball Hall, 1997
"Three Bs of education," circa 1940s
Sedalia Singers, circa 1940s
Students dancing a minuet, circa 1930s
Students costumed for a drama, circa 1940
Palmer's baseball team, circa 1930s
Charles W. Eliot Hall, 1947
Reverend John Brice, 1947
Brown and children in Canary Cottage, 1947
Dance group in Wellesley Auditorium, 1947
Orchestra practice, 1947
Brown with senior, 1947
Posture and poise practice, 1947
Dormitory life in Stone Hall, 1947
Brown lecturing in Wellesley Auditorium, 1947
Palmer's "triangle of achievement," 1943
Students pausing for prayer in Kimball Hall, 1947
Students at Tea House, 1947
At the prom, 1947
Students shopping in Greensboro, 1947
Brown and Wilhelmina Crosson, 1952
Brown and Crosson in receiving line on lawn of Canary Cottage, circa 1952
Brown celebrating birthday in Canary Cottage, circa 1953
Richard L. Wharton
Maria Hawkins Cole, H. M. Michaux Jr., L. Annette Gibbs, and Marie Hill Gibbs, circa 1985
William Martin, 1997
Dedication of Charlotte Hawkins Brown Memorial, November 7, 1987

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

[The authors] have captured the essence of Brown in this inspiring and beautifully written work. . . . Those interested in black education, women's history, and North Carolina history will find this monograph rich and invaluable.—Journal of Southern History



In offering this well-researched study, [the authors are ] filling an enormous gap. They reveal in powerful detail the drive, skill, commitment, and religious faith that enabled Brown to create a school in North Carolina and to run it for almost fifty years; at the same time they provide insights into Brown's human frailties and inner tensions. . . . A thorough institutional history of Palmer that is unlikely to be bettered.—Journal of American History



A credible narrative of a remarkable woman who created a viable African American institution despite the most daunting obstacles. This profusely illustrated and carefully researched book will be important not only for North Carolina libraries but also institutions supporting research on African American history, education, and institution building.—Choice



An inspiring biography of a dedicated educator who surmounted financial obstacles and prejudice to make a dream come true.—Richmond Voice



Unquestionably this book is a major contribution to the literature on a leading Tar Heel educator of the 20th century and the school she founded.—Our State



Unquestionably, this thoroughly documented book is a major contribution to the literature on a leading Tarheel educator of this century and the school she founded.—Winston-Salem Journal



An important study of Dr. Brown and Palmer Institute, illuminating academic and social life at the private black high school, particularly shared values of dignity, dissent, and uplift. A welcome contribution to North Carolina history in the age of Jim Crow.—Raymond Gavins, Duke University



This is a well researched and carefully told story of a visionary and courageous Black woman and the important school she conceived of, built and rebuilt, defended, led, and—only when forced to—let go of after it flourished for over sixty years. Young upper and middle class African Americans no longer matriculate at a place called Palmer Memorial Institute; but the ideals upon which Sister President Charlotte Hawkins Brown set that institution have a permanent place in the history of and ongoing hopes for African American education.—Johnnetta B. Cole, Emory University

Editorial Reviews

Those interested in black education, women's history, and North Carolina history will find this monograph rich and invaluable.

"Journal of Southern History"

"Those interested in black education, women's history, and North Carolina history will find this monograph rich and invaluable.

"Journal of Southern History""

A credible narrative of a remarkable woman who created a viable African American institution despite the most daunting obstacles.

"Choice"

A thorough institutional history of Palmer that is unlikely to be bettered.

"Journal of American History"

This thoroughly documented book is a major contribution to the literature on a leading Tarheel educator and the school she founded.

"Winston-Salem Journal"

Unquestionably this book is a major contribution to the literature on a leading Tar Heel educator of the 20th century.

"Our State"

From the Publisher