Arvarh E. Strickland - Selling Black History for Carter G. Woodson: A Diary, 1930-1933

Editing this book, as was the case with editing Working with Carter G. Woodson, the Father of Black History, was a labor of love. This time, however, there was a great difference. My dear friend Lorenzo Johnston Greene died on January 24, 1988. Consequently, he was not with me to wrack his brain to try to recall dimly remembered names and events. Also, he had not worked on the entries in these notebooks to the same extent that he had those that comprised the earlier volume. This time, I was on my own in reading his handwriting. Nevertheless, he was there in spirit.

I owe a special debt of gratitude to Thomasina Talley Greene, Lorenzo Thomas Greene, and Deborah Foster Greene. Without their cooperation, this project could not have been completed. They made the notebooks constituting the diary available to me, gave me access to all pertinent manuscript materials, and shared their recollections with me.

My search for often obscure facts about people, events, and places sometimes caused me to stretch the bonds of friendship far beyond normal limits. My already immense indebtedness to John Hope Franklin became greater. While he was a guest in my home and was in Columbia to deliver the 1993 Paul Anthony Brick Lectures, I pressed him into service to read sections of the diary dealing with Oklahoma. At that time and later, he provided names and explanations that greatly facilitated my work. That gracious lady of Houston, Texas, Pearl Suel, permitted herself to be imposed upon to render a similar service on sections related to her city. Soon after we met, Richard Allen Morton was called on to search for information at Clark Atlanta University. He, too, became an obliging friend.

Over the six years that this project lasted, many others helped in various ways. I am deeply grateful to Antonio F. Holland for all he did on my behalf. Regina Drake helped me to contact those who could provide assistance at Howard University and was of immeasurable aid herself. My friend Thomas B. Alexander not only gave assistance, but also placed me in touchwith others, such as Frances Cabiniss Roberts of Huntsville, Alabama, who responded to my request for help.

No historian can be productive without the help of archivists and librarians. I am especially appreciative to Elizabeth Wilson, director of Page Library at Lincoln University, and her staff, and I particularly want to thank Howard Universitys archivist and the librarians at the Moorland-Springarn Collection. Anne Edwards, June DeWeese, and Paula Roper of the University of MissouriColumbias Ellis Library are outstanding reference librarians and great friends. The staffs at the Library of Congress, the Western Historical Manuscripts Collection, the State Historical Society of Missouri Library, and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library assisted me in many ways.

Janet Thornton, typist, word processor, and assistant without equal, played a crucial role in this project. She contributed greatly to the transcribing of the material from longhand to a typescript and to the establishment of the first version of the text. This greatly facilitated the work of the editor. What turned out to be a six-year project would have taken much longer without her efficient work.

I would also like to thank August Meier for recognizing the historical value of the diaries and for bringing them to the attention of Beverly Jarrett. Working with her and her staff has been a delightful experience. I particularly appreciate the work of my editor, Julie Schroeder.

It is not possible to name all of the people who deserve recognition for their contributions to this project, but I owe special thanks to Marie Sloan, Mary Oates, Nancy Taube, Carolyn Dorsey, Maria DeLongoria, Jimmie L. Franklin, Robert Weems, Jr., Tritobia Hayes Benjamin, Carl Patterson, Nesta Bernard, and Gregory Wilson.

Several University of Missouri administrators contributed, in various ways, to the completion of this work. These included Richard Wallace, Larry Clark, John Bullion, and K. C. Morrison.

The inclusion of my wife, Willie Pearl Elmore Strickland, in the dedication is a token of my appreciation for the support she has provided throughout my career. Also, the love and support of Duane, Hope, Bruce, Pamela, and my grandchildren make it all worthwhile.