Black Dixie facts for kids

Paperback edition

Black Dixie: Afro-Texan History and Culture in Houston is a book from 1992. It was put together by Howard Beeth and Cary D. Wintz. The book was published by Texas A&M University Press. It is a collection of thirteen essays. These essays are all about the history of African Americans in Houston. This book was the first scholarly work to cover the history of Houston's black community in detail. The book's cover even said it was the first such book for any city in the Southern United States.

About the Book's Creators

The two people who edited the book, Howard Beeth and Cary D. Wintz, were both professors. They worked in the history department at Texas Southern University.

What's Inside the Book

The book is split into four main parts. The first part is an introduction. The other three parts have essays. These essay sections are grouped by different themes or topics.

There are thirteen essays in total. They cover history from the 1800s and the 1900s. These essays were not written just for this book. Most of them had never been published before. Four essays were reprinted from other academic journals. Three of these came from the Houston Review. Two essays were also primary sources. This means they were written by people who experienced the events themselves. In total, seven articles and two primary sources were first published in this book.

Eight of the essays were written by historians. Three were written by sociologists. Howard Beeth wrote the first section. The editors also added introductions and comments in the other sections. These comments talk about social history, religion, and community groups. These topics were not always covered in the essays themselves.

The First Section: Looking at History

Howard Beeth's first section is called "Historians, Houston, and History." It talks about how people studied history at the time. He mentioned that experts used to not focus much on city history or local history. There were very few studies like this in the past. Also, important historical records were not saved well before the 1970s.

Beeth also noted that Houston's colleges were still growing. He added that people had not shown much interest in the history of Houston before. But then, more research on local history started happening at universities. Houston was also changing a lot, which made its history more interesting.

The Second Section: The 1800s

The first group of essays focuses on the 19th century, or the 1800s.

• Slavery in Harris County: Tamara Myner Haygood wrote about the role of enslaved people in Houston. She also wrote about the areas around Harris County from 1836 to 1860. Haygood said that slavery was very important for developing Harris County. The economic ways set up during slavery continued to be used later.

• Black Women During Reconstruction: Barry A. Crouch wrote about the role of women. They tried to gain civil rights during the Reconstruction Era. This was the time after the Civil War. Much of this research came from the records of the Freedmen's Bureau.

• Richard Allen: Houston's First Black State Legislator: Merline Pitre wrote about Richard Allen. He was Houston's first black state lawmaker. This essay was first printed in a journal. Pitre suggested that studying politicians like Allen can help explain the start of the black middle class. She described them as "articulate, talented, and manipulative."

The Third Section: Late 1800s and Early 1900s

The second group of essays talks about the late 19th century and early 20th century.

• Black Businesses in Houston: James M. SoRelle wrote about African-American businesses. He explained how they tried to get black investors and customers. They did this by appealing to racial unity and pride. They also used the idea of "self-help" within the black community. SoRelle also said that African-American groups helped promote Houston's business growth.

• Transportation Issues: Frances Dressman wrote about black jitney services. These were private cars that offered rides. They competed with trolley lines. But the city government started closing many of them down. This essay was published before. It specifically talks about the San Felipe Jitney Line.

• Lorenzo Greene's Visit to Houston: One essay is a diary entry by Lorenzo J. Greene. He was a man from Connecticut who studied at Columbia University. He was also a friend of Carter G. Woodson. Greene visited Houston for two weeks in September 1930. He sold books to earn money for an organization. Greene later became the head of the history department at Lincoln University. His diary entry shares his thoughts about Houston. One reviewer said it was "a fascinating glimpse into the internal dynamics of the black community." It also showed the impact of the economic depression on black workers in Houston.

• Clifton Richardson's Article: The other primary source article is from 1928. It was written by Clifton F. Richardson. It was published in a local Houston magazine called Civics. Richardson was the president of the local NAACP chapter. He also started the Houston Informer newspaper. This article talks about the leaders of the city's black community. One reviewer called it "a glowing assessment of black citizens of 'Heavenly Houston.'"

The Fourth Section: Fighting Discrimination in the 1900s

The last group of essays talks about efforts in the 20th century. These efforts aimed to end unfair treatment against black people.

• Discrimination in Houston: SoRelle discusses unfair treatment in public schools, hotels, transportation, and other public places. He also talks about police violence and violence from groups like the Ku Klux Klan. This happened between World War I and World War II. He argued that conditions were tougher than what people usually thought about Houston back then.

• Ending the All-White Primary: Robert V. Haynes wrote about the effort to end an all-white primary election. This was in the Democratic Party from 1920 to 1940. This effort led to the Smith v. Allwright court case. This case ended the all-white primary. This essay was published before.

• Student Sit-ins: F. Kenneth Jensen wrote about sit-ins in 1960 and 1961. Students from Texas Southern University sat at lunch counters at a Weingartens store. Jensen said these sit-ins helped end several unfair practices. He argued that more black people living in cities helped them fight against unfair laws.

• Operation Breadbasket: Cecile E. Harrison and Alice K. Lain wrote about Operation Breadbasket. This was a program that started in 1966 and ended in 1974.

• Housing Issues: Robert A. Bullard wrote about problems facing working-class black people today. He said that people with low and moderate incomes had housing difficulties. At the time, many black people lived in poor housing conditions. Most black people lived in black neighborhoods. Bullard had written a book before. This essay further explains his ideas.

• City Government and Privatization: The last chapter was written by Robert Fisher. He wrote about how the city government resisted government programs. He also wrote about the effects of privatization. This is when private companies take over public services. The author believes that many of the city's problems came from too much privatization.