Horace R. Cayton Jr. facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Horace R. Cayton Jr.
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| Born | April 12, 1903 Seattle, Washington, U.S.
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| Died | January 21, 1970 (aged 66) |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | University of Washington |
| Occupation | Sociologist, newspaper columnist, and author |
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Notable work
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Black Metropolis: A Study of Negro Life in a Northern City (1945) |
Horace Roscoe Cayton Jr. (born April 12, 1903 – died January 21, 1970) was an important American sociologist, writer, and newspaper columnist. He studied the lives of working-class Black Americans, especially in Chicago during the mid-1900s. Cayton is best known for co-writing a very important book in 1945 called Black Metropolis: A Study of Negro Life in a Northern City. This book looked closely at life in South Side, Chicago.
Contents
Biography
Early Life and Education
Horace R. Cayton Jr. was born on April 12, 1903, in Seattle, Washington. His father, Horace R. Cayton, Sr., was a newspaper publisher. His mother, Susie Revels, was the daughter of Hiram Rhodes Revels. Hiram Revels was the first Black American to be elected to the United States Senate.
The Cayton family lived a comfortable life. They had a home in a wealthy neighborhood and often hosted important guests. One famous visitor was Booker T. Washington, a well-known leader.
Horace grew up in Seattle and went to Franklin High School. He then studied at the University of Washington. In 1929, he moved to Chicago to continue his studies in sociology at the University of Chicago.
Career Highlights
In 1934, Cayton began working as a researcher for the United States Department of the Interior, a part of the U.S. government. He helped write a report in 1935 about how Black Americans were involved in industrial recovery.
After this, Cayton taught economics for a short time at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. He then returned to government work. He led a research project in Chicago for three years as part of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). This project helped him write his book, Black Workers and the New Unions, which came out in 1939.
From 1940 to 1949, Cayton was the director of the Parkway Community House in Chicago. This was an important community center.
Black Metropolis and Other Works
Horace Cayton is most famous for co-authoring Black Metropolis: A Study of Negro Life in a Northern City in 1945. He wrote this book with St. Clair Drake. The book tells the history of Chicago's South Side and its Black residents. It covers the period from the 1840s, when the area was a key stop on the Underground Railroad, up to the 1930s.
Black Metropolis was a groundbreaking book. It explored how race relations affected the economic lives of Black people in American cities. It showed the challenges faced by both lower and middle-class Black communities.
During the 1950s, Cayton continued his research work. He worked for groups like the American Jewish Committee and the National Council of Churches. He also spent two years as a news reporter at the United Nations for the Pittsburgh Courier newspaper. For 27 years, he wrote a weekly column for the Courier.
Later Life and Legacy
In 1961, Cayton moved to the Monterey Bay area in California. He lived in towns like Capitola and Aptos, and later settled in Santa Cruz. He continued to be involved in academic and political discussions. He gave a seminar called "The Black Experience" at Cowell College. He also spoke at the opening of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Center in Atlanta.
Horace Cayton died on January 21, 1970, in Paris, France. He was 66 years old. He was in Paris on a research trip to gather information for a book about his friend, the author Richard Wright.
Works
- Report on the Negro's Share in Industrial Rehabilitation: Sections on the Birmingham District, Car and Railroad Repair Shops, Conclusions and Recommendations by George Sinclair Mitchell, with Whom was Associated Horace Cayton; Submitted to Clark Foreman, Counsel on the Economic Status of Negroes, Office of the Secretary of the Interior, May, 1935. With George Sinclair Mitchell. n.c.: n.p, [1935].
- Black Workers and the New Unions. With George Sinclair Mitchell. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1939.
- Negro Housing in Chicago. New York: Council for Social Action of the Congregational and Christian Churches, 1940.
- Black Metropolis: A Study of Negro Life in a Northern City. With St. Clair Drake, introduction by Richard Wright. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1945. —Revised edition in 1962.
- The Psychological Approach to Race Relations. Portland, OR: Reed College, 1946.
- "Bronzeville," with St. Clair Drake, Holiday, May 1947. —Reprinted as a pamphlet.
- The Chinese in the United States and the Chinese Christian Churches: A Statement Condensed for the National Conference on the Chinese Christian Churches from a Study by Horace R. Cayton and Anne O. Lively Incorporating Field Work and Consultation by Peter Y.F. Shih. With Anne O. Lively and Marjorie M. Carter. New York: Bureau of Research and Survey, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America, 1955.
- Long Old Road: An Autobiography. New York: Trident Press, 1965.
- Personal Experiences in Race Relations. n.c.: Horace R. Cayton, 1967.
- Horace Roscoe Cayton: Selected Writings. In two volumes. Ed Diaz, ed. Seattle, WA: Bridgewater-Collins, 2002.
