Archives and Rare Books Library receives national grant to process historic Cincinnati schools desegregation case records
The National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) awarded the University of Cincinnati's Archives and Rare Books Library a $109,349 grant to support a project to complete archival processing of the records of the Cincinnati Branch of the NAACP related to the 1974 Bronson v. Cincinnati Board of Education, the city’s most significant legal case in the fight for school desegregation.
Filed in 1974, the Bronson case was not the first litigation to address segregation and discrimination in the Cincinnati Public Schools, but it was the first to create some accountability for the Cincinnati School Board. Housed in the Archives and Rare Books Library (ARB), the collection contains the Cincinnati Chapter of the NAACP’s records related to the case, including correspondence, court filings, background research on segregation in education in Cincinnati and Hamilton County, the conditions of schools, curriculum and how the Cincinnati Public Schools addressed the decree that was agreed upon as a result of the case.
"The year 2024 marks the 50th anniversary of the 1974 filing of the Bronson v. Cincinnati Board of Education suit. This collection details a significant period in the history of the Cincinnati Public Schools and the history of education in Cincinnati,” said Chris Harter, university archivist and head of the Archives and Rare Books Library. “This collection will be useful to students, faculty and researchers interested in the history of public schools in not only Cincinnati but throughout the United States.”
The Cincinnati NAACP collection complements two significant ARB collections documenting African American leadership and civil rights activism in Cincinnati, both of which contain materials related to the Bronson case. These include the personal papers of Theodore Berry, Cincinnati’s first African American mayor and mayor at the time of the Bronson case, which were processed in 2015 with the assistance of an Archival Projects grant from NHPRC. In addition, the personal papers of NAACP member, and later chapter president, Marian Spencer were processed in 2017. While these collections contain some documentation of the Bronson case and provide insight into the role of two specific individuals in the NAACP’s activism, the records of the Cincinnati chapter of the NAACP will provide a view into the larger legal strategies, research and community activism involved with the court case.
ARB has hired project archivist Julianna Witt to organize the collection and create an online finding aid. Once fully processed, the Cincinnati NAACP Project records will be available for research through the online publication of a full-text searchable finding aid created using the ArchivesSpace collection management system. In consultation with the Cincinnati Branch of the NAACP and local scholars and activists, the University of Cincinnati will sponsor a public program related to the history of public education in Cincinnati and civic engagement. In addition, a public exhibition will be designed and installed focusing on the lead up to and results of the Bronson case.
“This project aligns with the larger strategic directions of the University of Cincinnati and the Libraries,” said Liz Kiscaden, dean and university librarian. “The University of Cincinnati’s Next Lives Here strategic directions make a commitment to our community, particularly Cincinnati’s local public schools. In addition, making this collection widely available meets our goal to enrich and curate library collections that enable intellectual endeavors and to expand the visibility of diverse perspectives and voices.”
The grant received by ARB is part of $4 million historical records project grants awarded as part of the National Archives grant program.
Featured image at top provided by Melissa Norris.
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