The Cleveland, Ohio, Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was organized in 1912 and received its charter in 1914. Its objective, like that of the national organization, was to reactivate the spirit of the abolitionists in order to oppose racial inequalities in civil and political rights. Among the primary areas of concern were voting disenfranchisement, limitations on educational opportunity, and restrictions on employment, travel, and recreation. The early NAACP was highly centralized, with the national body asserting control over branches and membership to the extent that applications for membership required approval by the national Board of Directors. Since the eradication of a segregated society was the primary goal of the NAACP, it is not incongruous that the founders and early members were a multi-racial group, composed of liberal whites and members of the African American intelligentsia.
In Cleveland, however, Charles W. Chesnutt said that he could not think of a half-dozen white people who would take an active part in the movement. In conjunction with a series of mass meetings held for the purpose of spreading the movement, Chesnutt and his wife gave a reception in their home, inviting Cleveland's African American community leaders to discuss the possibility of organizing a local branch. Soon after, Charles F. Thwing, president of Western Reserve University, invited William E. Walling, National Board Chairman, to deliver a speech at the University - the first time the Association's program was formally presented to an American college audience.
Nevertheless, among the charter members of the Cleveland Branch of the NAACP, the names of white liberals and black intelligentsia are noticeably absent. Occupations of the original members included seven postal workers, one messenger, one realtor, a machinist, an engineer, a tailor, a barber, a janitor, a caterer, and a cook. Cleveland's African American newspaper,
Significant racial issues in Cleveland in 1912 included African American opposition to the establishment of segregated branches of the Young Men's Christian Organization (YMCA) and Young Women's Christian Organization (YWCA) in the city and to segregation at Luna amusement park. Moreover, between 1910 and 1920, Cleveland's African American community increased rapidly due to the recruitment of southern blacks to work in the city's war industries. As a result, problems of housing, overcrowded school, and racial discrimination intensified. One result was a series of legal actions initiated by the NAACP successfully challenging these trends.
The
The Cleveland Branch of the NAACP has continuously pursued a variety of nonviolent tactics, including mass meetings to arouse and demonstrate public support; lectures by nationally prominent spokespeople; boycotts; picket lines; and negotiations with opposing parties. These tactics have served as adjuncts to more traditional legal actions and have been utilized to show support for an anti-poll tax bill, the Soldiers Federal Vote Bill, and the Federal Fair Employment Practices Commission. These tactics have also been used to protest such specific problems or incidents as the
As the nation entered the 1960s, an increased interest in civil rights was apparent on all sides. In Cleveland, a large number of organizations were formed to further the struggle for civil rights. Likewise, the membership of the NAACP again rose, peaking at 15,000 in 1963. During these years, the NAACP, combined with other civil rights groups, led a school boycott involving 68,000 school children. By this means, pressure was brought on the Cleveland School Board to change many of its policies. In the case of
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Cleveland Branch Records, 1922-1969 and undated, consist of administrative secretary reports, meeting minutes, office files, financial records, newspaper clippings, reports, brochures, pamphlets, broadsides, speeches, news releases, insurance policies, and photographs. Although the earliest records date from 1924, there is only scattered material before 1935 and the bulk of the records are dated after 1945, a reflection of the administrative development of the organization and the employment of the Branch's first paid executive secretary in 1944.
This collection will be useful to researchers studying the history of Cleveland, Ohio, and its African American community in the twentieth century. Extensive records can be found relating to the Cleveland Board of Education, legal action undertaken by the Cleveland Branch, finances, membership and membership drives, national and state NAACP conventions, labor unions, and housing. Of special interest is the subject file (Series VI) which includes correspondence with numerous organizations, governmental agencies, and private businesses.
Among the prominent citizens of Cleveland, Ohio, represented in this collection are Gerard Anderson, Nathan K. Christopher, Ralph Findley, Clayborne George, Zelma Watson George, Chester Gillespie, Charles Lucas, Crosbey C. Ramey, Carl Stokes, Louis Stokes, Herman Sweat, and Harold B. Williams. Of national prominence are Margarite Belafonte, Lucille Black, Gloster B. Current, and Roy Wilkins.
The collection is arranged in fourteen series.
The researcher should also consult MS 4475 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Cleveland Branch Records, Series II.
Processed by Judith R. Arnold in 1972.
None.
An index to the the groups represented in Series VI: Subject Files is available at the Reference Desk of the WRHS Research Library.
[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 3520 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Cleveland Branch Records, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Gifts of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Cleveland Branch, in 1969, 1970, and 1971.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.