Bringing the Past to Life: Colorized Images from the Jim Crow South
May 23, 2024
Rosa Parks' Actions Spark the Montgomery Bus Boycott
In the sepia tones of history, the era of Jim Crow often appears distant and detached, a shadowy reflection of a divided America. Yet, when we infuse these images with color, the stark realities of the period emerge with renewed clarity and emotion. Colorized photographs bring into vivid detail the daily lives of those who navigated the oppressive system of legalized racial segregation. From the signage of segregation to the resilience in the faces of those who endured, these images offer a more immediate connection to a past that is both painful and pivotal. They serve as a powerful reminder of the enduring struggle for justice and the human spirit's capacity to persevere under the most challenging circumstances.
Rosa Parks worked as a seamstress, but On December 1, 1955, she boarded a bus in Montgomery, Alabama and became a revolutionary. As the bus filled with passengers, Parks sat in the designated "colored" section near the middle. When more people got on board, the bus driver demanded that Parks and three other African American passengers give up their seats to white patrons. Parks refused to comply. Her defiance led to her arrest by local authorities, who charged her with violating segregation laws.
Rosa's arrest led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott. During the boycott African Americans refused to ride the buses for over a year. Their refusal crippled the bus system financially and ultimately, the Supreme Court ruled segregation on public buses unconstitutional.
Elizabeth Eckford's Valiant Attempt to Enter Little Rock Central High School
A last-minute change of plans left Elizabeth Eckford as the first Black student to try to integrate Little Rock Central High School. She was initially supposed to be joined by eight other students and enter the school's rear door, but because her family had no phone she was unaware of the change to the plan. While a white mob yelled insults at her, she boldly walked up to the school's front door, and to make matters all the more horrifying a National Guardsman welding a bayonet refused to let her enter.
All alone, Elizabeth ran back to the public bus stop while members of the crowd threatened to lynch and hang her from a tree. There, she met reporter Benjamin Fine, who helped protect her until she could catch a bus home. Grace Lorch, who was white, rode the bus with Elizabeth. Two weeks later, she entered the school with the other members of the Little Rock Nine.
Ku Klux Klan Members Destroy Rosewood, Florida, Killing Residents
In January 1923, the tranquil town of Rosewood, Florida, became the scene of unimaginable horror. Fannie Taylor, a white woman, falsely accused Jesse Hunter, a Black man, of assaulting her, igniting an explosive chain of events. A frenzied mob, led by men like John Wright and Henry Andrews, descended upon the predominantly Black community with unfathomable savagery. In their wake, they left a trail of destruction. At least 27 people died, but witnesses suggest that number could be as many as 150 people. The air was thick with smoke as homes burned and families fled into the night.
Days Reserved For Black Visitors at Public Facilities
In the racially segregated landscape of the 1950s, public facilities across America enforced discriminatory policies that barred African Americans from accessing specific spaces. In cities like Memphis, Tennessee, attractions like the Overton Park Zoo were closed to white visitors on designated days that allowed Black families the rare opportunity to enjoy these public spaces. Similar practices were observed in other cities, with establishments such as amusement parks, swimming pools, and museums implementing segregated schedules to accommodate Black patrons.
These specific days at public facilities were intended to provide African Americans with limited access to spaces typically reserved for white patrons. Black visitors were allowed entry on these designated days, typically a weekday, often under restricted conditions.
Ruby Bridges Escorted by U.S. Marshals to New Orleans Elementary School
In 1960, Ruby Bridges moved with her family to a neighborhood in New Orleans near William Frantz Elementary School. Her parents responded to a request from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People for a Black student to attend the previously all-white elementary school. At just 6 years old, she became the first African American child to desegregate an all-white elementary school in the South. Furious crowds of segregationists lined the streets, hurling racial epithets and threats as she made her way to class accompanied by federal marshals. Throughout the school year, protesters brandished signs dripping with venomous bigotry while throwing rotten tomatoes and stones at this poor young girl.
Immediately, all the white parents withdrew their children from the school. While most of the teachers refused to teach a Black student, one person agreed to become Ruby's teacher and taught her in a class by herself.
Grief Rocks the Nation Following Church Bombing
On September 15, 1963, worshippers gathered to pray at the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. They did not know that four Ku Klux Klan members had planted at least 15 sticks of dynamite under the stairs in the building. It detonated, killing Addie Mae Collins (14), Cynthia Wesley (14), Carole Robertson (14), and Denise McNair (11). At least 14 other people were injured. The explosion extensively damaged the building and blew a motorist who was passing by out of his vehicle.
After the explosion, hundreds rushed to the site. Governor George Wallace ordered 300 state police officers and 500 National Guard troops to Birmingham to quell the crowds, and despite the initial outpouring of support for the Black community, authorities failed to press charges against those responsible until 2001 and 2002, when three of the four responsible people received prison sentences.
The Reality of Separate but Equal at Public Facilities
Public facilities like restrooms and water fountains were starkly segregated along racial lines, perpetuating the dehumanizing effects of institutionalized racism. The United States Supreme Court ruled in Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896 that "separate but equal" facilities for different races were constitutional under the 14th Amendment.
While the law called for "separate but equal" facilities, they were often anything but equal. In many Southern cities during the Jim Crow era, "colored" restrooms and water fountains were usually situated prominently within these transportation hubs, where large numbers of African American travelers passed through. These facilities were frequently located in the central bus and train station areas, making them easily accessible to Black passengers. Yet, they often lacked cleanliness, maintenance, and adequate facilities compared to those designated for white travelers. The United States Supreme Court eventually overturned itself, ruling that facilities had to be integrated in 1954.
The Little Rock Nine Integrate Central High School
In 1954, the United States Supreme Court ordered schools to be integrated. In response to the ruling, the Little Rock School Board developed a plan to integrate Central High School. Nine African American students, known as the Little Rock Nine, were selected to attend the previously all-white school. On September 4, 1957, the Little Rock Nine attempted to enter Central High and the entire situation turned upside down. The group was met with angry mobs of segregationists and the Arkansas National Guard, called in by Governor Orval Faubus to prevent integration.
The standoff continued until September 25, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower intervened. He used the Insurrection Act of 1807 to order the 101st Airborne to escort the students into the building.
Sit-Ins Hamper Business at Downtown Birmingham Lunch Counters
While Black people could shop at many downtown Birmingham businesses by April 1963, they could not sit down and eat at lunch counters in those same businesses - the seats were reserved for white patrons. Four college men started a movement to change that rule. The students staged the Greensboro Sit-In in February 1960, where Black people in Birmingham followed their lead and sat at the counter in seats reserved for white people. While Black protestors sat quietly, the police tried to remove them while owners refused to serve them. The sit-ins led to other respectful protests, such as kneel-ins held at churches, read-ins held at libraries, and wade-ins held at pools.
The sit-ins were part of Martin Luther King Jr.'s larger Birmingham Campaign. Black protestors marched on city hall while Dr. King wrote his Letter from Birmingham Jail.
Ministers on Atlanta Transit Company Trolley Buses Start the Love, Law, and Liberation Movement
Under Jim Crow laws, Black riders had to sit in the back of public transportation. Yet, under the Love, Law, and Liberation Movement, led by Pastor William Holmes, six pastors boarded Atlanta buses on January 9, 1957. White passengers exited the bus, and the driver headed to the city's bus barn where the city's police chief had the men arrested. In a wild twist, the chief of police even offered to send a limousine after them, but the protestors demanded a marked squad car. That afternoon, a federal judge found in favor of the ministers, citing Browder v. Gayle. The ministers agreed to a cooling down period, but about 2,500 Black people boarded city buses two weeks later, sitting where they wanted.
