Cavalcade of the American Negro
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Produced by the Illinois Writers' Project of the
WPA, the Cavalcade of the American Negro is a sweeping
history of black contributions to all phases of American life from
1865 to 1940. The book was edited by Arna Bontemps and illustrated
by Adrian Troy, of the Illinois Writers' and Art Projects, respectively,
and was one of the more important contributions to the Diamond
Jubilee Exposition held in Chicago in 1940. The book includes a
useful description of all the exhibits at the exposition.
Cavalcade of the American Negro Illinois Writers'
Program, comp. Chicago: Diamond Jubilee Exposition Authority,
1940, title page General
Collections (77)
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This brochure promotes the Exposition and other programs
celebrating the emancipation of the American negro and his achievements
over seventy-five years since the conclusion of the Civil War in
1865.
Illinois and Chicago invite you to the American Negro
Exposition, Celebrating 75 years of Negro Achievement [Chicago],
1940, cover
NAACP Collection Manuscript Division (78)
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The advantageous location and spaciousness of the
Chicago Coliseum were two of many factors allowing for a most successful
exposition. The Coliseum was filled with exhibitions from every
state in the Union, from several Caribbean islands, and from Liberia
in Africa. The large black population of Chicago and from throughout
the Mississippi region swelled the attendance at
the popular event.
American Negro Exposition, Floor Plan at Chicago Coliseum
Map
NAACP Collection Manuscript Division (79)
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Gibson and other executives of the Negro Exposition
went to great pains to write the leaders of the black community
throughout the country, especially those key people like Thurgood
Marshall, legal counsel for the NAACP (and later a Supreme Court
Justice). The presence of so many of these leaders at the Exposition
made
the affair one of the most successful of our time.
Typescript letter, April 18, 1940
NAACP Collection Manuscript Division (80)
Letter of April 18, 1940 from Truman K. Gibson, Jr. Executive
Director of the American Negro Exposition, to Thurgood Marshall,
Legal Counsel of the NAACP, Looking Forward to Seeing Him at
the
Chicago Exposition in the Summer
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The Negro Progress Exposition about which Grigsby
wrote to Jesse Thomas was the forerunner of the Chicago Exposition
in July 1940. Included in the Exposition, which was held during
a convention in Detroit, were exhibit booths set up by many important
black
organizations, such as the National Urban League.
Typescript letter, January 23, 1940 National Urban League
Collection Manuscript
Division (82)
Letter of January 23, 1940 from Snow F. Grigsby, Exposition
Director, to Jesse O. Thomas, Secretary of the National Urban
League, Inviting the League to Set Up a Booth at the Negro
Progress Exposition to be Held in Detroit from May 10 to 19,
1940 |
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