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Show Utah n t h e ' r ? ~ An African American Perspective by France A. Davis URING THE 1940~ A, frican Americans, like Listen to the voices of a few who made the rest of the nation, were recovering the journey to Utah nearly a half century from the Great Depression and seeking to ago. In their own words they sought to find a better way of life for themselves and their answer the question: " Why did you relo-families. Migration from the South, specifically to cate to Utah?" the Northeast and West, was among their central + " I left from down home crawling options. Many settled in Seattle/ Tacoma, San Fran- through the cotton and corn fields until I cisco/ Oakland, Los Angeles, Portland, Las Vegas, and Denver. Unlike many coastal areas crucial to America's involvement in World War 11, Utah did not top the list of most families. But it was an at-tractive site for many African Americans seeking better employment opportunities, longing to re-unite with family members, and wanting to experi-ence the pioneer spirit associated with the West. The result was the greatest surge of growth in Utah's African American population that had ever - - before occurred. To be sure, African Americans found their dreams enhanced by World War I1 and related defense con-tracts. Hcaring thc call to Go West!, thcy took the bait and rushed to Utah with great expectations. Two distinct characteristics define the impetus that repelled and attracted them. First, in terms of the former, African Americans were happy to leave be-hnd the labor- intensive farm life of Alabama, Ar-kansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Texas. Second, in terms of the latter, despite their individually unique southern experiences, they shared one motivation: a desire for a better way of life. Not surprisingly, many migrants who ended up in Utah did not have this or any other specific Rocky Mountain destination in mind. They were merely anxious to leave the repellent conditions in the South. Trying to put hard times behind them, they gathered their meager possessions and family and set out in search of a fresh start. They hit the J road, chasing little more than the promise of jobs, rumors, and dreams. Although Utah seemed like the other side of the country, they came and kept coming, in the end carving out their own experi-ences in Utah. E - was out of sight. The Klan was looking everywhere for me ' cause of a fight when a white man threw a sack of cotton on me." + " My brother- in- law had moved to Utah. He wrote back to say anybody wanting to work and wanting to do better should come to Utah. So I drew my pay and came. I worked for months before I could send back for my wife and two boys. We lived in a boardinghouse, all doubled up." " I took 37 dollars, bought a train ticket, and came to Utah to join my sister from Stamps." + " My husband was at Camp Kearns in the Army Air Corps. The first time I came he hadn't made any arrangements for me to stay. But, believe you me, when I came the second time, I came for good." + " I came to work at Hill Air Force Base and made good money." These are lingering echoes that gve clear insights into the desire, expectations, fear, and determina-tion driving those who, for whatever reason, con-sidered settling in Utah during the 1940s. According to the United States census reports covering the first four decades of this century, the number of Utah's residents of African American descent grew less than 200 between 1930 and 1940, from 1,108 out of 507,847 Utah residents to some 1,235 out of 550,310. Of those, 682 were male; 553 were female. In this group, 64 lived as rural farmers, while 1,115 were urban; 56 others lived in the " rural, not a farm" category. Of the 270 of those between the ages of five and twenty, 203 Dance at the " Art Barn" in SLC, July 1943 attended school. While 1 19 had completed four years of high school, only twenty individuals had earned a four- year or higher degree. Ten years later, according to the 1950 United States census, the number of African Americans in Utah had more than doubled to 2,707 out of a total population of 687,400. Interestingly, during this time, when Utah's African American population was only 0.2 percent, eleven of its twenty- nine counties had at least some African American presence. Salt Lake, Weber, Carbon, and Utah counties had the largest African American populations. Still, the number of African Americans living in Utah was relatively small and fragmented. A senior African American woman recently recalled a time when she came with her husband to Salt Lake City from Ogden to shop. " We spent the entire day downtown and saw no more than two other Af-rican." She added: " A black man getting off the bus yelled to us, ' Are blacks folks allowed in this town?"' As was true in much of the United States, African Americans migrating to Utah found their own churches to be the one place where they could gather freely and feel that they had high value and personal worth. Aside from the black fur trappers in Utah during the 1820s, the first African Amer-icans in Utah had come with the Mormon pioneers. However, denied full access to some religious insti-tutions and only limited access to others, they assembled in their own places to worship God as well as to find refreshing revival. The growth and expansion of various congregations paralleled those around the country and crossed three primary de-nominational lines. During the 1940s, just as the population swelled by over 100 percent, so did the number of congregations with primarily African American membership. The two oldest congregations were Trinity Afri-can Methodist Episcopal church and the Calvary Missionary Baptist church with histories traceable to 1890 and 1892 respectively. A second group of churches emerged in the early twentieth century, including the Embry Chapel African Methodist church on Pingree in Ogden ( 1908), the Wall Ave-nue ( now New Zion) Baptist church in Ogden ( 1 9 17), the Sunnyside Baptist church of Carbon County ( 1 91 9), the First Baptist church of Mohr-land ( 1922), and the ( New) Pilgrim Baptist church of Salt Lake City ( 1 923). During the 1940s, the Churches of God in Christ began to organize in Utah, beginning with the Mount Zion Church of God in Christ, the Emmanuel Church of God in Christ, and the Griffin Memorial Church of God in Christ. Each congregation sought to find its place in meeting the growing needs of African Americans moving into the area. Unfortunately, the Pilgrim Baptist church was destroyed by fire in October 1948. These predominately African American congrega-tions simultaneously focused on the spiritual needs of their members and the political pursuit of equal rights and secular benefits for all people. They pro-vided economic opportunity such as job placement and business opportunity. For example, one of the black businesses in Salt Lake City during this time was the Elect Barber and Beauty Salon located at 2 1 1 East 700 South, which was owned by the Daniels family. Whenever political challenges confronted the African American community at large, the churches took leadership roles and moved toward resolution. Each member could trust the churches to provide opportunities for religious fellowship, personal ful-fillment, social interactions, and community partic-ipation. In short, while pimarily concerned about spiritual affairs, the congregations reached out to meet any human needs where people hurt. All African American congregations in Salt Lake City were located either in Central City or on the west side of the city. Those in Ogden were located I t the various copper, gold, and coal mines. Areas west of Washington Boulevard or in Washmgton such as 25th Street in Ogden offered opportunities Terrace. Pastoral leadership for the churches came for black people to open, own, and operate busi-largely from the southern states. Word of mouth nesses. Job opportunities on military installations was the most dependable method of recruitment. were scattered around the state in places such as Unfortunately, finding the area a difficult field of Tooele Depot, Camp Kearns, Hill Air Force Base, labor, most of the pastors stayed an average of only Ogden Defense Depot, Fort Douglas, and Dugway two years. Two major concerns were minimal fel- Proving Ground. Among the soldiers who came to lowship and little or no opportunity for ministerial Utah's Camp Kearns were J. J. McClain, D. B. educational advancement. Rucker, Nelson Styles, and M. C. Thomas. They African Americans faced segre-gated housing in Utah during the 1940s, as they were limited and restricted to living in certain areas. Most African Americans lived in communities near the rail-road tracks, on the west side, and where job opportunities existed nearby. In Ogden, most African Americans lived near the train sta-tion on Wall Avenue; a few lived in the Washington Heights area, but almost none lived east of Wash-ington Boulevard. In Salt Lake City, African Americans lived mostly on 600 South and 700 found that worlung in government service provided good pay and stability. The railroad also offered work to men, from labor-ers maintaining the rails to college graduates who worked as sleeping- car porters and cooks. Women worked mostlv as domestic servants in private homes, as eleva-tor operators and cham-bermaids in hotels, or in the entertainment indus-try. As the railroad devel-oped a significant pres-ence in the Helper/ Price area and Og- d en, the men South and between State Street Nancy Leggroan, Mildred Ellis, and worked on the trains as and 700 East. A few had property Sandra in Salt Lake City. cooks, janitors, and off Redwood Road, and other, porters. Others, such as more long- term, residents lived in the Evergreen the Brown, Allen, and Price families, came to the - - area. Those in Carbon County occupied housing area to mine coal near Helper, silver in Park City, provided by the companies in the work camps. and copper near the Great Salt Lake. Albert Fritz Even those who sou- gh t to live in other cities were was one of the early blacks to work at Kennecott confronted with restrictive real estate covenants Copper. that re vented African Americans from living in many of the east- side communities. Despite discrimination, however, approximately 259 families owned their own homes, while the remainder were tenants in rented rooms, apart-ments, or houses. This number of home owners is impressive, given the 1940 U. S. Census report that there were only 205 African American family units in Salt Lake County, 106 in Weber County, 22 in Carbon County, and 10 in Utah County. African Americans also experienced limited opportunities to enjoy entertainment. With the rail-road hub in the area of 25th Street, Ogden was the " hot spot" for them. There, blacks owned and oper-ated various businesses, including hotels, eating es-tablishments, pools halls, dance facilities, and night spots. In the area of the mostly all- black south side of 25th Street were the Porters and Waiters Club, the Harlem Hotel, the Royal Hotel, and the Royal Castle. Military and railroad personnel provided a More and more African Americans moved to steady and paying clientele for these businesses. Utah as jobs opened up with the military, on the In Salt Lake City, the Coon Chicken Inn on High-railroad, in the hotels, and- in limited numbers- land Drive employed several African Americans. nowever, according to Roy Hawluns, who still lives in Salt Lake City and was a headwaiter at the facili-ty, " Blacks didn't come there. Not even black sol-diers came in there, although the place was full of soldiers." The stereotypes of the grinning Darky, obsequious Mammy, and Uncle Tom promoted by this establishment, and even its very name- Coon Chicken Inr- were for many African Americans the ultimate insult. Former waiter Edward Miller, who worked under headwaiter Sam Sneed, said, " There was a lot of prejudice here." Unfortunately, far too many of the local restaurants and stores often ignored African American customers until, frustrated, they left without receiving service. For evening entertainment in Salt Lake City, blacks went to the Redwood Ranch, owned by Mrs. Laverne " Ninnie" Hobbs; the Dixie Land, operated by Herman and Emma Sanders and Blanche Hop-kins; and the Pink Lady on North Beck Street. The Saint Louis Hotel and the Hampton Hotel were lo-cated in downtown, as was a popular place known as Jazzbo. The Porters and Waiters club in Salt Lake City was operated by a Mr. and Mrs. Davis and later owned by Joe White, Roy and Mildred Hawk-ins, and Goldy Strong. Although local theaters were open to them, Afri-can American customers had to sit in a segregated seating area on one side or in the balcony. Mrs. Georgia Turner remembers, I decided to go to the movie theater at 23rd and Grant [ Ogden] to see a cowboy picture. I sat downstairs. I didn't know that coloured had to sit somewhere other than where whites sat. People just kept loohng at me. All the other blacks were upstairs. The usher tapped me on the shoulder and said, " You're supposed to be upstairs." I refused to move. As I left, the usher said, " Next time you will know where to go." Blacks bands often came to Utah to play for white audiences. Following their contracted perfor-mances, musicians such as Lionel Hampton, Louis Armstrong, Fats Domino, Duke Ellington, and oth-ers would play for blacks to hear at a house on 27th and Wall in Ogden. During the 1940s, very few African Americans in Utah owned automobiles. While most who owned cars drove " old, beat- up cars," Mr. Fletcher of Ogden owned a big car called the " Blue Goose," while Roy Hawkins had the newest car in Salt Lake City. For the most part, however, blacks traveled on the Bamberger train, by bicycle, by horse and bug-gy, on buses and trolley cars, or by foot. It was a common sight to see an African American mother walking with her children in tow. A small number of African American profession-als lived in Utah during the 1940s. Individuals such as attorney David H. Oliver and beautician/ nurses' aide Georgia Turner came to Utah with impeccable credentials. Others with college degrees included many who could only work as sleeping- car porters on the trains. While some African Americans com-pleted no more than a thrd- grade education, some finished eighth grade, some earned technical and professional shlls, and a few attended Utah colleges and universities to complete formal degrees in vari-ous disciplines. But most African Americans who earned degrees, such as Mignon Richmond, were not employed in areas for which they were educated. Life for African Americans in Utah during the 1940s was not significantly different from that in other areas of the expanding West, or of the nation, for that matter. They were forced to work tog- e ther and to visualize and meet their own needs in the daily struggles they encountered. Pooling available resources, they developed their own social, politi-cal, religious, economic, and educational institu-tions. They sought to make a better life for them-selves and their families. In sum, during the post-depression years, African Americans found Utah a land of exciting challenge and emerging opportunity. France A. Davis is pastor of the Calvary Baptist Church. Sources: France A. Davis, Light in the Midst OfZion: A History of Black Boptist in Utah: 1892- 1996 ( Salt Lake City: Empire Publishing, 1997). Raymond Freeman of Ogden, Utah, interview, June 1999. Wilma R. Freeman of Ogden, interview, June 1999. Roy Hawkins of Salt Lake City, Utah, interview, June 1999. Gladys Hesleph of Salt Lake City, interview, June 1999. Eliza Hill of Ogden, interview, June 1999. Reba Hurrington of Salt Lake City, interview, May 1999. Edward Miller of Salt Lake City, inter-view, July 1999. * Quintard Taylor, In Search of the Racial Frontiec African Americans in the American West: 1528.- 1990 ( New Ynrk: \- ' - W. W. Norton & Co., 1998). Georgia Turner of Ogden, interview, June 1999. Souvenier program, dedication of The New Embry Chapel AME. church. 1959. Georgia, |
