History of Marshall, Texas
Encyclopedia
The History of Marshall, Texas follows the city; from its founding as an administrative center of the Republic of Texas
, through its rise to be one of the largest cities in the early State of Texas, to its emergence as a major Confederate
city, to its establishment as a major railroad hub of the United States in the late 19th century, through its national influence on the American Civil Rights Movement, through its steady economic decline in the late 20th century, and to the reemergence of growth in the 1990s and early 21st century.
received its first known settlers in 1839. While activities among Caddo
s, and other Southeastern
Native American peoples certainly took place in the area that is now Marshall, no know settlement existed at Marshall, as was the case of the original location of neighboring Elysian Fields
.
In 1841 a new seat
was sought for Harrison County, and a local settler named Peter Whetstone
, offered some of his land in central Harrison County to build the new city on. He offered to build a church and a school on and the subsequently divide the remaining land into 190 lots. County commissioners were initially concerned that the water in the area would not be good—the reason from moving the county seat from sites on the Sabine River
like Pulaski was that they had poor water, were prone to disease, and flooding. Whetstone is alleged to have convinced the commissioners that the water was good by pulling a jug of whiskey out from a hollow in an oak tree in what is now downtown Marshall. He passed around the jug, and convinced the commissioners to build on the site; either by convincing them that the whiskey (and water) were good, getting them drunk, or both. However it is important to note that some historians view this account as embellished or untrue.
Whetstone's friend Isaac Van Zandt
, laid out the city and named it in honor of John Marshall
. The city was formally incorporated in 1841 by the Republic of Texas
. The city quickly became a major city in the state, because of its position as a gateway to Texas on several major stage coach lines. The city's growing importance was strengthened when Marshall was linked by a telegraph line to New Orleans
, becoming the first city in Texas to have a telegraph service. Several academies sprang up, many of them supported by Whetstone, who was ironically illiterate.
By 1860 the city was the fifth largest city in Texas, the "first metropolis of East Texas
with a population of about 2,000", according to Randoph B. Campbell author of Gone to Texas
, and the seat of the richest county. The county had more slaves than any other in the state, making it a hotbed of anti-Union
sentiment. In the 1850s there were so many skilled slaves in Marshall, that white mechanics organized to protest that work was being taken away from "free" workers. When Gov. Sam Houston
refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy, Marshall's Edward Clark
was sworn in as governor. Marshall would also produce Texas' third Confederate
governor, Pendleton Murrah
. Marshall became a major Confederate city, becoming the capital of Missouri
's Confederate government-in-exile, producing gunpowder
and other supplies for the Confederate Army
, and hosting three conferences of Trans-Mississippi
and Indian Territory
leaders.
Marshall became the seat of civil authority and headquarters of the Trans-Mississippi Postal Department after the fall of Vicksburg
. The city would remain influential in the Confederacy throughout the war, as a power center west of the Mississippi
as the host Confederate governors during the Marshall Conferences
in 1862, 1863, and 1865. The city may have been the intended target of a failed Union advance that was rebuffed at Mansfield, Louisiana
. Towards the end of the Civil War Richmond
had $9 million in Treasury notes and $3 million in postage stamp
s shipped to Marshall, possibly meaning that Marshall was the intended destination of a government preparing to flee from advancing armies. With high desertion among the Confederate army, in the final days of the war, the Confederate powder mill at Marshall was abandoned to looters.
Marshall was occupied by Union forces on June 17, 1865, two days before the force, made famous by Juneteenth
, arrived at Galveston. During Reconstruction the city was home to an office of the Freedmen's Bureau and was the base for Union troops. In 1873 The Methodist Episcopal Church
founded Wiley College
to educate free men. African-Americans came to the city seeking opportunities and protection until 1878, when the Citizens Party, led by former Confederate General Walter P. Lane
and his brother George, took control of the city and county governments and ran Unionists, Republicans and many African-Americans out of town. The Lanes ultimately declared Marshall and Harrison County "redeemed" from Union and African-American control. Despite this the African-American community would continue to progress with the establishment of Bishop College in 1881 and the certification of Wiley by the Freedman's Aid Society
in 1882.
Marshall's "Railroad Era" began in the early 1870s. Harrison County citizens voted to offer $300,000 bond subsidy, and the City of Marshall offered to donate land north of the downtown to the Texas and Pacific Railway
if the company would move to Marshall. T&P President Jay Gould
accepted and located the T&P's workshops and general offices for Texas in Marshall. The city benefited immediately from a population explosion. By 1880 the city was one of the South's largest cotton
markets. The city's new prosperity became apparent when the first department store
in Texas, J. Weisman and Co., opened in 1878. Many Jews, too, moved to Marshall following the arrival of the railroad and a temple was erected in 1900.
During this period of wealth many of the city's now historic homes were constructed. Homes such as Maplecroft
, commissioned by James F. Starr. The original antebellum
Starr plantation
, Rosemont, was partially demolished in the 1870s for the construction of Maplecroft. Maplecroft was constructed in the Italianate style of red heart pine
. Craftsmen, such as shipwrights, and building materials were shipped from New Orleans
to Marshall. The remaining portion of the original main house, Rosemont, was converted into a school house
for the family's children ant later into a laundry.
Marshall Pottery was founded by W. F. Rocker in Marshall in 1895. Rocker located the business in East Texas
because of its abundant water and white clay deposits.
Despite the prosperity of the railroad era, poverty continued to be a problem in the city among all races, but tensions between whites and African-Americans continued to worsen as segregation crystallized in the city. The rural areas of Harrison County
saw greater interaction between white people and African-Americans. There, whites and blacks being neighbors was commonplace. Even though the areas surrounding Marshall were somewhat integrated, racism
certainly was still apparent in everyday life. The fact that several plantation
owners divided up sizable tracts of land and gave them to their former slaves may also have contributed to these tensions.
of segregation
. African American Marshall resident George Dawson
later wrote about his childhood experiences with segregation in his book Life Is So Good. He described how, despite African American children's acceptance of segregation, in some instances its demands were too outrageous to follow. For example, Dawson described how he had refused the demand of one employer who expected him to eat with her dogs.
1913-02-25: Two African Americans were lynched in Marshall this date. Mr. Robert Perry was shot to death by a mob after being accused of horse stealing. Another African American by the family name of Anderson was hanged by a mob for unknown reasons.
1914-04-29: Mr. Charles Fisher, a young African American resident of Marshall, was accused of hugging and kissing the daughter of a white farmer. News of the incident was spread indiscriminately, and a Lynch Mob was formed. Mr. Fisher was found, kidnapped, and mutilated both physically and sexually, and then released. Mr. Fisher was later examined by Sheriff Sanders and County Health Officer Taylor, who found that the mob had sheared off Mr. Fisher’s ears, slit his lips, and mutilated his genitals. Mr. Fisher survived, but never totally recovered. None of the mob were ever captured.
Other known victims of lynching from this time period include: Walker Davis October 1, 1903, James Hodges April 27, 1909,
Matthew Chase April 30, 1909, “Mose" Creole April 30, 1909, "Pie" Hill April 30, 1909,
1 unidentified black man October 29, 1911, Mary Jackson February 13, 1912, George Saunders February 13, 1912, unknown Anderson February 25, 1913, Charles Jones August 22, 1917
In 1949, Marshall banned the movie Pinky from the city because it portrayed an interracial couple, a violation of the city's censorship code. The city was sued and the case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court
, which overturned the city's censorship law.
Three graduates of Wiley College
, inspired by the teachings of Wiley professor Melvin B. Tolson
, helped to dismantle Jim Crow
at the county, state, and national levels. Fred Lewis, as the secretary of the Harrison County
NAACP, challenged the oldest White Citizens Party in the Texas and the Jim Crow laws it enforced, ultimately abolishing Jim Crow in the county with the Perry v. Cyphers
verdict. Heman Sweatt tried to enroll in the University of Texas
Law school
, but was denied entry because of the color of his skin; he sued and the Texas Supreme Court
ordered the desegregation of postgraduate studies in Texas in the Sweatt v. Painter
decision. James L. Farmer, Jr.
became an organizer of the Freedom Rides and a founder of the Congress of Racial Equality
.
The progression of civil rights
would continue into the 1960s, 70s and 80s. In the 1960s, students organized the first sit-in
s in Texas in the rotunda
of the county courthouse on Whetstone Square in a move to end segregation of public schools; in 1970, all Marshall public schools were integrated. Also in that year, Carolyn Abney became the first woman to be elected to the city commission. In April 1975 local businessman Sam Birmingham became the first African-American to be elected to the city commission and, in the 80s, Marshall's first African-American mayor. Birmingham retired in 1989 for health concerns, and was succeeded by his wife, Jean Birmingham, who became the first African-American woman to serve on the commission.
During the first half of the 20th century, the Texas & Pacific Railroad experienced its height under the leadership of John L. Lancaster
. Marshall's industry picked up with the discovery of what was then the largest oil field in the world at nearby Kilgore
in 1930. Marshall's railroad industry subsequently declined with the dieselization of most trains, the proliferation of air travel, and the construction of the Interstate highway system after World War II. The T&P Shops closed in the 1960s and T&P passenger service ceased in 1970. The Texas oil bust of the 1980s devastated the local economy and the city's population declined by about a thousand between 1980 and 1990.
Republic of Texas
The Republic of Texas was an independent nation in North America, bordering the United States and Mexico, that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the state claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S...
, through its rise to be one of the largest cities in the early State of Texas, to its emergence as a major Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
city, to its establishment as a major railroad hub of the United States in the late 19th century, through its national influence on the American Civil Rights Movement, through its steady economic decline in the late 20th century, and to the reemergence of growth in the 1990s and early 21st century.
19th century
Marshall's history began when the area that is now MarshallMarshall, Texas
Marshall is a city in Harrison County in the northeastern corner of Texas. Marshall is a major cultural and educational center in East Texas and the tri-state area. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Marshall was about 23,523...
received its first known settlers in 1839. While activities among Caddo
Caddo
The Caddo Nation is a confederacy of several Southeastern Native American tribes, who traditionally inhabited much of what is now East Texas, northern Louisiana and portions of southern Arkansas and Oklahoma. Today the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma is a cohesive tribe with its capital at Binger, Oklahoma...
s, and other Southeastern
Southeastern tribes
Southeastern Woodlands peoples or Southeastern cultures are an ethnographic classification for Indigenous peoples that have traditionally inhabited the Southeastern United States and the northeastern border of Mexico, that share common cultural traits....
Native American peoples certainly took place in the area that is now Marshall, no know settlement existed at Marshall, as was the case of the original location of neighboring Elysian Fields
Elysian Fields, Texas
Elysian Fields is a rural unincorporated community in Harrison County, Texas, United States. It lies 11 miles southeast of the county seat of Marshall....
.
In 1841 a new seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
was sought for Harrison County, and a local settler named Peter Whetstone
Peter Whetstone
Peter Whetstone was an early pioneer leader in the Republic of Texas most remembered for founding the city of Marshall, Texas with Isaac Van Zandt.Whetstone married Dicey, or Dicy, Webster in 1816 in Arkansas...
, offered some of his land in central Harrison County to build the new city on. He offered to build a church and a school on and the subsequently divide the remaining land into 190 lots. County commissioners were initially concerned that the water in the area would not be good—the reason from moving the county seat from sites on the Sabine River
Sabine River (Texas-Louisiana)
The Sabine River is a river, long, in the U.S. states of Texas and Louisiana. In its lower course, it forms part of the boundary between the two states and empties into Sabine Lake, an estuary of the Gulf of Mexico. The river formed part of the United States-Mexican international boundary during...
like Pulaski was that they had poor water, were prone to disease, and flooding. Whetstone is alleged to have convinced the commissioners that the water was good by pulling a jug of whiskey out from a hollow in an oak tree in what is now downtown Marshall. He passed around the jug, and convinced the commissioners to build on the site; either by convincing them that the whiskey (and water) were good, getting them drunk, or both. However it is important to note that some historians view this account as embellished or untrue.
Whetstone's friend Isaac Van Zandt
Isaac Van Zandt
Isaac Van Zandt was a political leader in the Republic of Texas. Van Zandt County, Texas, was named in his honor....
, laid out the city and named it in honor of John Marshall
John Marshall
John Marshall was the Chief Justice of the United States whose court opinions helped lay the basis for American constitutional law and made the Supreme Court of the United States a coequal branch of government along with the legislative and executive branches...
. The city was formally incorporated in 1841 by the Republic of Texas
Republic of Texas
The Republic of Texas was an independent nation in North America, bordering the United States and Mexico, that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the state claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S...
. The city quickly became a major city in the state, because of its position as a gateway to Texas on several major stage coach lines. The city's growing importance was strengthened when Marshall was linked by a telegraph line to New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
, becoming the first city in Texas to have a telegraph service. Several academies sprang up, many of them supported by Whetstone, who was ironically illiterate.
East Texas
East Texas is a distinct geographic and ecological area in the U.S. state of Texas.According to the Handbook of Texas, the East Texas area "may be separated from the rest of Texas roughly by a line extending from the Red River in north central Lamar County southwestward to east central Limestone...
with a population of about 2,000", according to Randoph B. Campbell author of Gone to Texas
Gone to Texas
Gone to Texas , was a phrase used by Americans immigrating to Texas in the 19th century often to escape debt incurred during the Panic of 1819...
, and the seat of the richest county. The county had more slaves than any other in the state, making it a hotbed of anti-Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
sentiment. In the 1850s there were so many skilled slaves in Marshall, that white mechanics organized to protest that work was being taken away from "free" workers. When Gov. Sam Houston
Sam Houston
Samuel Houston, known as Sam Houston , was a 19th-century American statesman, politician, and soldier. He was born in Timber Ridge in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, of Scots-Irish descent. Houston became a key figure in the history of Texas and was elected as the first and third President of...
refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy, Marshall's Edward Clark
Edward Clark
Edward, Ed or Edmund Clark may refer to:* Ed Clark , American politician, Libertarian presidential candidate in 1980* Ed Clark , American baseball player...
was sworn in as governor. Marshall would also produce Texas' third Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
governor, Pendleton Murrah
Pendleton Murrah
Pendleton Murrah was the tenth Governor of Texas. His term in office coincided with the American Civil War.A native of South Carolina, Murrah graduated from Brown University in 1848. He moved to Texas and opened a law practice in Marshall. He ran and was defeated for the U.S...
. Marshall became a major Confederate city, becoming the capital of Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
's Confederate government-in-exile, producing gunpowder
Gunpowder
Gunpowder, also known since in the late 19th century as black powder, was the first chemical explosive and the only one known until the mid 1800s. It is a mixture of sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate - with the sulfur and charcoal acting as fuels, while the saltpeter works as an oxidizer...
and other supplies for the Confederate Army
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
, and hosting three conferences of Trans-Mississippi
Trans-Mississippi
The Trans-Mississippi was the geographic area west of the Mississippi River during the 19th century, containing the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri and Texas, and the Indian Territory . The term was especially used by the Confederate States of America as the designation for the theater of...
and Indian Territory
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
leaders.
Marshall became the seat of civil authority and headquarters of the Trans-Mississippi Postal Department after the fall of Vicksburg
Vicksburg, Mississippi
Vicksburg is a city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the only city in Warren County. It is located northwest of New Orleans on the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers, and due west of Jackson, the state capital. In 1900, 14,834 people lived in Vicksburg; in 1910, 20,814; in 1920,...
. The city would remain influential in the Confederacy throughout the war, as a power center west of the Mississippi
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
as the host Confederate governors during the Marshall Conferences
Marshall Conferences
The Marshall Conferences were a series of three meetings by Confederate leaders at Marshall, Texas, the capital of the exiled Confederate government of Missouri, at the suggestion of Confederate President Jefferson Davis.-First conference:...
in 1862, 1863, and 1865. The city may have been the intended target of a failed Union advance that was rebuffed at Mansfield, Louisiana
Mansfield, Louisiana
Mansfield is a city in and the parish seat of DeSoto Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,001 at the 2010 census. Mansfield is part of the Shreveport–Bossier City Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
. Towards the end of the Civil War Richmond
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
had $9 million in Treasury notes and $3 million in postage stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
s shipped to Marshall, possibly meaning that Marshall was the intended destination of a government preparing to flee from advancing armies. With high desertion among the Confederate army, in the final days of the war, the Confederate powder mill at Marshall was abandoned to looters.
Marshall was occupied by Union forces on June 17, 1865, two days before the force, made famous by Juneteenth
Juneteenth
Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day or Emancipation Day, is a holiday in the United States honoring African American heritage by commemorating the announcement of the abolition of slavery in the U.S. State of Texas in 1865...
, arrived at Galveston. During Reconstruction the city was home to an office of the Freedmen's Bureau and was the base for Union troops. In 1873 The Methodist Episcopal Church
Methodist Episcopal Church
The Methodist Episcopal Church, sometimes referred to as the M.E. Church, was a development of the first expression of Methodism in the United States. It officially began at the Baltimore Christmas Conference in 1784, with Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke as the first bishops. Through a series of...
founded Wiley College
Wiley College
Wiley College is a four-year, private, historically black, liberal arts college located on the west side of Marshall, Texas. Founded in 1873 by the Methodist Episcopal Church's Bishop Isaac Wiley and certified in 1882 by the Freedman's Aid Society, it is notable as one of the oldest predominantly...
to educate free men. African-Americans came to the city seeking opportunities and protection until 1878, when the Citizens Party, led by former Confederate General Walter P. Lane
Walter P. Lane
Walter Paye Lane was a Confederate general during the American Civil War who also served in the armies of the Republic of Texas and the United States of America.-Early life:...
and his brother George, took control of the city and county governments and ran Unionists, Republicans and many African-Americans out of town. The Lanes ultimately declared Marshall and Harrison County "redeemed" from Union and African-American control. Despite this the African-American community would continue to progress with the establishment of Bishop College in 1881 and the certification of Wiley by the Freedman's Aid Society
Freedman's Aid Society
The Freedmen’s Aid Society was founded in 1861 during the American Civil War by the American Missionary Association , a group supported chiefly by the Congregational, Presbyterian and Methodist churches in the North. It organized a supply of teachers from the North and provided housing for them,...
in 1882.
Marshall's "Railroad Era" began in the early 1870s. Harrison County citizens voted to offer $300,000 bond subsidy, and the City of Marshall offered to donate land north of the downtown to the Texas and Pacific Railway
Texas and Pacific Railway
The Texas and Pacific Railway Company was created by federal charter in 1871 with the purpose of building a southern transcontinental railroad between Marshall, Texas, and San Diego, California....
if the company would move to Marshall. T&P President Jay Gould
Jay Gould
Jason "Jay" Gould was a leading American railroad developer and speculator. He has long been vilified as an archetypal robber baron, whose successes made him the ninth richest American in history. Condé Nast Portfolio ranked Gould as the 8th worst American CEO of all time...
accepted and located the T&P's workshops and general offices for Texas in Marshall. The city benefited immediately from a population explosion. By 1880 the city was one of the South's largest cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
markets. The city's new prosperity became apparent when the first department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
in Texas, J. Weisman and Co., opened in 1878. Many Jews, too, moved to Marshall following the arrival of the railroad and a temple was erected in 1900.
Starr Family Home State Historic Site
Starr Family Home State Historic Site is a historical site operated by the Texas Historical Commission in downtown Marshall, Texas. The site encompasses several structures used by the Starr Family; most notably the main house or Starr Home, Maplecroft, and the Rosemont Cottage.The site portrays...
, commissioned by James F. Starr. The original antebellum
Antebellum architecture
Antebellum architecture is a term used to describe the characteristic neoclassical architectural style of the Southern United States, especially the Old South, from after the birth of the United States in the American Revolution, to the start of the American Civil War...
Starr plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
, Rosemont, was partially demolished in the 1870s for the construction of Maplecroft. Maplecroft was constructed in the Italianate style of red heart pine
Pine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
. Craftsmen, such as shipwrights, and building materials were shipped from New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
to Marshall. The remaining portion of the original main house, Rosemont, was converted into a school house
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
for the family's children ant later into a laundry.
Marshall Pottery was founded by W. F. Rocker in Marshall in 1895. Rocker located the business in East Texas
East Texas
East Texas is a distinct geographic and ecological area in the U.S. state of Texas.According to the Handbook of Texas, the East Texas area "may be separated from the rest of Texas roughly by a line extending from the Red River in north central Lamar County southwestward to east central Limestone...
because of its abundant water and white clay deposits.
Despite the prosperity of the railroad era, poverty continued to be a problem in the city among all races, but tensions between whites and African-Americans continued to worsen as segregation crystallized in the city. The rural areas of Harrison County
Harrison County, Texas
Harrison County is a county of the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 62,110. It is named for Jonas Harrison, a lawyer and Texas revolutionary. It is located in the Ark-La-Tex region...
saw greater interaction between white people and African-Americans. There, whites and blacks being neighbors was commonplace. Even though the areas surrounding Marshall were somewhat integrated, racism
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
certainly was still apparent in everyday life. The fact that several plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
owners divided up sizable tracts of land and gave them to their former slaves may also have contributed to these tensions.
Twentieth century
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, children of both races were raised to accept the status quoStatus quo
Statu quo, a commonly used form of the original Latin "statu quo" – literally "the state in which" – is a Latin term meaning the current or existing state of affairs. To maintain the status quo is to keep the things the way they presently are...
of segregation
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
. African American Marshall resident George Dawson
George Dawson (author)
George Dawson was called "America's favorite poster child for literacy" after learning to read at the age of 98. His life story, Life Is So Good, was published in 2000.-Early and mid-life:...
later wrote about his childhood experiences with segregation in his book Life Is So Good. He described how, despite African American children's acceptance of segregation, in some instances its demands were too outrageous to follow. For example, Dawson described how he had refused the demand of one employer who expected him to eat with her dogs.
1913-02-25: Two African Americans were lynched in Marshall this date. Mr. Robert Perry was shot to death by a mob after being accused of horse stealing. Another African American by the family name of Anderson was hanged by a mob for unknown reasons.
1914-04-29: Mr. Charles Fisher, a young African American resident of Marshall, was accused of hugging and kissing the daughter of a white farmer. News of the incident was spread indiscriminately, and a Lynch Mob was formed. Mr. Fisher was found, kidnapped, and mutilated both physically and sexually, and then released. Mr. Fisher was later examined by Sheriff Sanders and County Health Officer Taylor, who found that the mob had sheared off Mr. Fisher’s ears, slit his lips, and mutilated his genitals. Mr. Fisher survived, but never totally recovered. None of the mob were ever captured.
Other known victims of lynching from this time period include: Walker Davis October 1, 1903, James Hodges April 27, 1909,
Matthew Chase April 30, 1909, “Mose" Creole April 30, 1909, "Pie" Hill April 30, 1909,
1 unidentified black man October 29, 1911, Mary Jackson February 13, 1912, George Saunders February 13, 1912, unknown Anderson February 25, 1913, Charles Jones August 22, 1917
In 1949, Marshall banned the movie Pinky from the city because it portrayed an interracial couple, a violation of the city's censorship code. The city was sued and the case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
, which overturned the city's censorship law.
Wiley College
Wiley College is a four-year, private, historically black, liberal arts college located on the west side of Marshall, Texas. Founded in 1873 by the Methodist Episcopal Church's Bishop Isaac Wiley and certified in 1882 by the Freedman's Aid Society, it is notable as one of the oldest predominantly...
, inspired by the teachings of Wiley professor Melvin B. Tolson
Melvin B. Tolson
Melvin Beaunorus Tolson was an American Modernist poet, educator, columnist, and politician. His work concentrated on the experience of African Americans and includes several long historical poems. His work was influenced by his study of the Harlem Renaissance, although he spent nearly all of...
, helped to dismantle Jim Crow
Jim Crow laws
The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws in the United States enacted between 1876 and 1965. They mandated de jure racial segregation in all public facilities, with a supposedly "separate but equal" status for black Americans...
at the county, state, and national levels. Fred Lewis, as the secretary of the Harrison County
Harrison County, Texas
Harrison County is a county of the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 62,110. It is named for Jonas Harrison, a lawyer and Texas revolutionary. It is located in the Ark-La-Tex region...
NAACP, challenged the oldest White Citizens Party in the Texas and the Jim Crow laws it enforced, ultimately abolishing Jim Crow in the county with the Perry v. Cyphers
Perry v. Cyphers
Perry v. Cyphers 186 F.2d 608 is the case that resulted in a court ruling that struck down Jim Crow legislation in Harrison County, Texas....
verdict. Heman Sweatt tried to enroll in the University of Texas
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
Law school
Law school
A law school is an institution specializing in legal education.- Law degrees :- Canada :...
, but was denied entry because of the color of his skin; he sued and the Texas Supreme Court
Texas Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Texas is the court of last resort for non-criminal matters in the state of Texas. A different court, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, is the court of last resort for criminal matters.The Court is composed of a Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices...
ordered the desegregation of postgraduate studies in Texas in the Sweatt v. Painter
Sweatt v. Painter
Sweatt v. Painter, , was a U.S. Supreme Court case that successfully proved lack of equality, in favor of a black applicant, the "separate but equal" doctrine of racial segregation established by the 1896 case Plessy v. Ferguson. The case was also influential in the landmark case of Brown v...
decision. James L. Farmer, Jr.
James L. Farmer, Jr.
James Leonard Farmer, Jr. was a civil rights activist and leader in the American Civil Rights Movement. He was the initiator and organizer of the 1961 Freedom Ride, which eventually led to the desegregation of inter-state transportation in the United States.In 1942, Farmer co-founded the Committee...
became an organizer of the Freedom Rides and a founder of the Congress of Racial Equality
Congress of Racial Equality
The Congress of Racial Equality or CORE was a U.S. civil rights organization that originally played a pivotal role for African-Americans in the Civil Rights Movement...
.
The progression of civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
would continue into the 1960s, 70s and 80s. In the 1960s, students organized the first sit-in
Sit-in
A sit-in or sit-down is a form of protest that involves occupying seats or sitting down on the floor of an establishment.-Process:In a sit-in, protesters remain until they are evicted, usually by force, or arrested, or until their requests have been met...
s in Texas in the rotunda
Rotunda (architecture)
A rotunda is any building with a circular ground plan, sometimes covered by a dome. It can also refer to a round room within a building . The Pantheon in Rome is a famous rotunda. A Band Rotunda is a circular bandstand, usually with a dome...
of the county courthouse on Whetstone Square in a move to end segregation of public schools; in 1970, all Marshall public schools were integrated. Also in that year, Carolyn Abney became the first woman to be elected to the city commission. In April 1975 local businessman Sam Birmingham became the first African-American to be elected to the city commission and, in the 80s, Marshall's first African-American mayor. Birmingham retired in 1989 for health concerns, and was succeeded by his wife, Jean Birmingham, who became the first African-American woman to serve on the commission.
During the first half of the 20th century, the Texas & Pacific Railroad experienced its height under the leadership of John L. Lancaster
John L. Lancaster
John L. Lancaster was president of the Texas and Pacific Railway during the first half of the 20th century....
. Marshall's industry picked up with the discovery of what was then the largest oil field in the world at nearby Kilgore
Kilgore, Texas
Kilgore is a city in Gregg and Rusk Counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the home of Kilgore College, and was also the childhood home of famous classical pianist Van Cliburn...
in 1930. Marshall's railroad industry subsequently declined with the dieselization of most trains, the proliferation of air travel, and the construction of the Interstate highway system after World War II. The T&P Shops closed in the 1960s and T&P passenger service ceased in 1970. The Texas oil bust of the 1980s devastated the local economy and the city's population declined by about a thousand between 1980 and 1990.