Draft letter from W. E. B. Du Bois to Charles W. Chesnutt, 18 November 1926
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A776-823.34
26-800
6/31 D
November 18, 1926.
Mr. Charles W. Chesnutt,
1646 Union Trust Building,
Cleveland, Ohio.
My dear Mr. Chesnutt:
I am writing you as one who was acquainted with the late John E. Milholland and knows something of his enthusiasm for human causes. Especially was he interested in the American Negro and in those parts of the Negro problems, like disfranchisement and civil and social rights, which were especially unpopular fifteen years ago.
It has seemed to some of us that some permanent memorial to Mr. Milholland ought to be placed conspicuously to remind coming generations of the fact that he was one of the forerunners and founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People,1 and did much to make it a permanent living institution.
It happens that there is in possession of the late Mr. Milholland's family a bust, which is not only a work of art, but a living likeness of our dead friend. It has been proposed by the Directors of the N. A. A. C. P that a small fund be raised to place replicas
-2-
of this bust, first in the offices of the N. A. A. C. P., and then at Howard University, at Cheyney, at Tuskegee, and perhaps one or two other places. The cost for each bust will be between $200 and $300; probably about $250.
I am writing to ask if you feel able to contribute to a fund for such a purpose, either for placing a bust in some particular place or for the general fund for placing as many busts as we can. I should be glad to hear from you at your convenience.
Very sincerely yours, WEBD/DW A776-823.35 26-800 6/31 DCorrespondent: William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (1868–1963) was a sociologist, historian, and world-renowned civil rights activist. After completing coursework at the University of Berlin and Harvard University, Du Bois became the first African American to earn a doctorate from Harvard in 1895. He was a professor of history, sociology, and economics at Atlanta University (1897–1910 and again in the 1930s). He was a prominent leader of the Niagara Movement and helped found the NAACP in 1909. As the editor of the NAACP's journal, The Crisis, from 1910 to 1931, Du Bois published four of Chesnutt's short stories as well as two of his essays. See "The Doll" (April 1912), "Mr. Taylor's Funeral" (April/May 1915), "The Marked Tree" (Dec 1924/Jan 1925), and "Concerning Father" (May 1930); and "Women's Rights" (1915) and "The Negro in Art" (November 1926).
1. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) began in February 1909, with a Committee on the Negro and "The Call," a statement protesting lawlessness against Black people. In 1910, the organization adopted its current name and in 1912 began publication of a monthly journal, The Crisis, which was edited by W. E. B. Du Bois from 1912 to 1944. Chesnutt's involvement with the NAACP extended over many years, and included serving on its General Committee, attending conferences, presiding at NAACP events in Cleveland, publishing four stories and two essays in The Crisis (1912, 1915, 1924, 1926, 1930, and 1931), and being awarded in 1928 the organization's highest honor, the Spingarn Medal. [back]
