November 10, 1955
Describes that Ozzie Newsome, a Black man who owned a restaurant in Muscle Shoals, was told by Police Commissioner Thomas F. Terry that he would have to pay a $25 fee each week to operate, a fee that Newsome could not afford. The article continues to describe the trial that was still being deliberated by the jury at the time the article was written.
November 1, 1955
Describes that Trenholm High School planned to have a program to discuss the Goodwyn Amendment, which was intended to increase taxes in order to support public education and the recreational facilities provided for Black children in the area.
September 18, 1955
Describes the murder of Emmitt Till and notes that a trial with an all-white jury was beginning. Also, notes that police officers had not found evidence necessary for conviction.
August 20, 1955
Depicts Nancy B. Allen, a Black woman from Tuscumbia who had been enslaved.
July 25, 1955
Describes Kit Butler’s life, a Black man from Lauderdale County who had been enslaved by Martin Butler and had lived through the Civil War. Also, notes that he came to Lauderdale County in 1868 and had moved to Center Star in 1872.
July 9, 1955
Describes that the segregated swimming pool for Black residents in the Florence community was opening in Handy Heights.
June 12, 1955
Describes how different states were approaching the Supreme Court’s decision to integrate public schools.
May 18, 1954
Provides Chief Justice Earl Warren’s statements regarding the Supreme Court segregation decision verbatim.
May 18, 1954
Describes multiple southern governors’ reactions to the Supreme Court segregation decision and includes that many would attempt to maintain segregation, others planned to wait to see if it would be legally enforced, and only one state, Kentucky, agreed to comply.
May 18, 1954
Describes the reactions of local school superintendents and commissioners after the Supreme Court ruled segregation unconstitutional. Also, includes statements from Dr. E.B. Norton, president of Florence State Teachers College, who believed the college faced serious problems from the decision but that they could find a solution over time.
May 17, 1954
Describes that the Supreme Court found segregation within public schools to be unconstitutional and provides statements made by Chief Justice Earl Warren.