Paul Revere Williams (1894-1980) was a talented and dedicated man who overcame obstacles that would have daunted almost anyone else. He dreamed of designing buildings and went on to become the first certified African American architect west of the Mississippi.

For fifty years and over 3000 projects, Paul Revere Williams was extremely influential in helping to establish Southern California style. Despite the adversity, he became highly sought after for his architectural work.

He designed hundreds of public and private buildings in southern California.  Among his best-known works are iconic public landmarks like the Beverly Hills Hotel, the Stanley Mosk Courthouse, and the “flying saucer-like” Theme Building at Los Angeles International Airport (co-designed with Pereira & Luckman). He was also hired by many homeowners and provided design work for private estates for Hollywood stars including Frank Sinatra and Lucille Ball.

Paul Revere Williams: Childhood

When Paul Revere Williams was four, both his parents died of tuberculosis. He and his brother were put into separate foster homes. Paul was fortunate that his foster mother was kind and supportive. As Paul began to show interest and ability in drawing, his foster mother encouraged him. Soon he never went anywhere without a sketchbook and pencil. Though he was the only African American in his elementary school, he was recognized for his artwork which helped ease his school years.

In high school, a guidance counselor tried to discourage his plan for becoming an architect. While the counselor could not see much value in Williams pursuing architecture, he was not totally discouraging. He noted that Williams should become a doctor or a lawyer “because the Negro people would need those types of professionals.” (In that era, those professions were not impossible, but far from welcoming to Blacks.)

Arts Education

Williams was not to be dissuaded. After graduation, he attended the Los Angeles School of Art and Design followed by a Los Angeles branch of the New York-based Beaux-Arts Institute of Design.

Williams needed to work while in school, so he used the telephone directory to create a list of architectural firms. He then went door-to-door offering his services. He had little luck until he approached a well-respected landscape architecture firm where they offered him a position as “office boy” at no pay. Though he needed the money, Williams saw it as an opportunity to learn the business.  He accepted. Fortunately, the firm recognized his talent relatively quickly. Soon he was earning $3 per week.

Even with balancing work and school, Williams carved out time to enter a national competition for students to design a civic center for Pasadena. His plan emphasized open space, which became a Williams characteristic that he used in much of his design work over the decades. It won first place.

More Education

As he attended classes, he saw that design was only part of what he wanted to do. Understanding the engineering for a building would be key. He applied and was accepted to the University of Southern California School of Engineering. He got his engineering degree in 1919, and in 1921 he became a certified architect–the first certified African American architect west of the Mississippi.

During these years, he married Della Mae Givens (1917) at the first AME Church in Los Angeles (co-founded by Biddy Mason). They had two daughters and a son. (The son died during infancy.) Williams was a devoted and caring family man to his children as well as his grandchildren.

To Be a Black Architect

In 1921, Louis Cass, a white high school classmate, hired Williams to build a house for him. Cass recognized his friend’s talent but also saw the challenges Williams would face in getting hired by an architectural firm. Cass encouraged Williams to set up his own firm, which he did when he was only 28.

Williams learned that clients and builders sometimes didn’t realize he was Black. When they arrived at the office, he wrote: “their one remaining concern was to discover a convenient exit without hurting my feelings.”

Writing Upside Down

Williams wanted the work, so he thought about how he could put his clients at ease. He saw that people were uncomfortable when he needed to sit by them to show them a floor plan or a drawing. That was when he came upon the idea of learning to write upside down. If he sat on the opposite side of the table and worked “upside down,” writing or drawing clearly so that the work faced the client, then client and architect could still have a collaborative, productive discussion. It worked.

Making Strides

One of Paul Williams’s early jobs was a big one in Washington, D.C. He was hired as co-designer on the first federally funded public housing project, Langston Terrace in Washington, D.C. The project was undertaken under FDR, and it was the first public housing project that was open to African American families.

Williams was delighted for the work, but his trip to the East Coast exposed him to what it meant to travel through the Jim Crow south.   

Los Angeles Work

Over time, he began to get major commercial commissions in Los Angeles. He designed the Beverly Hills headquarters of Music Corporation of America and the interior of the retail outlet in Los Angeles for New York’s Saks Fifth Avenue. The Beverly Hills Hotel hired him to oversee a restoration which included the famous Polo Lounge and the Fountain Coffee shop.

In 1945, he was hired to plan a unit of the L.A. General Hospital, thus becoming the first African American to design a major public building.

When the Los Angeles International Airport determined that their center property should feature a building that harked to the future, he and designer William Pereira came up with the flying saucer look that straddles Los Angeles International Airport.

Architect to the Stars

Celebrities saw the interesting work that Paul Williams was doing, and he soon was working for many of them. His portfolio included Frank Sinatra, Lucille Ball/Desi Arnaz, Tyrone Power, Lon Chaney, Bert Lahr and Zsa Zsa Gabor.  Though the homes of the stars were in locations like Bel Air, Beverly Hills, and San Marino, Williams knew that those locations would not yet welcome African Americans.

Designing for African Americans, Too

Though he was very successful working for white Californians, Paul Williams didn’t want to forget his roots. He often chose to accept jobs for African Americans. Among the buildings he designed were the Second Baptist Church and the 28th Street YMCA, Los Angeles’ first Y for “colored boys and young men.” Among the Williams touches were hand-carved images of Booker T. Washington and Frederick Douglass.

He served on several statewide commissions and for eleven years he served as president of the Los Angeles Municipal Art Commission. He gained influence and added awards, commendations, and honorary degrees and he continued to give back to Los Angeles.

Paul Revere Williams and His Legacy

His granddaughter, Karen E. Hudson, created a wonderful legacy about Paul R. Williams, Paul R. Williams, Architect, a Legacy of Style—Rizzoli. In the book, she includes a quote from an essay written by Williams about the racial divide: “Inevitably such contacts [client contacts between black and white] have influenced my beliefs about the relationship, present and future, between the races in America. I see a present which demands a closer bond of understanding. I foresee a future in which the two races, although forever divided, and rightly so, will work side by side toward the achievement of common goals which are not racial.”

While today’s readers might take issue with the added “and rightly so” that may have been necessary at the time Williams wrote it in 1937, most would agree that Williams was correct in predicting that over time more people would be working toward racial-free goals.

*** On the other coast, another Black family was making progress as architects and builders. To read their story, see Woman-Owned, Minority-Owned Construction Company: McKissack & McKissack.

“The road to success is always under construction,” says Cheryl McKissack Daniel, President, CEO and now Chair of the Board of McKissack & McKissack, a New York construction company involved in many major infrastructure projects.

In her position as company head, Cheryl Daniel represents the fifth generation of the oldest family-run minority and woman-owned design and construction firm in the country. For more than a century, McKissack family members have stood on the shoulders of the previous generation to build what is now a multimillion-dollar company with almost 200 employees.

The company was founded in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1905 by Cheryl’s grandfather, Moses III (1879-1952). Cheryl McKissack Daniel’s father, William DeBerry McKissack (1925-1988), took over in 1968 and ran the company until 1983 when he suffered a heart attack. Next, his wife and Cheryl’s mother, Leatrice Buchanan McKissack, stepped in to manage and grow the business. She was succeeded by her daughter, Cheryl McKissack Daniel, who still runs the business.

Today their clients include infrastructure projects ranging from transit hubs to data centers.  As of 2026, the firm is currently a key player in several “generational” projects that will define NYC for the next decade. This includes the $9.5 billion New Terminal One at JFK Airport and the ongoing LaGuardia Airport redevelopment. Their involvement in these massive, multi-year contracts provides a stable financial “floor” for the business through the late 2020s.

About 15 years ago, I had the good fortune to write a story about McKissack & McKissack. I’m updating it and reprinting it here because Cheryl McKissack Daniel’s story is now in book form. The Black Family Who Built America: The McKissacks, Two Centuries of Daring Pioneers by Cheryl McKissack Daniel and Nick Chiles, published by Atria (Aug 2025). 

The Family Story in the U.S. Began with Slavery

For the family, working in the building trades to the first family member to arrive in this country. Their ancestor, Moses, was kidnapped from his home in West Africa; he was only 12 at the time. He arrived in the U.S. in 1790 and was purchased by a Scotsman named John McKissack. McKissack provided him with a surname and put the slave to work in the brick-building and construction business McKissack ran with his son, William.

The story expands when William McKissack’s daughter, Susan, caught the eye of a French Huguenot, but the young man’s father opposed the marriage. All the other men in the family lineage had married a “Sarah.” Nathaniel Frances Cheairs IV’s father wanted his son to hold out for a woman with the correct first name. However, William McKissack felt the two young people belonged together so he offered an incentive: free bricks for a new home for the couple and slave labor to build it.  The slave, Moses McKissack, would be part of the deal.

Susan and Nathaniel were married in 1841. Construction on the house was delayed and was finally finished in 1855. The mansion now known as Rippavilla Plantation in Spring Hill, Tennessee, still stands and is open to the public as a museum and an educational site. (Leatrice McKissack is on their Board of Directors.)

Moses McKissack Freed

At some point, William McKissack granted Moses his freedom. Moses married a Cherokee woman. Together, they had 14 children, 12 of whom survived. His ninth son, Gabriel Moses II, was the one who followed his father into the building trades. Gabriel worked out of Pulaski, Tennessee, and became well-known as a craftsman and builder. He was highly sought-after for his intricate work building spiral staircases and adding beautiful finishing touches to buildings.

Two sons of Gabriel’s were interested in construction — Moses III (born in 1879) and Calvin (born in 1890). This is the generation that started the family business that exists today. Moses III began work in Pulaski but started getting jobs in other locations. He soon moved to Nashville where he formally began the business in 1905.

McKissack’s first big commission occurred in 1908 when he was hired to build the Carnegie Library at Fisk University. He obtained other plum assignments, building the home of Governor A.H. Roberts, dormitories at Roger Williams University, the AME Sunday School Union Building, and many residences and other churches. Four of the Nashville buildings built by the McKissacks are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Younger brother Calvin started his own company in Dallas, Texas. After building in both Texas and Oklahoma, he accepted a teaching position and came to Nashville where he devoted part of his time to helping his brother with the business.

New Requirement for Licenses in Architecture

The McKissacks were very much in demand, but in 1922. But Tennessee — along with some other states — began requiring building designers to be licensed. Up until this date, builders developed designs and executed what they planned.

Moses and Calvin began taking a correspondence course to learn the technicalities they would need to pass the exam. When they appeared before the state licensing board, the administrators did not want to permit the two Black men to take the test. This was unheard of.

“After discussing it among themselves, the board supervisors reluctantly decided it wouldn’t do any harm,” explains Cheryl McKissack Daniel. “It was unlikely that the men would pass the test anyway, so why not let them take it and fail?”

Both men passed, sending the administrators back into a huddle. Now what could they do to keep the men from getting their licenses?

By that time, the national press heard the story and was writing about the discriminatory practice. Negative publicity about Tennessee was increasing, so the board of administrators decided to award the licenses.

Then the board itself pushed for the men to be given licenses in 22 additional states.

Company Continues to Grow

Moses and Calvin were getting work throughout the South. As black businessmen, they knew the only safe time to travel was during the day, and they could not stop along the way because of Jim Crow laws. They had to carefully plan their travel and eating so that they could be at a friend’s or relative’s home by nightfall.

Both men were community leaders. Moses was director of the National Negro Business League of America and was a major stockholder in Penny Savings Bank of Nashville and the Universal Life Insurance Company of Memphis. Calvin was president of the Negro Board of Trade and was also a trustee at Fisk University.

In 1942, the men received national recognition when they secured the contract to build the 99th Pursuit Squadron Air Base at Tuskegee, Alabama. The job grew to be an almost $8 million dollar deal. At the time, it was the largest government contract ever awarded to African Americans. In 1942, Moses and Calvin were awarded a Spaulding Medal for operating the outstanding Negro business for that year.

During the Roosevelt administration, Their College Hill housing development in Nashville had come to national attention. The McKissack plans were for a master-planned community that directly challenged the discriminatory housing practices of the mid-20th century.  The plans included over 400 families living in a mix of single-family homes, duplexes, and apartment units. (Some of it is still standing.) As a result of this work, Moses McKissack was invited to the White House to confer on housing issues.

Succession

At Moses’ death in 1952, Calvin stepped in. Calvin had no children, so when he passed away in 1968, Moses’ son, William, succeeded him.

William had three daughters, Andrea, and twins, Cheryl and Deryl. Given the era, his initial dream was that the girls would marry and sons-in-law would join the business. But perhaps from the beginning, his parenting style went against this plan. On many nights and weekends when William returned to work, he took the girls with him. They were kept busy tracing documents or working with T-squares and rulers.

Clearly, the underlying family message was one of equal opportunity.

Graduation

In 1983, Leatrice traveled to Washington, D.C. The twins were graduating from Howard University. Leatrice would attend the ceremony, while William remained at home to organize a big graduation party. 

Unfortunately for the family, William McKissack suffered a heart attack. He never fully recovered, so other plans needed to be made for the business. After some thought, Leatrice knew she was best suited to step in. Lea had been a homemaker, but she was well-educated and aware of the issues her husband dealt with. She frequently accompanied him on trips to various jobs, so she heard him talk about the various client issues.

Telling the Extended Family

Many relatives worked in the business or had money invested, and they were all concerned. When Lea and the girls returned to Nashville, a meeting was scheduled, and over some objections, Lea announced her plan. “My husband ran a wonderful business, and I often said, “The good Lord let me rest for 15 years and then put me to work.”

“I found it more trouble being a woman than being an African American,” Lea said recently in a phone interview. “I had four brothers; I was the only daughter. We were all given the same education, and my parents always told me I could be anything.”

She took the company in hand and ran with it. In 1990, Leatrice B. McKissack was honored by President George Bush with the award for National Female Entrepreneur of the Year.

McKissack & McKissack Today

Cheryl McKissack Daniel grew up knowing she would work in the building industry in some way. She trained as a civil engineer, and an early job involved working as part of the team building missile silos. After a couple of years at Weidlinger Associates, she moved on to the “estimate” division at Turner Construction, a job she describes as excellent training for anyone.

Cheryl was not the only family member to follow the family passion; older sister Andrea was trained as a civil engineer and spent many years as an interior designer for Stickley, only recently retiring. Cheryl’s twin sister Deryl became an architect and runs McKissack & McKissack of D.C. The company provides architecture, engineering, program and construction management services in Washington, D.C., Chicago and Los Angeles, and Deryl was the chief architect for the Martin Luther King Memorial, established on the Mall in Washington in 2011.)

Moved to Nashville

Shortly thereafter, Cheryl, then living in New York City, decided she could ease the burden on her mother by commuting to Nashville to help out for a couple of days each week. After a couple of years of commuting, Cheryl Daniel set up a New York office. She began specializing in design and planning, but she soon found that she preferred construction. “The jobs span a longer time, and for that reason, they can be more profitable,” she says.

In 1999, her mother was ready to get out of the business, so Cheryl bought the company from her. Now her mother sits on her board of advisors, and the New York office is the hub of all activity.

Other Jobs

Cheryl McKissack Daniel’s first big job was the Germantown High School in Philadelphia, and while the company still does some work in Philadelphia, the firm mainly works in the New York area. The company was also hired to relocate the Atlantic rail yards in Brooklyn so the Barclay Center could be built. During that time, the company also had to move Carlton Street Bridge.

McKissack & McKissack also worked to build the World Trade Center Transportation Hub as well as the construction of the more recent Tappan Zee Bridge.

Being a minority and woman-owned business helped McKissack& McKissack get a foothold on certain jobs. “The challenge — and a place where we have succeeded — is converting that client contact into a long-term relationship,” says Daniel.

In 2005 McKissack & McKissack was hired to demolish Harlem Hospital in preparation for its re-building. They were kept on as a subcontractor for the construction phase. One of the issues Daniel felt strongly about was hiring workers from the community. As they began accepting resumés, Daniel saw that they had so many applicants that they could funnel workers to other businesses looking to hire. McKissack now has a Harlem office on 125th Street and still helps companies who are looking for qualified applicants.

Success Continues

Today McKissack & McKissack manages a portfolio of projects valued at over $50 billion (including the $9.5 billion JFK New Terminal One and the massive LaGuardia redevelopment).

This is quite an accomplishment for any business owner, but particularly notable because their success tells a particularly great American story.

***

During the time the McKissacks were building their business, another Black architect was finding a way for himself as well. Read Paul Revere Williams,Prominent L.A. Architect.

Matthew Henson (1866–1955) was the ultimate American explorer—brave, skilled, and unbreakable. For decades, however, history relegated him to the shadows because he was Black.

Hired originally as a personal valet by well-known explorer Robert Peary, Henson proved to be far more than a servant. He was the critical asset that made Peary’s obsession with the North Pole possible. Yet, in 1909, when Peary and Henson reached what was determined to be the North Pole, Peary was hailed as a hero. Henson, the African American who actually reached the point first, was largely ignored.

Only much later was he recognized for his achievements.

Matthew Henson: The Early Years

Mathew Henson was born in Charles County, Maryland, in 1866 to freeborn Black sharecroppers. His father took the family to Washington, D.C. in search of better job opportunities. However, before the family could settle in, both parents passed away.  The children were left in the care of relatives.

At age 11, Matthew ran away and found work as a cabin boy on a ship. The captain saw that he was a bright boy. He helped him improve his reading, taught him navigation skills, and familiarized Henson with all aspects of running a ship. The captain died when Henson was 18. With the loss of his mentor, Henson returned to Washington, D.C. and accepted a job as a salesclerk for a furrier.

Henson became a favorite of the store owner, and one day when Robert Peary, then a civil engineer for the U.S. Navy, came in to purchase items for a future trip to the jungles of Nicaragua, the store owner suggested Peary hire Henson as his valet. The owner knew that Henson would bring many skills to the work Peary expected to do.

Became a Team

For the first four years of their 22 years together, they struggled with the challenges of the jungles of the Southern hemisphere. Then when Robert Peary committed to an Arctic exploration (Greenland), they needed to hone new skills.

As they worked together, they developed a pattern. While Peary focused on logistics and plans, Henson mastered the day-to-day reality of Arctic survival. He became fluent in the Inuit language, earning the trust of the local guides who affectionately called him Maripaluk (“Matthew the Kind One”).

Henson also became the team’s master craftsman, building the sledges himself using Inuit techniques that could withstand the brutal terrain. From training the dog teams to building igloos for shelter in sub-zero temperatures, Henson possessed a unique combination of technical skill and physical endurance. His knowledge and his ease with the dogs also made him the best person to move forward to break the trails.

Greenland

In the 1890s, explorers were obsessed with reaching the North Pole, and Greenland was considered both the Arctic gateway and the bootcamp for Arctic travel.

In 1891 Peary was ready to take on this first challenge with an exploration of Greenland.  But Peary and Henson had never experienced Arctic ice, and it was much more difficult to navigate. Arctic sea ice is unexpected in every way, shifting from towering, jagged pressure ridges that have been built up over years to crevices that drop into deadly rivers of black water.

As their ship rammed along the coastline trying to break through the ice, a massive chunk of ice struck the ship’s rudder. The force of the ice spun the heavy iron tiller (steering lever) onto the deck, pinning Pary against the wheelhouse and causing him to break his leg.

Many thought they should return home. Eventually part of the group departed, but Peary and Henson remained until 1893. During that time, Henson continued to hone his skills since much of the time, Henson was bedridden.

A few years later their return, Peary mounted another expedition to Greenland to go further north to chart the ice cap. That trip was ill-fated as well. It was a large group, and they ran out of food and supplies and had to resort to eating their sled dogs to survive.

The North Pole: Only 174 Miles Away

After their first effort to reach the North Pole failed, they tried again in 1902. During this expedition, six Eskimos hired to accompany them died from starvation. Again, they had to turn around.

In 1906, Peary and Henson came forward with renewed energy. Peary had been able to give input on the design of the S.S. Theodore Roosevelt that was intended to be an ice cutter. However, the ship was no match for the Arctic ice.  They reached a point farther than they ever had—only 174 miles from the Pole, but they could go no further.

Peary and Henson left the ship to sledge forward on their own (sledging in the Arctic describes going by foot, but men are compelled to push, pull, and drag their sledges, as the sledges have all their provisions). They were halted by a huge black river that was miles wide. They eventually found their way back to The Roosevelt.  The “174-mile heartbreak” trip was a huge disappointment.

Final Attempt in 1908-09: Racing the Sun

In 1908, Robert Peary and Matthew Henson were getting older. Peary was 52 and Henson was 42. They had been close to death several times, and they knew the brutal temperatures and difficult conditions would be even more challenging. What’s more, there could be no “next time.” They were simply too old.

The S.S. Roosevelt spent a year in a New York shipyard being rebuilt and repaired. Finally, on a scorching hot day in July of 1908, it was ready to go. Peary and Henson left with 24 men, 19 sledges, and 133 dogs.

As they had before, they took the ice cutter as far as possible. Then Peary and Henson left with sledges. They were going to cover this last leg of their trip with four Eskimos and 40 dogs. Henson was expected to break the trail. Peary followed behind in a sledge as he was suffering seriously from frostbite.

They took the position needed for the final push and waited out the Polar Night (January and early February) in their chosen location. When Henson started out in late February, they had a full moon that reflected off the white snow, providing enough silvery light to navigate. As twilight arrived (early March), they pushed further north, journeying on.

By April 6 when they arrived at what was deemed the North Pole, the sun was peeking above the horizon. As Henson traveled, breaking the trail, he feared he overshot the mark and tracked back, running into Peary’s group at that time.

As the two together moved forward, calculating carefully where the Pole must be, they found Henson’s footprints.  Unknowingly, he had actually reached the Pole by himself. Initially, no one really addressed the matter. They planted the flag, took photos and measurements to prove their achievement and bedded down for the night.

The Return Trip

They knew they had to race back to the ship to avoid the spring melt. While Arctic ice does not usually fully melt, it does open and shift in unexpected ways, and it’s a dangerous time for exploring.

Throughout their expeditions, Peary and Henson had a custom. When they were ready to leave each morning, Henson or Peary would rap on the ice outside the tent where the other slept. That morning, Robert Peary got up and departed alone. Relations were cold between the two men for the remainder of the trip.

Meanwhile Back in the States

When they returned to the United States, the news did not get any better. Frederick Cook, an explorer who had been on one of the Greenland missions with them, claimed he reached the North Pole a year ahead of them—1908. (While exploring in the arctic, no groups ever received news from elsewhere. Access was too limited.)

Peary was devastated and angry. Cook had already begun making speeches and accepting awards. The general feeling was that Peary had missed out, so he began talking to those who were said to have accompanied Cook on the trip. As he listened to their stories, Peary became suspicious. Perhaps Cook had not actually reached the North Pole.

Robert Peary got in touch with the National Geographic Society and asked that they undertake an investigation. Eventually, Cook’s claim was exposed as a hoax.

Peary Was Recognized; Henson Was Not

While Peary was celebrated with parades and special events, Matthew Henson spent the next several decades working as a clerk in a federal customs house. His role in history was largely erased, though in 1909, a group called the Colored Citizens of New York sponsored a dinner in his honor and presented him with a gold watch.

In his free time, Henson decided to write about his experience. In 1912,  A Negro Explorer at the North Pole  was published  (available online today at no charge through Project Gutenberg). The book expanded public knowledge of Arctic travel as he explained so much about what each journey entailed. From the book, we learn a great deal about the expedition, the Inuit people, and about both Peary and Henson—a remarkable add-on to an extraordinary career.

Peary provided a foreword for the book, though he seemed to use the space to cement his own legacy as the expedition’s mastermind rather than sharing the ultimate glory with the man who actually led the way.

Henson Acknowledgment Comes Slowly

Acknowledgment of Henson began to funnel in slowly. Until Peary’s death in 1920, Peary controlled the story, so there could be only one hero. After he died, other explorers who knew Henson and knew what the expedition entailed, began to step forward. In 1937, the prestigious Explorers Club invited Henson to become a member, and in 1948 the Explorers Club made him an “Honorary member,” a designation given to no more than 20 living members at a time.

In 1944, Congress awarded him a duplicate of the silver medal given to the rest of the Peary expedition. Ten years later, President Dwight D. Eisenhower welcomed him to the White House.

Just before his death in 1955, he was given an honorary doctoral degree from Howard University and Morgan State University.

Since that time, a survey ship has been named in his honor, and the National Geographic Society awarded Henson the Hubbard Medal to Henson posthumously. There have also been streets and schools and centers named for him.

Final Honor for Matthew Henson: Arlington Cemetery

When Robert Peary died in 1920, he received a burial befitting a hero. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. When Henson died in 1955, he was buried simply in a family burial plot at Woodlawn Cemetery in New York.

But in the 1980s, Professor Allen Counter of Harvard undertook a fight on behalf of the man he saw as the true hero. Counter had been studying the expedition and saw clearly that an injustice had been done to Matthew Henson. Henson’s contributions were not properly acknowledged. Professor Counter got permission from Presidnet Ronald Reagan to move Henson’s remains to Arlington Cemetery to be buried near Peary.

Henson and his wife Lucy were reinterred in Arlington with a monument that notes his accomplishments. Though Henson and Lucy never had children, Henson fathered a child with an Inuit woman, and that son and his children were present for the re-burial.

On Henson’s tomb is a quote from his autobiography: “The lure of the Arctic is tugging at my heart. To me the trail is calling. The old trail. The trail that is always new.”

Today, his monument stands directly next to Robert Peary’s, showing that on the ice, they were equals.

Edmonia Lewis was a groundbreaking sculptor who achieved international fame during the 19th century. She was born to a Black Haitian father and a mother of Native American (Ojibwe) and African descent.

Sculpture was not a common art form in America at that time. The fact that Lewis achieved what she did is nothing short of remarkable.

Working almost entirely in white Carrara marble, Lewis’s style was neoclassical, but her subject matter often related to her upbringing. She created art forms that expressed her interest in social justice, racial identity, and gender. 

The artwork she left behind is extraordinary. Eight of her pieces are part of the Smithsonian collection.

Early Life

Edmonia Lewis (1844?-1907) and her family lived near Albany, New York, in what is now Rensselaer.  Her mother was a gifted craftsperson and weaver and may have inspired Edmonia’s love of beauty.

When Edmonia was a child, both parents died within a year of each other. She and her older half-brother were sent to live with her mother’s sisters. The women supported themselves by selling their hand-woven baskets to tourists visiting Niagara Falls and Buffalo.

Education

When her brother was old enough to leave home, he traveled West and had success as a gold prospector. Edmonia must have shown academic promise as he made an extraordinary offer for the era. He arranged to send Edmonia to college. 

She started at New York Central College, but it did not go well. Her brother suggested that she try Oberlin, a school that included women and people of color. 

Despite the school’s intended inclusiveness, Edmonia Lewis struggled. Other students mocked and shunned her. She was forced to leave before her last semester.

Learning from Abolitionists

She left the school with contacts that led her to a town just outside Boston (Woburn, Massachusetts) where many abolitionists lived. Self-taught sculptor Edward Augustus Brackett (1818-1908) was among the inhabitants, and she asked permission to study with him.

Written reports of her time there talked of how Brackett handed a lump of clay with an assignment: Make a foot (or a hand) and return for a critique. When she returned with what she crafted, he sometimes crushed it for her try again; other times, he offered advice and correction.

Edmonia Lewis came to the attention of journalist and social reformer William Lloyd Gararison who introduced Edmonia to people he thought might be future customers for her work. Union Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, the white lawyer who commanded the all-Black 54^th Infantry during the Civil War, was a revered member of the community. Shaw commissioned her to create a bust of him.

When the sculpture was completed, other people offered to buy it as well. Lewis created 100 plaster copies and sold them all. This brought her commissions for other projects. She did medallion portraits of John Brown and William Lloyd Garrison.

She longed to study in Rome where many sculptors had gathered. With the success of her recent sales, she was able to afford to become part of that community.

Moves to Rome

Lewis was intrigued by the neoclassical artwork being produced in Rome. The availability of her favored marble –Carrara marble—and the influence of the artists made a rich environment for her. 

She was also heartened to find a small group of women who were also working in marble. (American sculptor Harriet Hosmer was among them.)

Though the subjects of her art were still often American, they were likely to be dressed in classical robes and posed as if they were from the ancient world. She also sculpted mythical figures such as those of Hiawatha from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s famous poem.

Challenges for Women

Being a female sculptor was not easy. Most men hired laborers to shape a large piece of stone so that it’s more manageable for artistic development.  But both Lewis and sculptor Hosmer saw that wouldn’t work for them. The moment men were let in to the women’s studios, rumors would circulate.

Even when the marble mass weighted several tons, the women did all the work themselves.

Work Chosen for Centennial Exposition

One of Edmonia Lewis’s big successes was having her work accepted for the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876. The work chosen for the exhibition was The Death of Cleopatra.

In art at that time, the Egyptian queen was usually portrayed as a sleeping beauty.  Lewis rejected that scenario. She saw Cleopatra’s death—said to have come about from the bite of the asp (snake)– as much different scene.

As she worked, she developed a more realistic portrayal. Cleopatra’s head tilts back at an odd angle. One arm hangs down as if in sleep (or death). The other hand is in her lap, holding the asp that brought about her death. It is an intriguing depiction, particularly when compared with the views of a sleeping woman.

Once The Death of Cleopatra was delivered to Philadelphia, it became a “must-see” attraction. When the Centennial Exhibition ended, the sculpture was sent to be exhibited at an industrial show in Chicago.  

After that, the two-ton sculpture that stood about five feet tall was put into storage and disappeared from view.

Strange but True

While the exact sequence of what happened to the sculpture is not easy to trace, the next time The Death of Cleopatra is thought to have been on display was at a saloon near Chicago. (The price of the sculpture must have fallen to next to nothing.)

At the saloon, The Death of Cleopatra was purchased by a racetrack owner. The man had owned a beloved racehorse named Cleopatra. He saw the sculpture as the perfect way to commemorate his beloved horse. He had it transported to his racetrack in Forest Park, Illinois.   

For decades, the statue sat by the entrance to the racetrack. Thousands of people must have passed by it, never knowing what the sculpture was or who the artist was who made it.

When the racetrack went belly up, the property was turned into a golf course. Still Edmonia Lewis’s masterpiece sat there—unidentified and unappreciated. Eventually vandals came along who hacked away at it. It was also painted over several times.

By the 1970s, it was largely forgotten, sitting in a storage yard under a tarp.

Re-Found

In the 1980s, a Forest Park resident who was active with the local historical society was shown the sculpture. The man must have known something about art, as he sent a photograph of the piece to someone at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. What did they make of it?

Good fortune prevailed. Despite the damage and the added paint, a curator at the Met thought of contacting Marilyn Richardson, an Edmonia Lewis scholar. Robinson had spent decades unearthing more information about Edmonia Lewis. Robinson called in other experts, and they definitively identify it as the lost masterpiece.

In 1994, it was donated to the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Restoration experts began their work. Between the many years of exposure to Illinois winters and the destruction created by vandals, there was much to do.

Career Slows

Long before the disappearance of The Death of Cleopatra, Edmonia Lewis was struggling to get by, By the time the Centennial Exposition concluded, interest in the neoclassical style of art was fading. She wasn’t certain how to develop her work so that she could continue to sell what she crafted.  

She remained in Rome for a time, but then departed, intending to return to the United States.

No one seemed to keep track of her.  Later it was clear that she stopped off in London and never left. Years later, a researcher found a death certificate for her, noting her death in London in 1907.

This was a tragic conclusion for a remarkable artist who expanded the possibilities for artists from all backgrounds.  It is significant that eight of her works are owned by the Smithsonian. She will no longer be lost to time.

• Achieved freedom in 1855
• Became successful dressmaker in Washington, eventually working for Mary Lincoln
• Founded Contraband Relief Association in 1862 to help former slaves
• Published autobiography about her life

Early Years

Elizabeth Hobbs Keckly* (1818-1907) was born into slavery in North Carolina. Her mother was a seamstress. Elizabeth was originally told that her father was George Hobbs, a slave who lived on a plantation one hundred miles away.  For the first eight years of Elizabeth’s life, Hobbs visited his wife and child at Christmas and Easter. Then Hobbs’s owner moved away, and George was never again able to return to see his family.

On plantations, it was common for children born into slavery to be used as companions to a plantation owner’s young children. Keckly was only age 4 or 5 when she took on nursemaid duties for the plantation family. There were four white children under the age of ten. Elizabeth was given the responsibility of taking care of the most recently born infant daughter.

As Elizabeth’s mother was dying, she revealed to Elizabeth that though her husband was George Hobbs, Elizabeth’s true father was the owner of the plantation where they lived.

New Households

When Elizabeth was in her teens, the plantation owner sent her to work for his son’s household. While working there, she became a target of abuse by the village schoolmaster who summoned her for beatings.

Later, she was sold and sent to St. Louis where she was raped.  She gave birth to her only son, George, named after her own presumed father.

Buying Her Way Out of Slavery

Keckly’s owner in St. Louis faced a downturn I his business. He knew that Elizabeth Keckly was an excellent seamstress (a skill she learned from her mother). He permitted her to establish a shop where she could make clothing for other people. Her business did very well, however, her owner collected most of her earnings. For several years, she supported her owner and his family.

By working in the shop, Keckly was in touch with many women in St. Louis who were active in the abolition movement. They frequently talked to Keckly about what could be done so that she and her son could be free.

She approached her owner several times to request a dollar amount that would buy them freedom. Initially, the man put her off and refused to give a price.

After several more requests from Keckly, he finally stipulated $1200. Because most of her wages were collected by Mr. Garland, $1200 was an impossible figure for her to raise on her own.

Several of her customers offered to help. One of them came forward with $400. The woman also got friends to donate the remaining amount needed.

Her owner kept his side of the bargain. When Keckly delivered the money, she and her son were free.

Education Important

Elizabeth Keckly wanted her son to have an education. When he was old enough, she enrolled him in Wilberforce University. The university was founded in 1856 in Ohio, near one of the stops of the Underground Railroad.)

For a time, Keckly continued to run her St. Louis-based business. When she decided to relocate, her first move was to Maryland, but laws there were tightening on former slaves.

In 1860, she moved to Washington D.C., where she acquired an excellent reputation among society women. Soon she was doing work for women such as Varnia Davis (wife of Jefferson Davis) and Mary Anne Randolph Custis Lee (wife of Robert E. Lee). 

George Keckly Goes to War

When the war started, her son, George Jr., wanted to fight for the Union. African Americans could not enlist in the military until the laws were changed in 1863, but because his father was white, George Jr. was able to go to war. Sadly for Elizabeth, her son was killed in August of 1861 at the battle of Wilson’s Creek in Missouri.

Elizabeth Keckly remained in Washington. Her reputation was growing, and when the Lincolns moved into the White House, Keckly was recommended to Mary Todd Lincoln. She was soon the First Lady’s favorite seamstress.  (One of Keckly’s dresses is in the Smithsonian as Mary wore it for the second inauguration.)

Elizabeth Keckly became one of the few people who could calm Mary Lincoln when she was upset. Keckley not only made Mary’s dresses but she was at the White House each morning to help Mary get dressed. This gave her an unusual view of the White House and the Lincoln family.

In the meantime, Keckly’s reputation for her design work and fine sewing brought her many customers from Washington society. By 1865, she employed almost 20 women in her 12^th Street shop.

Keckly Helped with War Effort

In Washington in 1862, Keckly saw that people in D.C. were raising funds for relief of the white soldiers. Keckly gathered a group of people from her 15^th Street Presbyterian Church and suggested that they form a group to raise money for their own unfortunates. As early as 1863, thousands of escaped or newly freed slaves were looking for help.

Keckly and her group formed the Ladies’ Contraband Relief Association.

Because Keckly often traveled with the Lincolns, she could be in touch with people in other communities to gather support. The group raised money and gathered food and clothing. they sponsored Christmas dinners for the sick and wounded from the war. It was badly needed.  In 1864 the organization changed its name to the Ladies’ Freedmen and Soldiers’ Relief Association. After the war, they helped find teachers for the schools for the newly freed. 

After Lincoln’s Assassination

After her husband was assassinated, Mary Lincoln moved to Chicago to be near her son Robert.  Keckly escorted her, but Keckly returned to Washington after Mary was settled.  The two women remained close and corresponded.

When Mary Lincoln ran into financial difficulty and wanted to sell some of her clothing, Keckly met her in New York to help her find buyers. Unfortunately for Mary, the story came to light, and it became known as the “old clothes” scandal. Mary Lincoln was attacked in the press for daring to sell her clothes to raise money.

Keckly’s Autobiography

In 1868, Keckly published her ghostwritten autobiography, Behind the Scenes, Or, Thirty Years a Slave and Four Years in the White House.  Keckly apparently thought her book would help restore her former employer’s reputation. But in that day, the idea that a “colored” person could step forward to tell “behind the scenes” stories was viewed poorly. Mrs. Lincoln felt betrayed by the woman she described as “my best living friend.” Elizabeth Keckly’s reputation was ruined, and the Washington women turned elsewhere for a seamstress.

Wilberforce Offers Job

A representative of Wilberforce University, the college Keckly’s son attended, came forward to help.  In 1892, she was offered a faculty position at Wilberforce as head of the Department of Sewing and Domestic Science Arts.  Within a year, she was organizing a dress exhibit for the Chicago World’s Fair.

Her last years did not sustain this positive momentum.  She returned to Washington in 1907, and ironically needed help from one of the organization she helped form after the war. She was living at the National Home for Destitute Colored Women and Children when she died.

*Recent research reveals that Elizabeth Keckly wrote her own name as “Keckly.” While many sources still refer to her as Elizabeth Keckley, this article uses her preferred spelling.

For more information about Mary Lincoln, read Mary Lincoln’s Shopping Habits in Perspective.

The story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott is a testament to the enduring strength and dignity of Black Americans. Denied the basic right of equal access to public transportation in Montgomery, Black citizens were relegated to sitting only in the rear of the bus. The front rows were reserved for white people—even it there were few or none on the bus.  Even more degrading, Blacks, regardless of their age or physical well-being, were forced to relinquish their seats to white passengers if they got on the bus.

The boycott demanded immense courage. Participants endured job losses, exhausting work schedules (many worked as volunteer drivers to help their fellow citizens), and the daily trek across the city—walking miles in all weather conditions—to uphold their principles.

Their peaceful protest was met with intimidation and violence, including attacks in the streets and the bombing of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s home. Still, they refused to yield.

No Turning Back

Despite the adverse conditions, the Black people organized to stand up for the respect and the treatment they deserved.  Many Black people use the phrase, “we’ll find a way where there is no way.” They certainly did. (Dovey Johnson Roundtree‘s grandmother always told her “we’ll find a way when there is no way.” Roundtree did. She became a Black attorney in D.C. when there were few.)

The boycott dragged on for thirteen difficult months. While the victory was undeniable—Black citizens could finally sit where they chose on Montgomery buses—there was no jubilant celebration in the streets. Why celebrate the restoration of rights that should have been theirs from the start?

This account is based on The Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Women Who Started it: The Memoir of Jo Ann Gibson Robinson. Robinson (1912-1992) was chair of the Montgomery Women’s Political Council at the time of the boycott. She documented how the Black citizens of Montgomery brought about the needed change.   

What Was So Important About Bus Seating?

In Montgomery, the first ten rows (out of 36) of every metropolitan bus were reserved for white people even when there were no white riders. Today bus riders often prefer to sit in the back to get out of the fray as people got on and off the buses. But in Montgomery, the rear seats in Montgomery often came with humiliation:

In the 1950s, there were no bus tokens or passes. People paid in coins. Bus drivers made change for white riders but generally not for Black riders. When a Black person paid for a transfer slip, the driver sometimes threw it at the rider who then had to stoop to pick it up.

Black riders always paid the driver at the front of the bus, but often, particularly if they were carrying packages, they were told to board through the rear doors. It was not uncommon for a bus driver to pull away from the curb before all passengers boarded.

If all seats for Black riders were filled, then Black riders were still forbidden to sit in the empty “white” seats. Even at the end of a long day when they may have been on their feet for many hours, they were to stand above those empty “white” seats. If a Black person dared to sit down for a few moments, the bus driver generally stopped the bus and came back to stand over and yell at the offender. Sometimes the police were called.

Integration Spreading

Though some southern cities had integrated their transportation systems, many still had segregated buses. In 1955, the Interstate Commerce Commission ruled that segregated seating could not be enforced on bus lines that traveled across state lines. If a person boarded the bus in the North where there was no segregation on buses, the citizen of all colors had the right to stay in the seat they selected. When the buses crossed south of the Mason-Dixon line, they were still to have that right. Not all bus drivers honored this, however.

Read about Sarah Keys Evans, a Black soldier dressed in uniform. She boarded a bus in New Jersey. As the bus traveled South, she was ordered to move seats to give her seat to a white sailor.

Organizing for Action

Rosa Parks is the figurehead for the Montgomery bus boycott, but she would be first to say she was only a small part of the movement. Black citizens in Montgomery were already organizing to take action, and others had been arrested before Parks. The Women’s Political Council, headed by Jo Ann Robinson (who suffered her own indignity on a Montgomery bus), were waiting for an opportune time.

When Brown v. Board of Education was decided in 1954, the Women’s Council started paying attention. Maybe their time was coming.

Almost a year later, in March of 1955, fifteen-year-old Claudette Colvin boarded a bus and took a seat in the rear. As more and more people boarded the bus, the driver had a new demand. He announced that all Blacks should stand so that white people could choose their preferred seats.

Working Black people sensed trouble and got off the bus. They feared arrest and resulting job losses. But Claudette Colvin knew her rights and stayed in her seat. The police were called. She was arrested and forcibly removed.

The committee contemplating a boycott evaluated the situation. They decided it was unfair to place on Colvin’s young shoulders the responsibility for starting a boycott. (Today her family fully celebrates her strength in participating.)

Who Was Rosa Parks?

A few months later, they had another opportunity. The date was December 1, and Rosa Parks finished her long day as a seamstress in a downtown department store. As she waited for a bus, she let the first one go by. It was very crowded, and she knew she would never get a seat.  She decided to run an errand and take the next bus.

Rosa Parks was an active and esteemed member of the NAACP. Along with many others, she attended “citizenship schools” where Blacks were taught their civil rights and instructed on how to behave if they ran into trouble.

When the next bus came along, Parks boarded it and found a seat in the first row of seats reserved for “colored” people. As more white people boarded the bus, the bus driver demanded that Black people near the front of the bus should vacate their seats even though they were in rows designated for “colored” people.

When asked to move, Rosa Parks did not. Driver James Blake summoned the police and had her arrested. Her court date was set for the following Monday, December 5.

The Needed Opportunity

The Women’s Political Council planned for months for the possibility of a boycott for a “better seating arrangement.” They knew the word “integration” would not be tolerated. If there were few white people on the bus, should Blacks who worked a long day have to stand over empty seats on their way home?

After Parks was arrested, the Women’s Council went into action. They planned for a one-day boycott to be held on Monday, December 5, the day Rosa Parks would be in court. Quietly they passed out slips of paper informing people of the latest arrest and noting that in protest on Monday, December 5, no one should board a city bus.

On the evening of December 4, a group meeting was held at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. Their new young minister, Martin Luther King Jr., had recently moved into town. He welcomed the group on behalf of the Women’s Political Council and the other city groups that were joining the boycott. Plans for the next day were made and another meeting was set for the next night to assess future actions.  

The one-day boycott went off seamlessly. The Bus Company generally had 20-25,000 Black riders each day; only a few got on board. Many people walked to work. Black neighbors with cars volunteered to drive those who needed rides. Some people were not able to walk all the way to their jobs and were fired. Though losing a job was serious, most people were still invested in the cause.

The Next Night

The evening of December 5, the group made was very satisfied. They hoped for somewhat more than 50 percent participation in the boycott and found that more than 95 percent complied. The participants had an exhausting difficult day but they didn’t want to get back on to the buses and suffer abuse.

As they organized, Black businesspeople joined the Women’s Political Council, and the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance (all Black ministers) officially agreed to help as well.

Everyone in attendance was impressed with the new minister Martin Luther King Jr. who was only 26. They asked him to lead the boycott.

As they considered their list of needs to keep the boycott going, they asked for volunteer drivers to help out when they could. This often meant people finished their regular job and added on 4-6 hours of driving. Black taxi drivers agreed to take passengers for just ten cents a ride.

Working from a city map, routes were decided, and pick-up points were chosen.

Funding the Boycott

Mrs. Georgia Gilmore, one of the meeting’s attendees, had already suffered an arrest for sitting in the wrong seat. She became one of the most ardent supporters. She formed “The Club from Nowhere” and undertook fund-raising via baked goods. Initially members sold to people individually but as the strike went on, stores and restaurants placed big orders. The food was that good!

Not to be left behind, Mrs. Inez Ricks organized “The Friendly Club.” They too raised money by selling baked goods. The two groups relished what became friendly competition. A highlight of the regular Monday meetings was hearing from each group how much money they raised. Everyone celebrated for which ever group won the week.

Money initially went to reimburse drivers for gasoline. As the strike continued, the Montgomery Improvement Association tried to pay the people who were working as volunteer drivers.

Negotiations Begin

The Montgomery Improvement Association set up meetings with representatives from the National City Lines Bus Company and city commissioners. Their request was for three changes:

1. A better seating arrangement.
2.  civil behavior on the part of bus drivers.
3. The hiring of Black drivers.

For the white people, the solution was clear. Blacks would sit from back to front… whites would sit from front to back. When all the seats were filled then Black people would be expected to stand for any white person who got on a bus. The administrators offered no other assurances.

Expanding the MIA Efforts

As the boycott continued, The MIA hired attorneys to follow the issues and come up with possible solutions.

As mostly empty buses rolled through mid-sized Montgomery with 20-25,000 Black people refusing to ride, the story attracted national attention.

Because many parts of the United States had done away with most forms of segregation in transportation, the resistance from white people seemed uncalled for. What’s more, the publicized beat-downs by the bus drivers smacked of unacceptable behavior.

MIA Kept Refining the System

While the Black population of Montgomery remained strong, it wasn’t easy. There were many cold, dark and rainy days when the thought of walking to work or waiting for a carpool was miserable and depressing. When would this end, and why did this have to go on? But despite the discomfort of bad weather, long walks, and major inconvenience, the people were determined to see change. 

The Montgomery Improvement Association also worked hard to refine the structure of the boycott. The MIA created a wheel-and-spoke transportation system as they saw what workers needed. People were driven to a central location to meet up with cars scheduled to drive in the direction they needed to go.

Fortunately, two Black residents owned downtown properties. They donated part of their land for pickups and drop-offs. This meant town police could not interfere with the transfer of passengers.

In addition to the organized plan, many drivers—Black and a few white—picked up people who were walking. It became a social occasion that improved the experience.

Increased Strength

For 13 months, 325 car owners demonstrated extraordinary commitment. They volunteered to drive shifts after their regular jobs. Initially, these drivers absorbed the cost of gasoline themselves, a significant personal sacrifice.

As the boycott garnered national attention, the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) began reimbursing expenses and, thanks to increasing donations, eventually provided a small stipend for the tireless efforts of drivers. This growing support also enabled the MIA to acquire 12 station wagons, either purchased or donated, which became official vehicles for the movement.

Ramifications

The National Bus Line suffered mightily. Their ridership consisted of seventy-five to eighty percent Black citizens. Of the few white riders remaining, there was not enough income to cover the busing costs. Eventually the bus line dropped certain routes and laid off 39 drivers.

Frustrated by the continuing strike, the city administration told the police commissioner to get tough to try to force riders back on the buses. The police were to break up any groups of Black people standing waiting for their ride.

The police also stopped drivers and gave tickets for bogus or minor offenses. Dr. King was driving a carpool and was arrested and jailed for supposedly driving 30 miles per hour in a 25-mile zone. He was taken to the municipal jail to be locked up overnight, but word traveled fast.

As boycotters heard about King, they came to the municipal jail to wait for his release. The crowd became overwhelming, so the police set a court date and released him.

On January 23, 1956, both sides became frustrated by the lack of progress, and all meetings stopped for a time. Shortly after that (January 30, 1956), a bomb was tossed at Martin Luther King’s house. The porch was badly damaged but no one was hurt. Two days later the home of organizer E.D. Nixon was also bombed.

Something had to be done.

Integration

Initially the Montgomery Improvement Association avoided the word “integration,” feeling it was a nonstarter with the white administrators. But as the city ignored the request for better seating, the attorneys advised filing a lawsuit against segregated bus seating. The suit was filed on February 1, 1956.

The harassment by the city continued. Later in February, the city indicted 80 boycott leaders under Alabama’s anti-conspiracy laws. 

In mid-March Dr. King was indicted as the leader of the boycott and told to pay $500 or serve 386 days in jail. He paid to stay to help with the boycott.

Case Finally Heard

On May 11, 1956, a three-judge federal panel finally heard the February 1 anti-segregation case. With a final vote of two to one, the panel agreed that segregated buses violated the 14^th Amendment of the Constitution of the United States.  

But the decision was not announced until June 5, so the people kept walking.

Once the announcement was made, legal maneuvering followed. Eventually the case was accepted by the U.S. Supreme Court.  On November 13, the Supreme Court upheld the lower court ruling and struck down laws requiring racial segregation on buses.

The Montgomery Improvement Association vowed to maintain the boycott until the new order was officially implemented.

On Thursday, December 20, 1956–nearly six weeks after the Supreme Court ruling–U.S. marshals delivered the official paperwork to the bus company and to Montgomery city officials.

On December 21, 1956, the Montgomery buses began rolling with the new mandate. They were to pick up riders of all colors, and anyone could sit in any seat they wanted.

Riders Slow to Return

Dr. King, Ralph Abernathy and Jo Ann Robinson, head of the Women’s Political Council, were among the boycott leaders who rode buses on the first day of the new law. Other bus riders were slow to trust, but eventually they began to ride did.

It was a clear and total victory for those who stood up for civil rights, but there was no cheering or rejoicing. There were no street parties.

The Black citizens of Montgomery suffered and fought to get the rights they already deserved. Where is the joy in that?

Change is worth fighting for, but no one ever says it is easy.