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John Wesley Blassingame Papers

 Collection
Call Number: MS 737

Scope and Contents

The John W. Blassingame Papers consist of electrostatic copies of reseach materials and note cards used in the preparation of Blassingame's 1971 Yale University Ph.D.,A Social and Economic History of the Negro in New Orleans, 1860-1880.The electrostatic copies may be divided into two groups. The first group includes various reports of the Louisiana government, minutes and other papers of organizations such as the White League of New Orleans and the Union League, and other miscellaneous items, all dating between 1864 and 1904. These papers were copied from originals at Tulane University and Louisiana State University. The second group of copies are succession papers copied from the Orleans Parish courthouse; they include wills, inventories of estates, marriage contracts, and similar items. The collection is completed by a series of note cards containing data on black property holders compiled from the 1850, 1860, and 1870 New Orleans manuscript census

Dates

  • 1857-1904

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

The materials are open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright status for collection materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of John W. Blassingame, 1972.

Arrangement

The succession papers are arranged alphabetically by individual. The other papers are arranged chronologically.

Extent

1.5 Linear Feet (3 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Catalog Record

A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog

Persistent URL

https://hdl.handle.net/10079/fa/mssa.ms.0737

Abstract

The John Wesley Blassingame Papers consist of note cards and research materials (electrostatic copies) used in the preparation of his dissertation, A Social and Economic History of the Negro in New Orleans (Yale University, 1971). Included are copies of reports of Louisiana state agencies, minutes and other papers of organizations like the White League of New Orleans, and legal documents deposited in the Orleans Parish courthouse.

Biographical / Historical

John Wesley Blassingame was born on March 23, 1940, in Covington, Georgia. He received a B.A. (1960) from Fort Valley State College, an M.A. (1961) from Howard University, and an M.Phil. (1968) and a Ph.D. (1971) from Yale University. Blassingame joined the Yale faculty in 1970. He served as the acting chairman of Afro-American studies (1971-1972, 1976-1977) and as chairman (1981-1989). In the mid-1970s, he also became the editor and publisher of the papers of Frederick Douglass. He wrote and edited numerous works on the history of slavery in America. Blassingame died in New Haven, Connecticut, on February 13, 2000.

Title
Guide to the John Wesley Blassingame Papers
Status
Under Revision
Author
compiled by Janet Elaine Gertz
Date
February 1983
Description rules
Finding Aid Created In Accordance With Manuscripts And Archives Processing Manual
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English.

Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository

Contact:
Yale University Library
P.O. Box 208240
New Haven CT 06520-8240 US
(203) 432-1735
(203) 432-7441 (Fax)

Location

Sterling Memorial Library
Room 147
120 High Street
New Haven, CT 06511

Opening Hours