Holt
University of Michigan-Flint Library
Genesee Historical Collections Center
Collection: EDGAR B. HOLT
Inclusive years: 1941-1992
Quantity: 15 feet + 88 photographs
Acquisition: This collection (donor no. 239) was donated to the Genesee Historical Collections Center on April 4, 1993.
Access: There are no restrictions on access. For the series "Prisoners," the researcher may have access on condition that the names of the correspondents not be published.
Photographs: Eighty-eight photographs were removed and are to be cataloged separately.
Processed by: Paul Gifford, March 1994.
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
Edgar B. Holt was born in Newport News, Virginia, on November 8, 1921. He received his education in the local schools and then studied at Wilberforce University. World War II interrupted his education, during which he saw military service in the South Pacific in 1944 and worked in the Office of War Information.
His first active involvement in a civil rights organization was with the Southern Negro Youth Congress, which he had joined by 1941, and in 1946 and 1947 was one of that group's vice-presidents. In 1946, while working at a construction site in Newport News, he was beaten, after objecting to the white foreman's comment that whites drank first, and left on a road. He then left the city of his birth and finished his schooling at Wilberforce in 1947, receiving the B.A. degree. Following Wilberforce, he attended the New School for Social Research in New York City, where in 1949 he received the Master of Social Work degree, and afterwards worked as a social worker for the New York City Department of Public Welfare.
He came to Flint, Michigan, in 1950, where he remained until his death. Until his disability leave about 1969, he was employed in the foundry at Buick Motor Division of General Motors Corporation. He also ran an import-export business at various times, mostly in the early 1960s and during the last few years of his life.
His first efforts in the political/social arena in Flint were involved with organizing a union bargaining committee to obtain equal pay and rights for black employees and in starting what became known as the Foundry Council. In 1954, he managed the campaign of Floyd McCree in his run for a seat on the Flint City Council. Although this first attempt was unsuccessful, he continued working on McCree's later campaigns, which ultimately led Councilman McCree to be chosen in 1967 as one of the first black mayors in the country. Holt also managed the campaigns of UAW activist Nathaniel Turner for city and county office. He was an organizer, in 1956, of the Third Ward Better Government League, an interracial group which sought to improve black representation in local government. In 1952, he married Lois Van Zandt, of Flint, who was the first black teacher hired by the Flint Board of Education.
During the crucial decade of the 1960s, Holt focused most of his political energy in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). First elected President of the Flint Branch, following a controversial election in 1958 which included accusations by the publisher of the Bronze Reporter, Flint's black newspaper, that Holt had been a Communist, he served as First Vice-President of the Michigan Conference from 1961 and 1963 and as President from 1963 to 1966. Again, from 1967 to 1970, he served as president of the Flint branch. As head of the NAACP's largest state organization, he was in constant demand as a speaker at local branch meetings, having a reputation as a militant. Holt participated in all the national conventions of the organization and its regional workshops as well. Among the NAACP's activities during those years were participation in the civil rights marches in the South (Holt had mortgaged his house in 1957 in order to charter an airplane to transport Flint people to take part in the Montgomery demonstrations); a demonstration against General Motors in 1964; efforts to pass fair housing legislation in Flint; and investigation of complaints regarding racial discrimination and police brutality.
By 1967, civic and government agencies were making efforts to include black representation, and, as a result of his association with the NAACP, Edgar Holt began to be named to the boards of such groups. Flint city groups included the Committee on Human Relations and Law; the Renewal and Housing Department's Advisory Committee; COMPACT (Committee to Promote Action); Charter Revision Committee's Advisory Board; and Manpower Area Planning Council.
Genesee County agencies in which Holt participated included: Economic Development Commission; Manpower Advisory Council; the Housing Subcommittee of the Genesee County Technical Advisory Committee; Model Cities Economic Development Corporation; and the Probate Court Juvenile Division Advisory Committee. Regional agencies included the Region V Crime Commission and the Manpower Area Planning Council of Genesee, Lapeer and Shiawassee Counties.
As these memberships indicate, in the years following 1968, Holt was concerned with police-community relations, housing and urban renewal, employment and affirmative action, promoting the growth of black enterprise, and implementation of Federal programs, including Housing and Urban Development and Model Cities grants. These interests were also reflected in the activities of the Flint NAACP branch in the early 1970s. Among its projects was Genesee Renaissance, which purchased houses and renovated them. Holt became very interested in non-profit housing and, with other partners, formed the Genesee Valley Non-Profit Housing Corporation. In 1972, he and some partners incorporated the Genesee Community Townhouse Nonprofit Housing Association and ran the Ridgecrest Village Townhouses. Holt became very familiar with state and Federal housing programs and took full advantage of them. Ultimately, however, the project failed.
Another of Holt's big interests in the late 1960s and 1970s was the rehabilitation of criminals. His NAACP duties had already drawn him into the concerns of black prisoners and he worked tirelessly on their behalf to help them discover their weaknesses, gain probation, and re-enter society. Through the NAACP, he started Project New Leaf and Project Rebound in 1973, aimed at helping recently released prisoners. He also served on the Advisory Board of Rubicon-Odyssey House, a drug rehabilitation center in Flint.
Although he no longer was the president of the Flint branch, he continued many other activities through the NAACP. As chairman of its Legal Redress Committee in the mid-1970s, he was involved with numerous employee grievances, many concerning employees of General Motors, only a portion of them being racial in nature. In 1976 and 1977, he was heavily involved with the local NAACP's Human Services Information and Referral Project, which taught hard-core unemployed persons job-seeking skills and referred people to General Motors for hiring.
After what he considered to be an unfair election by the NAACP Flint branch in 1977, he resigned from the organization, although he eventually reconciled with the group. He formed a new organization, Freedom and Justice Associates, in 1977, through which he intended to continue his many activities. This organization acted as a recipient agency for CETA money, which the NAACP's by-laws prohibited. He employed a few office workers in his program, helped prisoners, processed employee grievances, and also concerned himself with issues concerning the elderly.
On a more personal level, he was interested in Africa. He attended Nigeria's independence celebrations in 1960 and visited that country several times. He and his wife frequently helped out African students as early as 1959, and the relationships they formed with them lasted for many years. Holt helped them with their immigration and financial problems and helped several get jobs in Flint. He also developed an interest in trade with Africa, starting an import-export business in the early 1960s. He renewed this interest in the late 1970s and started other trading companies, selling commodities like cement and rice to Nigerian businessmen he had met through earlier contacts.
After such a productive life, in which he attempted to change the social conditions which had affected him and his people, he died February 8, 1984, in Flint.
SCOPE AND CONTENT
The period covered by this collection begins about 1955 and ends in 1983. The papers had been moved several times before they were donated to the University of Michigan and, because they were in no particular order, the archivist needed to impose an order on them. Although there are a few items dating prior to this time span, such as two Southern Negro Youth Congress newsletters from 1941, most of the material dates from the 1960s and 1970s. The 1960s, of course, were a critical era in Afro-American history, and, as Edgar Holt was president of the largest state NAACP organization at probably its most significant period, the series of NAACP records will likely draw the most interest from the researcher.
Holt attended almost every national convention of the NAACP, from 1959 to 1976. The files concerning them typically contain the convention programs, committee agendas, speeches, news clippings, and flyers. Other national NAACP material includes pamphlets, newsletters, and information on implementing certain programs, such as non-profit housing. The files from the NAACP Region 3 Leadership Training Conferences (Region 3 consisting of Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin), which were primarily workshops for local NAACP officers, contain conference programs and associated material.
The Michigan State Conference was the largest of any of the state NAACP organizations during the mid-1960s, when Edgar Holt was the Conference's vice-president (1961-1963) and president (1963-1966). The correspondence and topical files in this series concern: operations of local Michigan branches, including elections, lawsuits, and demonstrations, as well as invitations to speak at local meetings; communications from national NAACP officers and from other local NAACP activists concerning affairs of the national organization; invitations to, and announcements of, conferences on civil rights, juvenile delinquency, and other social problems. However, the largest topic concerns the operations of the Michigan Conference, including elections and meetings.
The largest single series in this collection concerns the Flint Branch of the NAACP. Although president only from 1958 to 1960 and from 1967 to 1970, Holt was responsible for much of the local branch's operations through most of the next decade, including writing the newsletter, acting as a public representative in community groups, and in influencing its policies. He was chairman of the Credit Union Committee and, in the mid-1970s, of the Legal Redress Committee.
Many of the Flint Branch's operations reflected the policies of the national organization. The fight against segregation was the group's leading cause during the 1960s, and in Flint, campaigns were waged to adopt an open housing ordinance, which succeeded in 1968. Relations with police were also a major concern, and in the late 1960s, allegations of police brutality increased. In this regard, for example, in 1967 the Flint NAACP took on the case of Gernell Taylor. Holt received complaints about racist policies of businesses, employment practices, and real estate brokers. These complaints are filed in the topical folders as well as in the Legal Redress Committee files for the mid-1970s.
Holt's NAACP papers from the 1970s reveal successive projects, mostly initiated by the national organization, which the Flint Branch adopted. Non-profit housing was one. Holt attended workshops on the subject sponsored by the national organization and then put the scheme into practice. The Genesee Valley Non-Profit Housing Corporation was started in 1970, but because of certain prohibitions by the NAACP constitution, the corporation became independent. The series "Genesee Community Townhouse Nonprofit Housing Association Corporation" contains records associated with the ownership and management of Ridgecrest Village Townhouses in Flint. Another housing effort by the Flint NAACP was Genesee Renaissance, which purchased and renovated a number of Flint houses for resale to qualified buyers.
The Flint NAACP, under Holt's direction, began, with funding from the Genesee County Model Cities Program, a program to rehabilitate young offenders, which it called Project New Leaf, later Project Rebound. Southern Michigan Prison at Jackson started its own Project New Leaf, with which Holt was closely associated.
The local branch was also involved in an effort to desegregate the Flint public schools around 1975, and most of the relevant material is folders headed "Flint Board of Education." Routine annual efforts were directed at registering voters and attracting new members to the NAACP.
General Motors Corporation, as Flint's largest employer, was a major concern to the black community of Flint. The Flint NAACP was involved in a national demonstration against GM in 1964, and Holt took part in further efforts to encourage the company to hire more blacks. Later, the Flint Branch, headed by Holt, began a project to get people employed, especially in referring them to General Motors. Material relating to this is contained under the folder heading "Human services information and referral project" and dates from 1976 and 1977.
In 1978, due to NAACP constitutional restrictions against receiving and disbursing such monies, Edgar Holt created a new organization, Freedom and Justice Associates, which would administer CETA program funds. These Federal funds allowed community organizations to hire young or inexperienced workers to work in the area of social service. In 1978, Holt left the NAACP because he disputed the manner in which the Flint Branch's elections were held, and remained bitter toward the group for a number of years. However, he continued much of his previous work, such as the job referral program and prisoner rehabilitation, through Freedom and Justice Associates. The organization had a board, but the organization was really a letterhead through which Holt could continue his work. Its activities declined about 1980. Material in this series also deals with concerns of the elderly.
As a result of Holt's increasing civic visibility, through his work as campaign manager for Floyd McCree and Nathaniel Turner and as NAACP president, he became more involved with various government and civic organizations. The files with the most material are those relating to the Urban Coalition of Flint; COMPACT; the Genesee Community Development Conference; the Genesee County Community Action Agency; the Genesee County Economic Development Commission; the Genesee County Metropolitan Planning Commission; the Genesee County Model Cities Economic Development Corporation; the Genesee County Probate Court Juvenile Division Advisory Committee; the Flint Charter Revision Commission Advisory Board; the Flint Manpower Area Planning Council; and the Region 5 Crime Commission. Most of these agencies and advisory boards were concerned with promoting economic growth and creating jobs and with crime. The files mostly contain material from the early 1970s.
The series "Civil Rights, Black, and Other Organizations" contains files relating to miscellaneous organizations, mostly in Flint, but some national, with which Holt had dealings, either as a member or leader or as a recipient of correspondence or merely as an interested party. The Southern Negro Youth Congress contains one of the organization's newsletters, dated 1941. The Third Ward Better Government League folder, with material from 1956 and 1957, documents Holt's first political efforts in Flint, following his management of Floyd McCree's campaigns in 1954 and 1956. Other groups are ad hoc political organizations, such as the Citizens Committee for the Support of the Oak Park Bond Issue (1968-1969), an urban renewal proposal which failed. Olive Beasley, Flint field director for the Michigan Civil Rights Commission, sent Holt many memos; these are mostly in the folders under that commission's heading. Other material from her, such as items from national NAACP, can be found in other parts of the collection.
Holt's stature in the community led to his involvement in local institutions of higher education. He personally was interested in establishing a Flint campus of Shaw College, a predominately black business school based in Detroit, and worked towards that goal. He was active in helping to recruit African and black faculty to the University of Michigan-Flint and was also interested in the school's African-Afro-American Studies Program, in the student organization, Students for Black Action, and the files reflect those interests.
Although he never personally sought political office, Holt worked as a campaign manager in local elections for two of his closest friends, Floyd McCree and Nathaniel Turner. The files concerning McCree document his 1954 race for city commissioner and campaigns in later years. Turner ran for city and county offices between 1968 and 1982. Other files document the local campaigns of his NAACP associates, Harold Hayden, John Hightower, and Fred Tucker, and the first Flint efforts on behalf of Jesse Jackson's 1982 Presidential campaign.
The "Churches" series contains files with material emanating from various Flint churches. The most significant are those on Woodside Church, an interdenominational, inter-racial congregation with a liberal social philosophy to which Holt and his wife belonged. These files contain weekly programs and other material. The Unitarian Universalist Church file is also reasonably extensive. Black churches represented are: Bethel, Quinn Chapel, and Vernon A.M.E. The Vernon A.M.E. Chapel file contains material from a 1954 incident concerning a local NAACP election which Holt contested; he passed out literature and was arrested.
The "ceremonial" series contains mostly souvenir programs of building dedications, funerals, memorial services, testimonial dinners, as well as graduation announcements and wedding invitations. Holt spoke or gave the eulogy at many of these occasions, and the texts to his speeches may be found in some of the folders. The programs are sometimes useful biographical sources for the individuals.
A number of useful files on Flint black service organizations may be found within the "Service/Fraternal Organizations" series. Holt was an organizer of the Optimist Club of Greater Flint, and the files for this group document its activities during the 1970s and early 1980s. He was also instrumental in forming the Flint Arts and Guidance Club, which was active in the 1960s. Other files typically contain invitations to events, or programs from these events, sponsored mostly by local black organizations, such as fraternities and sororities, the National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women's Clubs, and fraternal orders.
The records of the Genesee Community Townhouse Nonprofit Housing Association Corporation are fairly comprehensive. Dating from 1972 to 1979, they document the management of Ridgecrest Townhouses, a subsidized housing complex in Flint for low-income residents.
Under the "Social Service" heading are files of Flint organizations with which Holt was involved, usually as a member of their boards of directors. The most significant are the Genesee County Youth Service Bureau and Rubicon-Odyssey House, a local halfway house for substance abusers. The files document the organizations' activities in the 1970s.
The "Correspondence" series contains correspondence from Flint social activist Olive Beasley, her sons C. J. Beasley and U. S. Beasley, former NAACP assistant Charles W. Cheng, Genora Dollinger, the former Flint resident who was active in the Sit-Down Strike but who had later moved to California, and Al-Hajj Anas Mahmoud Luqman, a black nationalist in Chicago. Although all were Holt's personal friends, their social and political activism, more than any personal content, is reflected in their correspondence.
One significant series of the collection is the series of letters from prisoners. Organized alphabetically by surname, this series consists of more than one linear foot and dates from 1964 to 1983. Mostly black, the prisoners were usually held in the Genesee County Jail or the Southern Michigan Prison in Jackson, although others were in various other state and Federal institutions in Michigan. Typically, the prisoner would first write to Holt for help in obtaining parole; for many of them, the correspondence would develop into a period of several years. Many describe conditions in the prisons and some are thougtful reflections on life and race relations. Although this series is open for research, please note that this is contingent on not publishing the names of the prisoners.
As African countries began to declare their independence in the late 1950s, Holt developed a strong interest in their welfare. He and his wife went to Nigeria in 1960 and attended the independence celebrations. He developed personal contacts then and soon began an import-export business. About this time, the Holts began to assist African college students, especially at Michigan State University, both financially and in ways such as with immigration problems. The letters from Africa are from young students wishing to come to America to study or from former students who returned.
The "speeches" series contain a variety of speeches, mostly unidentified as to date or occasion, although internal evidence sometimes provides that information. They are either handwritten or typed. Other speeches may be found in other series, in the NAACP series especially, but, in those case, those speeches were identified by the occasion of the speech. Clearly Holt was frequently asked to deliver speeches or addresses during Black History Week and to deliver eulogies.
At the end of his life, Holt resumed his interest in business. The "business" series contains files relating to various enterprises, including BEH Enterprises, Inc., an import-export business doing trade with Africa. Other businesses include Golech Associates, a consulting firm.
The remaining series, "Personal," "Meetings and Conferences," "Reports," and "Topical (Miscellaneous)," contain miscellaneous files on various subjects. The items here are mostly material which could not be easily fit into the other series. One interesting file is the Michigan State Police "Red Squad" file on Nathaniel Turner, which demonstrates the effort expended in the late 1950s and early 1960s to report on the activities of the local NAACP.
Finally, Lois Holt's series contains material documenting her employment as the first black teacher employed by the Flint Board of Education and her teaching career in general. Also in this series are various sketches of Edgar Holt's life written soon after his death and a number of letters from his friends and colleagues describing their memories of him.
FOLDER LIST
BOX 1
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF COLORED PEOPLE Constitution and by-laws for branches, 1957, 1960, 1964 National conventions 1959 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 - Material from Olive Beasley 1975 1976 1977 - Material from Olive Beasley 1978 - Material from Olive Beasley 1979 - Material from Olive Beasley 1981 Topical Adopt a Child Program Annual report, 1983 Automobile industry employment, 1964 Bakke symposium, 1978 Day care center program, 1971 General Motors Corporation, 1964 Housing, 1975 Housing Specialist Institute, 1971 Life membership bulletin, 1964-1972 Miscellaneous, 1979-1984 Miscellaneous, from Olive Beasley, 1973-1979 National Afro American Builders Corporation, [1972?] National Black Political Convention, Gary, Ind., 1972 National Work Conference on Energy, 1977 Newsletters, 1967-1968, 1978 Press releases and memoranda, 1964-1973 Project Rebound, 1972-1973 Publications from National office 1958-1964 1968-1976 Quality education conference, 1977 - Material from Olive Beasley Wilkins, Roy, 1975-1977 Region 3 Conference, 1963 BOX 2 Leadership Training Conferences 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1972 1977 1979 - Material from Olive Beasley Newsletter, 1976 Quad-state office - Annual report, 1964 Conference of Quad-State presidents, 1964 Minutes, 1967 Annual meeting, 1968 Michigan State Conference Constitution, 1964, 1966 Annual report, 1959 Annual conventions 1958 1959 1960 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 - Material from Olive Beasley Minutes (including agendas) 1962-1974 1975-1979 President Speeches, 1964-1966 Speech material 1964 1965 Local branch meetings, banquets, etc., 1964-1967 Correspondence 1964 1965 (1 of 2) (2 of 2) 1966 Memoranda to and from local branches, 1964 Memoranda, 1965-1966 Annual reports from local branches, 1964-1965 Vice-president Correspondence, 1961-1962 Local branch meetings, 1961-1963 Correspondence, 1970-1972 BOX 3 Correspondence - Olive Beasley, 1973-1979 Memoranda and letters from national office, 1964 Memoranda to local branches, 1973-1979 Newsletters, 1977-1982 Topical Civil rights complaints and issues, 1963-1964 Custer Job Corps Center complaints, 1965-1966 Detroit concerns, 1966-1967 Directories, 1960-1973 Education, 1964-1966 Elections, 1966 Jackson County complaint, 1971 Lake County Branch, 1983 Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, 1968-1969 Life Membership Committee, 1975 Local branch dinners, etc., 1968-1976 Local conditions reported by branches, 1964-1976 Michigan civil rights summit meeting, Benton Harbor, 1965 Miscellaneous, 1964-1979 Nelson, Ruby, 1978 Newsletters, 1959, 1964-1966 Press releases, 1964-1967 Press releases from local branches, 1964-1966 Publicity kit for branches, 1965 Treasurer's reports Youth conference 1964 1969 Flint Branch President Speeches Undated [1958-1963?] 1967-[undated] Correspondence 1967 1968 1969 1970 Executive Board Minutes 1959 1967-1970 1971-1974 (by form) Banquet and other programs, 1958-1975 Correspondence 1957-1966 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977-1979 Membership lists, fundraising lists, [undated] Memo pad, 1968 Memoranda 1967-1968 BOX 4 1969-1971 1972- Memoranda to members, 1959, 1967-1978 Miscellaneous speeches, drafts, etc., undated Newsletters, 1958-1982 Press releases, 1958-1975 Resolutions, 1958-1981 Vietnam War resolution, 1965 Rosters of offers and committees, 1967-1977 Speeches, drafts, etc., [undated] Telephone log, 1977 Treasurer's reports, 1967- Education Committee, 1959, 1965, 1971 Freedom Fund Committee, 1973 Housing Committee, 1969 Labor and Industry Committee, [1957?], 1972 Legal Redress Committee 1958 1963, 1969, 1974-1977 Bowen v. General Motors, AC Spark Plug Division, 1976-1977 Bryant, Howard, v. HUD, 1974-1979 Consumer complaints, 1977 Employee grievances (non-General Motors) General, 1965-1978 Racial discrimination, 1965-1977 General Motors Corporation grievances General, 1969-1978 Racial discrimination, 1966-1980 Grievances and complaints - Miscellaneous Hamady Brothers, 1977 Northern Michigan University student complaint, 1977 Physicians and hospitals, 1975-1977 Tommy Hayes Ford case, 1975 Political Action Committee, 1972 Topical Adopt-a-cop Program, [undated] Affirmative action, 1968-1978 Angola resolution, 1975 Anti-drug ordinance, [undated] Associated Real Estate Brokers of Flint, 1959 Bail bond program, 1970 Baskin, Ricky, 1976 Beecher School District controversy, 1971-1975 Bradley v. Milliken ruling, 1971 City Commission election, 1973 Clyde Turner Broadway extravaganza, 1972 Complaints about police Complaints of racial discrimination, 1964-1977 Credit Union 1966-1968 1972-1978 Credit Union Advisory Council, 1971-1972 Crispus Attucks Corporation, 1972-1975 Daily schedules, 1975-1977 Dial, Bertha Faye, Death of, 1975 Draft counseling, 1970 Education, 1965-1972 Elections 1958-1970 1978-1979 BOX 5 End Racism in Industry conference, 1971 Ferris State College student complaint, 1969 50th anniversary dinner, 1968 Flint Black Teachers Caucus, 1975-1977 Flint Board of Education General, 1969-1977 Report, 1971 Flint Institute of Arts protest, 1969 Flint Mayor's Implementation Committee for Relocating of University of Michigan-Flint, 1972 Freedom Fund proposal, 1975 General Motors/UAW concerns, 1970-1977 General Motors - Meeting with agencies, 1976-1977 Genesee County apportionment, 1972 Genesee County Mental Health Services Board, 1973 Genesee County Road Commission hiring practices, 1975-1976 Genesee Renaissance Statement of purpose, [undated] Mortgages, 1973-1974 Quitclaim deeds, title insurance, 1973-1974 Correspondence, 1973-1978 Bulk housing, 1977 Contractor's bids, inspections, etc., 1973-1975 Genesee Valley Mall incident, 1974 Genesee Valley Non-Profit Housing Corporation Incorporation, 1970-1971 1972-1974 Gernell Taylor case, 1967 Housing conference, 1971 Housing information 1969-1972 1972-1973 Brochures, undated Housing 1974-1976 Black contractors, 1976 Contractor bonding, 1974-1976 Human services information and referral project GM apprenticeship information, 1970-1976 Referrals to GM, 1976-1977 Jamaica trip, 1972 Lease of 118 W. Hamilton, 1974-1977 Les Ballets Africains, 1971-1972 Life memberships, undated Lorrick family fund, 1972 Lottery agency, 1972 March on Washington, 1963 Marian Anderson visit, 1959 Membership campaign, 1967-1968 Membership drives, 1973-1975 Michigan Department of State Highways and Transportation, 1976 Minority building contractors survey, 1969 Minority business development, 1972-1979 Miscellaneous, 1958-1963 Mississippi boycott case, 1976 New Images, Inc., 1971-1972 BOX 6 Open housing, 1967-1968 Project New Leaf, 1973 Project Rebound 1973 1974-1977 Proposed human relations ordinance, 1959 Racist business practices, 1969-1972 Racist fliers, [1970s] Rallies and demonstrations, 1967 and undated Report on branch operations by Ronald Appleton, 1974 Rodent control project, 1974 Roy Wilkins visit and school dedication, 1972 Scripts of plays [undated]-1969 Soul Festival, [1972?] Special Contribution Fund, 1974-1976 Testimonial dinner for Hon. Stewart Newblatt, 1970 United Agencies for Progress in Beecher, 1977 U.S. Bicentennial, 1975-1976 Voter education, 1968 Voter registration and education project, 1972-1973 Voter registration, 1976 Voter registration drive, 1980 Voyager Inn strike WAMM [radio station] complaint, 1974-1976 WJRT-TV12, 1976-1978 Youth Council, 1977-1982 Youth Group - March in Washington, 1959 FREEDOM AND JUSTICE ASSOCIATES By-laws, incorporation, 1977 Board of Directors Minutes, 1977-1981 Reports, financial statements, memoranda, agendas, 1977-1978 Correspondence, 1977-1983 Affirmative action Black contractors, 1978 CETA Hiring Center, 1977 CETA Public Service Employment Project proposals, 1978-1979 City of Flint public service employment subgrant, 1977 Complaints about police, 1982-1983 Complaints about racial discrimination, 1979-1982 Descriptions of the program, [undated] Disco incident, 1979 Employee grievances Non-General Motors, 1978-1982 Tidwell v. City of Flint, 1979-1981 General Motors, 1978-1983 General Motors, 1977-1979 Greater Flint Opportunities Industrialization Center, Inc., 1973-1981 Job training and retraining program, 1983 Real estate, 1980 Senior citizens Battelle Advisory Panel on Consumer Frauds and the Senior Citizen, 1977 Flint Community Schools needs survey, 1979 Valley Area Agency on Aging - Battelle report on elderly victims of fraud in Flint, 1978 BOX 7 URBAN COALITION OF GREATER FLINT Steering Committee, 1969 By-laws, statement of purpose Executive Committee Minutes and agendas, 1974-1982 Memoranda, 1977-1982 Board of Directors Minutes and agendas, 1975-1982 Memoranda, 1975-1983 Board orientation workshop, 1980 Annual meetings, 1974-1977 Annual report, 1976 Audits, 1975, 1979 Budgets, 1975-1982 Committees and task forces, 1975-1983 Correspondence, 1974-1983 Evaluation of the Urban Coalition of Greater Flint, 1975 Ex-offender jobs program proposal, 1979 Financial statements, 1974-1982 Flint Neighborhood Coalition, 1979-1980 Jobs and training forum, 1979 Material from National Urban Coalition, 1975-1981 Newsletters, 1979-1980 Press releases, 1976-1977 Proposals, statements, miscellaneous, 1972-1981 Rosters, 1975-1984 GENESEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN Genesee Community Development Conference By-laws Board of Directors - Minutes, 1971-1976 Annual meetings 1970 1971 1972 1973 Memoranda and correspondence, 1969-1977 Financial statements, 1969-1974 Monthly reports to Mott Foundation, 1973-1974 Miscellaneous, 1967-1971 Commission on Substance Abuse Services, 1975 Community Action Agency Employment development for youth project, 1974-1975 Head Start and CETA mailing lists, 1977 Citizens Advisory Committee, 1983 Drain Commission, 1978 Economic Development Commission By-laws Minutes 1973-1974 1975-1979 Annual reports, etc., 1974-1977 Correspondence, 1973-1977 Memoranda, 1973-1979 BOX 8 1977-78 overall economic development program Housing plan, 1972 Industrial airpark feasability study, 1974 Proposed community development plan, 1974 Proposed Dort-Carpenter industrial center, 1977 Vacant industrial buildings inventory, 1977 Miscellaneous, 1974-1977 Manpower Advisory Council, 1975 Metropolitan Planning Commission General, 1967-1979 Mayor's state of the city address, 1973 Willson Parkview Apartments, 1972 Genesee County Technical Advisory Committee Housing Subcommittee Jan.-June 1972 July 1972-1974 Model Cities Program, 1972-1973 Model Cities Economic Development Corporation By-laws, 1971 Minutes, 1973 Minority business directory Miscellaneous, 1973 Probate Court Condemnation Commission, 1976 Juvenile Division Advisory Committee Minutes, 1975-1976 General, 1975-1979 Probate Court operational and organizational manual, 1975 Regional Drug Abuse Commission, 1973 FLINT (CITY OF) Affirmative Action Advisory Committee, 1974 Board of Education, 1965-1971 COMPACT (Committee to Promote Action, Inc.) Minutes, 1970 Memoranda and correspondence, 1969-1970 Miscellaneous, 1969-1973 Cable TV Committee, 1973 Charter Revision Commission Advisory Board, 1974 (1 of 2) (2 of 2) City Manager (Daniel Boggan, Jr.), 1975-1976 Committee on Human Relations and Law, 1967-1968 Housing Commission, 1972-1981 Human Relations Commission, 1968-1977 BOX 9 Manpower Area Planning Council Minutes, 1972-1973 Memoranda 1972 1973 1975 Mayor - Correspondence, 1954 Miscellaneous, 1972-1982 Neighborhood Improvement Program. Ad Hoc Committee, 1979 New Human Relations Commission, 1979 Police General, 1967-1977 Community Relations Bureau, 1968-1979 Information, 1973-1974 Minority Coalition agreement, 1976-1977 Poverty Task Force, [197-?] Proposed Flint human relations ordinance, 1977 Renewal and Housing Department. Citizen Advisory Committee, 1968 REGIONAL AGENCIES Region 5 Crime Commission Constitution, 1971 Minutes and agendas, 1969-1972 Roster, committees Memoranda and correspondence, 1969-1973 Planning reports, 1969 Manpower Area Planning Council of Genesee, Lapeer and Shiawassee Counties By-laws 1972 GLS-Flint Manpower Consortium - Summer youth recreation programs, 1975 GLS Comprehensive Health Planning Council, 1970-1975 CIVIL RIGHTS, BLACK, AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS A. Phillip Randolph Institute. Greater Flint Chapter, 1978-1979 Ad Hoc Citizens Committee, Minimum Security Facility, 1973 Alliance for a Greater Flint American Civil Liberties Union. Flint Branch 1963-1967 1971-1981 Black Caucus Association, Inc., 1975-1976 Citizens Committee for Social Justice, 1975-1976 Citizens Committee for the Support of the Oak Park Bond Issue, 1968-1969 Citizens Probation Authority Advisory Council, 1968 Citizens Resources-Administration of Justice, 1971 Citizens Scholarship Foundation of Genesee County, 1970 City-wide Black Caucus, 1977 Community Committee on Minority Affairs, 1981 Community Justice Committee, 1979 Concerned Citizens for Voters' Rights, 1979 Concerned Pastors for Social Action, 1976-1983 Cosmopolitan Association for Business and Economic Development Democratic Black Caucus of Michigan, 1971-1979 Flint Black Women's Leadership Caucus, 1976 Flint Federation of Teachers, 1967-1968 Flint Spokesman [newspaper], [undated] Friends of Amistad. Flint Chapter, 1977 Fund for Equal Justice, 1972 Genesee County Bar Association - Lawyer of the Year Award, 1973 Genesee County Legal Services Program, 1968 Genesee County Welfare Reform Coalition, 1971 Greater Flint Community Action Council, 1977 Greater Flint Downtown Corporation, 1974-1975 Hurley East Task Force, 1983 International Institute, 1974 Legal Aid Society, 1971-1972 Michigan Black Caucus, 1968-1971 Michigan Civil Rights Commission General, 1965-1975 Conference on Reality, Goals, and Strategy, 1966 Conference of municipal officials, 1967 Directory of civil rights organizations, [undated] BOX 10 Michigan Department of Civil Rights, 1976-1981 Michigan Education Association Michigan Housing Federation, 1968 Michigan Welfare League, 1970 Miscellaneous Flint political organizations Miscellaneous Detroit-area political organizations Miscellaneous national political organizations National Organization for an American Revolution, 1982-1983 (and James and Grace Boggs, 1968-1969) Poor Peoples March to Washington Planning Committee, 1968 Public Housing Tenants Union of Flint, 1972 Society of Afro-American Police, 1976 South Side Improvement Corporation of Michigan, 1957 Southern Negro Youth Congress, 1941 Third Ward Better Government League, 1956-1957 U.A.W., Local 599, 1954-1955 Unity for Justice, 1978-1979 Urban League of Flint General, 1967-1981 Negro employment survey, 1960 Housing Committee - Report, 1966 Urban Studies Committee, 1972 EDUCATIONAL Flint Board of Education. Mott Adult Education Program. Arts Advisory Committee, 1965 Hurley Medical Center. School of Nursing. Advisory Committee Mott Community College - Legal Assistants Advisory Committee, 1972-1973 Shaw College at Detroit-Flint Campus. Advisory Board Committee, 1981-1983 Southwestern High School, 1970 University of Michigan-Flint African-Afro-American Studies Program, 1974-1983 General, 1969-1983 McCray and Farmer, 1980 Purchase of land, 1981 POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS Aldridge-Sims, Karen, 1982 Austin, Richard Carter, Jimmy, 1976 Chapman, Ward, 1976 Dean, Max Hayden, Harold, 1966 Hightower, John, 1968 Jackson, Jesse, 1983 Knopf, Edwin L., 1968 McCree, Floyd 1954 [undated] Owens-Reed, Jo Ann, 1981, 1983 Riegle, Donald W. 1976 1982 Tucker, Fred Turner, Nathaniel 1968 1972 1976 1982 Miscellaneous 1974 1976 1982 Different years Official candidate listing, 1976 CHURCHES Christ the King Parish, 1971-1972 Bethel United Methodist Church, 1961-1975 Quinn Chapel A.M.E. Church, 1974-1977 Unitarian Universalist Church of Flint, 1957-1974 Vernon A.M.E. Chapel, 1954, 1972 Woodside Church Bulletins, 1961-1984 (1 of 2) (2 of 2) Miscellaneous, 1967-1983 Miscellaneous, 1964-1983 CEREMONIAL Building dedications Funerals Miscellaneous, 1963-1981 Edwards, Thomas J., 1976 Hamilton, Julia West, 1958 Kimbrough, Leonard, 1975 Mays, Samuel Jerry, 1982 Pugh, John, 1979 Tucker, Fred, 1980 Tucker, Johnny Martin Luther King tributes and dinners, 1975-1984 Memorial services Wilkins, Roy, 1981 Randolph, A. Phillip, 1979 Testimonials Hamilton, Julia West, 1955 Holt, Edgar, 1971 McCree, Floyd, 1965, 1967, 1973, 1979 Pugh, John, 1974, 1978 Turner, Nathaniel 1955 1974 BOX 11 Miscellaneous, 1963-1982 Wedding and graduation announcements, 1964-1983 SOCIAL/FRATERNAL ORGANIZATIONS Black fraternities and sororities Flint Arts and Guidance Club, 1959-1968 Flint Beneficial Club - Incorporation, 1972 Flint fraternal orders, 1965-1978 Flint Inner-City Lion's Club, 1977-1983 National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women's Clubs. Flint Club, 1964-1984 Optimist Club of Greater Flint Bylaws, correspondence, etc., 1971-1983 Newsletters, 1971-1982 Veterans of Foreign Wars. Post #3791, 1983 GENESEE COMMUNITY TOWNHOUSE NONPROFIT HOUSING ASSOCIATION CORPORATION Articles of incorporation, etc. Board of Directors Minutes, 1972-1979 Correspondence and memoranda Correspondence General HUD, 1975-1976 Michigan Department of Social Services, 1973-1975 Michigan State Housing Development Authority, 1972-1979 Ridgecrest Village Townhouses Accounts payable, 1975-1977 Audits, 1973-1975 Brochures and description Monthly management reports 1973 1975-1976 1978 1979 March-May June-August Newsletters and other communications to residents Occupancy reports, 1974-1976 Outstanding rent accounts, 1974-1975 Reports, miscellaneous Sale, 1978-1979 Weekly financial summaries, 1974-1976 Miscellaneous financial records, 1971-1982 SOCIAL SERVICE Big Brothers of Greater Flint, 1964 Boy Scouts of America. Tall Pines Council, 1973-1977 Farnumwood Parent-Child Program, 1970 Flint Youth Bureau, 1953-1959 Genesee County Youth Service Bureau Final evaluation report, 1976 Monthly client summaries, 1975-1976 Highest Ground, Inc., 1978 Miscellaneous Flint social-service organizations, 1975-1983 New Paths, Inc., 1980-1981 Rubicon-Odyssey House Advisory Board. Executive Committee - Minutes, 1972-1973, 1976 Memoranda, 1972-1974, 1978 Correspondence, 1972-1974, 1977 BOX 12 Weekly activity reports, 1974 (closed) Miscellaneous United Way of Genesee and Lapeer Counties. Allocations Committee - Handbook, 1980 CORRESPONDENCE Beasley, C. J., 1975-1983 Beasley, Olive 1967-1973 1974-1977 1978-1983 Beasley, U. S., 1976-1982 Cheng, Charles W., 1969-1979 Dollinger, Genora, 1962-1979 Luqman, Al-Hajj Anas Mahmoud, 1957-1979 PRISONERS NOTE: Letters from prisoners are available for research with the condition that researchers may not cite the names of the correspondents. Miscellaneous legal briefs, 1969-1975 Operation New Leaf at State Prison of Southern Michigan, 1970-1974 (by name) [available to researchers if names of correspondents are not mentioned] A B (1 of 2) (2 of 2) Bowe, Herschel, 1975-1977 Burse, Theotis, 1972-1982 Butler, Larry C D E F G Golden, Al, 1975-1977 H Hill, Ellsworth "Shoebootie," 1970-1979 I BOX 13 J Johnson, Artis X., 1976-1977 K L M N P Peavy, James E., 1977-1979 R S Sidney X (Jenkins) T V W Unidentified surnames Michigan Department of Corrections - Correspondence Correspondence with family members Genesee County Jail, 1978-1979 AFRICANS Correspondence African students and others, 1961-1983 Are, Dr. Lekan, 1976-1983 Concerning financial aid for students, 1959-1983 Concerning placement for Levi Nwachuku, 1974-1975 Miscellaneous, 1959-1983 Africa visit, 1960 Africa/Michigan Partners in Trade, 1982-1983 African American Friendship Ball, 1962 Africare, 1973-1983 Immigration cases, 1963-1982 Omenako, Rev. Richard, 1983 Operation Crossroads Africa, 1983 Society for Friendship with Africa, 1974 Visiting dignitaries, [1965?]-1983 Youth for Understanding Teenage Exchange Program, 1973 PERSONAL Awards and certificates Correspondence, [1959]-1984 Miscellaneous correspondence, 1971-1983 Edgar B. Holt Day, 1979 "Get well" and thank-you cards, 1970-1982 Workmen's compensation claim, 1974 SPEECHES Black history, [undated] BOX 14 Eulogy for Charles Cheng Miscellaneous, [undated] "The Struggle for Black Political Emancipation" BUSINESS BEH Enterprises, Inc. Annual report, 1981 Correspondence, 1979-1982 Incorporation, etc. Rice mills, 1979 Bus co-op, 1971 Caribbean Travels, Inc., 1972 Edgar Holt Import/Export, 1961-1964 GM minority supplier development program, [1979] Genesee Valley Enterprises, Inc. Global Enterprises, Inc., [1976?] Golech Associates Correspondence, 1978-1983 Miscellaneous, 1978-1983 Michigan Department of Commerce - Minority Business Development Breakfasts, 1973-1975 Milady's Auto-Gar Fastener, Inc., 1960-1961 Minority Salvage Company of Michigan, 1980-1983 Miscellaneous, 1971-1983 Rayda Company, 1979 WEA, 1979-1981 MEETINGS AND CONFERENCES American Missionary Association - 10th annual Institute of Race Relations, 1953 Assembly for Action on Revenue Sharing, East Lansing, Mich., 1973 Black unity meeting, Apr. 14, 1968 Michigan Association of Affirmative Action Officials, 1982 Miscellaneous conferences and meetings, 1968-1982 Model Cities training conference, 1970 Rally for Fred Tucker, 1979 UAW Fair Practices and Civil Rights Conference, Dec. 1-2, 1971 United Methodist Church urban ministry session, Flint, 1977 REPORTS Center for Community Change - Reports to Mott Foundation on advisory councils and neighborhood groups, 1977 Cooperative Extension Service (Genesee County) - Summary of problems in Genesee County Flint Jewish Community Council - Redlining report, 1978 Flint Model Neighborhood report, [n.d.] Greater Flint Area quality of life index, 1983 Michigan Department of Civil Rights - Deadly force report, 1981 Recommendations for combatting racism in Ann Arbor Public Schools, 1971 TOPICAL (MISCELLANEOUS) Accounting Aid Society of Greater Flint, 1977-1978 African tour, 1975 Eldridge Court Block Committee Founders Society, Detroit Institute of Arts - Bal Africain, 1968 Friends of WFBE, 1973-1974 Hyatt Hotel, 1982 Jewish-black issues, 1979 Michigan State Police "Red Squad" files release, 1983 Michigan State Police "Red Squad" file on Nathaniel Turner (1955-1964), 1983 Miscellaneous Nomination of Olive Beasley for Governor's Award, 1972 BOX 15 North Cook Neighborhood Association, 1975-1980 Rolandaire's Travel Club, 1977 Statement of black and Jewish community against American Nazi Party, 1977 United Nations Association. Genesee County Chapter WTRX editorials CLIPPINGS Personal, 1952-1984 Column in Bronze Reporter, 1954 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Michigan Conference, 1964-1975 Flint Branch, 1958-1983 Lois Holt, 1966-1987 Flint, 1954-1983 Miscellaneous, 1962-1983 LOIS HOLT Awards, 1967-1973 Edgar Holt's funeral, 1984 Memorials, consolations, etc., concerning Edgar Holt, 1984-1990 Biographies and reminiscences of Edgar Holt, 1984-1987 Enos and Sarah DeWaters, 1949-1950 Correspondence, 1956-1992 University of Michigan-Flint Minority Student Awards Program, 1986 Edgar B. Holt Scholarship Fund, 1987 Education and teaching career, 1941-1976 Miscellaneous Roscoe Van Zandt and newspaper story of GM Sit-Down Strike, 1981-1982 OVERSIZE Bronze Reporter, Sept. 18, 1954, with text of Holt's complaint against Flint City Attorney People's Voice, Nov. 1, 1954 (Floyd McCree campaign paper)