Whipper, Lucille, October 1, 1996
Scope and Contents
The Avery Institute of Afro-American History and Culture Oral History Project contains 44 oral history interviews arranged in three series based on the corresponding project or scope of the oral histories. The majority of the oral histories were conducted or coordinated by Avery Institute of Afro-American History and Culture members with the exception of Phase 2 of the Avery Normal Institute Oral History Project which was conducted by the Avery Research Center. Within each series, the oral histories are arranged alphabetically by last name. Greater details about the contents of each oral history can be found at the file level abstract of each interview. Each oral history, when available, includes a transcript and any supporting documentation like questions, notes, tape logs, and interview release forms. Transcripts do not currently exist for every interview and work to create them is ongoing.
Series I: Avery Normal Institute Oral History Project, 1980-1996 contains oral histories with former students, teachers, principals, and community members of the Avery Normal Institute discussing their attendance at the school including classes, teachers, extracurricular activities as well as perceptions of the school in the larger African American Charleston community and perceived reasons for why the school was closed. 12 of these oral histories are accessible on the Lowcountry Digital Library including the interviews with Ruby Cornwell, Julia Craft DeCosta, Marcellus Forrest, Dr. Joseph Hoffman, Felder Hutchinson, Anna D. Kelly, Louise Mouzon, Peter Poinsette, and both interviews with J. Michael Graves and Eugene C. Hunt.
Series II: Laing School oral histories, 1981 contains two oral histories with former students of the Laing School in which they discuss their time attending the school, their lives after graduation, and their impressions of the Avery Normal Institute.
Series III: Avery Institute of Afro-American History and Culture oral histories, 1983-1995 contains seven oral histories with members of the Avery Institute of Afro-American History and Culture discussing the founding of the organization and its grassroots efforts to acquire and preserve the Avery Normal Institute school buildings. There are also oral histories in this series with former students of the Avery Normal Institute and Immaculate Conception discussing their attendance at both institutions.
Dates
- Creation: October 1, 1996
Creator
- From the Collection: Avery Institute of Afro-American History and Culture (Organization)
Access Restrictions
There are no restrictions to this collection; however, a cassette player is required to listen to the audiocassette tapes. A cassette player will be made available to researchers in our reading room.
Full Extent
From the Collection: .834 linear feet (2 Hollinger boxes, 79 audiocassettes, and 27.7 gigabytes (audio and transcripts))
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Abstract
In this interview, Lucille Whipper, a native Charlestonian, at first talks about her upbringing in Charleston’s East Side neighborhood during the years of the Great Depression, her family history, as well as her attendance at the Avery Normal Institute. She hereby mentions several influential teachers at Avery, such as Margaret Poinsette. Ms. Whipper elaborates on the color consciousness among Averyites as well as social community involvement through her participation in the Tri HI-Y Club. Further, she recounts her early involvement in the Civil Rights Movement, in particular, her first encounters with political activism engaging in an inter-racial student group while attending Talladega College in Alabama. Whipper also refers to her participation in voter registration efforts after the ban of the all-white Democratic Primaries in South Carolina. She then focuses on Charleston’s segregated living accommodations of that time and the efforts to desegregate Fort Sumter Hotel with the active involvement of the Charleston Chapter of the NAACP. The interview then inquires about changes in the African American community, especially those pertaining to its communal sense and the issue of ‘blue bloods.’ Ms. Whipper recalls her ascension into the political realm, which she ascribes to the fight for the establishment of the Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture. She recalls in detail the struggle for the Center, the multifarious oppositions that were faced, as well as her attempts to reconcile varying groups within the community, especially former Averyites and non-Averyites, to create a joint force. She mentions specifically the controversial involvement of the College of Charleston and grant funding for a feasibility study, which was conducted in the early stages of the process. Whipper, in particular, accredits the successful completion of the project to Herbert Fielding and McKinley Washington. The interview concludes with Whipper referring to Avery’s lasting impact on younger generations.
The oral history is conducted by Cherisse Jones.
Repository Details
Part of the Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture Repository
125 Bull Street
Charleston South Carolina 29424 United States
843-953-7608
averyresearchcenter@cofc.edu