The professors of the Radical University: Benjamin B. Babbitt

Benjamin B. Babbitt
From The Babbitt family history, 1643-1900

Benjamin Bosworth Babbitt (b. September 6, 1827; d. December 20, 1888)
Bristol, RI.  White.
Education: Brown University (A.B), Trinity College (A.M.)
Occupation: clergyman, teacher.

Benjamin B. Babbitt was born in Bristol, RI in 1827 to Jacob and Abby Eliza Babbitt. The father Jacob worked as a trade merchant and a cotton manufacturer. He built the first cotton mill in Bristol. He was elected to represent the town in the state General Assembly from 1843-45 and in 1846. In politics, Jacob was a Jacksonian Democat, and served as a delegate to the party's 1860 national convention held in Charleston, South Carolina.

The paternal grandfather, Jacob Sr., was involved in the slave trade. He worked as a sea-merchant and engaged in trade with the West Indies. He worked heavily with the owners of slave-run plantations in Cuba, shipping sugar and selling provisions for enslaved workers. There is also evidence that the grandfather was personally engaged in the slave trade as late as 1820, although by then the practice had been illegal for two decades. The grandfather's household included at least one enslaved worker, a woman named Quashe (or Quashey) Babbitt.

Benjamin matriculated to Brown University in 1842 and received his A.B. from the university in 1846. Four years later Benjamin was ordained as an Episcopal minister. Benjamin would spend much of the remainder of his life working as a clergyman in the Episcopal church. He first served as rector of Christ Church in Plymouth, MA. He was transferred to Rhode Island in 1855. In Rhode Island, Benjamin founded the Church of Messiah in Olneyville (in greater Providence). Olneyville was a center for textile manufacturing, and the church was founded to serve textile workers. Benjamin left Rhode Island for Massachusetts in 1860. He served at rector for Christ Church in Andover, MA. 

Members of Benjamin's family served with distinction in the Civil War. Even though he was in his fifties, Benjamin's father Jacob fought for the Union army. He enrolled in the 10th Regiment Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry on June 9, 1862. He was given the rank of major. He was mustered out of the regiment on September 1, 1862, and on the same day, he was appointed a major in the 7th Rhode Island Regiment. Jacob first was sent to Washington D.C. to take charge of Rhode Island troops that had been sent there. However, he entered active service in June 1862. 

Jacob's regiment first saw action in December 1862 at the Battle of Fredericksburg. On the third day of battle (December 13), Jacob's regiment was ordered to attack entrenched Confederate troops across an open plain. The regiment was repulsed and halted in front of the entrenchments. Jacob was ordered to request that Union troops to the rear of the regiment cease fire so that the regiment could organize a second attack. While attempting to reach the rear, Jacob was shot and wounded. His wound was not initially deemed fatal, but it did require hospitalization. While in the hospital, Jacob's health worsened, and he died about a week later (on December 23). Benjamin was at his father's bedside when he died.

Benjamin's brother-in-law Samuel D. Greene also fought for the Union. Samuel was a career Naval officer. He had joined the Navy before the war, after attending the Naval Academy at Annapolis, MD. When the war broke out, he was stationed on the sloop Hartford, transporting a U.S. ambassador around China. He was ordered home and assigned to the ironclad the USS Monitor.

Samuel was serving on the Monitor during its historic fight against the CSS Virginia at the Battle of Hampton Road in March 1862. Samuel took command of the Monitor after the commanding officer was wounded. The battle was indecisive. Although the two ships exchanged fire for hours, neither was able to sink the other, and the battle ended when the Virginia withdrew. While not militarily decisive, the battle was a historic event as it marked the first time that two ironclad ships fought each other.

After the Battle of Hampton Road, Samuel remained assigned to the Monitor and participated in the Battle of Drewry's Bluff. Samuel's service on the Monitor came to an end in 1863 when the ironclad foundered in a storm. Samuel was reassigned to the gunboat Florida and helped enforce a blockade of North Carolina. During the last years of the war (1864-65), Samuel served on the sloop Iroquois and participated in the search for the Confederate raider CSS Shenandoah.

 

Benjamin did not serve in the military during the Civil War. Instead, he remained in Andover at Christ Church. During the first year of the war, the Episcopal Church began publishing the periodical The Church Monthly. Babbitt contributed several articles. Most of these focused purely on religious matters. However, in his 1861 article "Loyalty in the United States," Benjamin lays out a religious argument for supporting the Union during the Civil War. 

In the article, Benjamin begins by explaining that Scripture says little explicitly about civil government. It simply directs Christians to support "the powers that be." God has allowed "the powers that be" to take many forms. For example, in the past, God changed his people's government from a Republic (presumably Benjamin means the Roman Republic) to a monarchy. However, Benjamin says that a Christian's relation to civil government should also be guided by a second principle. God, he says, intends that Christian men be self-governed and thus a government should be evaluated by how well it facilitates self-governance. The ideal is a government "where all shall be governed by the gentle sway of inner principle, recognizing with overflowing joy the constraints of outer law."

Having provided a religious basis by which self-governance should be the criteria used to evaluate a government, Benjamin then proceeds with a political analysis. He first analyzes the concept of self-governance and then discusses how self-governance is achieved by the United States government. He concludes by explaining when rebellion against a government is just. Benjamin says that forceful rebellion against the United States government is never justified because its structure allows slow and steady progress again tyranny.

Benjamin offered further insight into his views on the Civil War in an 1865 sermon. His sermon was about Walter L. Raymond, a Union infantryman from Andover who had died while imprisoned by Confederate forces. Benjamin knew Walter well as he had been a member of Benjamin's Bible class. 

Benjamin delivered his sermon on April 3. This was shortly before the end of the war. On the day of the sermon, Richmond was captured by federal forces, and about a week later, Confederate General Lee surrendered his army at Appomattox Court House, traditionally marking the end of the war. 

In his sermon, Benjamin expounded upon Revelations 2:10: "Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." Benjamin described Walter's military service as a test of religious faith that Walter had met successfully. He emphasized Walter's simple Christian nature. In his letters home, Benjamin said, Walter never complained about military life and never said a harsh word about his follow soldiers or even the opposing Confederates. While in the field and despite the pressures of military life, he upheld promises he made to his mother that he would reject bad habits like smoking.

Benjamin approvingly describes how Walter turned to Christianity in times of difficulty: Walter read scripture and prayed before a battle. Benjamin extolls Walter for displaying courage in battle, but he is careful to connect this courage to religiosity: "his courage was not brutal recklessness. His courage was inspired by the cause – a courage for which he had prayed to God." Benjamin explained to his audience that this courage stemming from religious faith should be valued above courage of a purely martial origin. Away from the battlefield, martial courage can fail a man, but religious courage, says Benjamin, will serve him at all times, for example when ill or imprisoned.

Benjamin presents Walter's imprisonment as an ultimate challenge of faith. For example, he recalls Jesus's prediction to his followers that: "Behold the Devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried." According to Benjamin, Walter fully met this trial. When Walter's health began to fail because of his poor diet in prison, his friends advised him to steal food. However, Walter refused to do so, saying "I was not brought up to that." Walter not only upheld Christian values until his death, but in death, he acted as an inspiration to others. According to Benjamin, his last words were, "I am going to die. Go tell my father I am ready to die; for I die for God and my country." Benjamin says that "In the glory of those words" the prison was transformed into

the gate of heaven. Those starving and naked companions, startled, saw a vision of angelic beauty. They went down so close to paradise as to hear its whispers and to snuff the fragrance of its spicy groves.

A striking aspect of Benjamin's sermon is how little he discusses politics. He says that Walter joined army out of a sense of duty to his county. Benjamin connected Walter's duty to his country to his duty to God, noting that his last words were "I die for God and my country," but he simply points out the connection without explaining it. Benjamin speaks harshly of the Confederates for their treatment of Walter, but he does not explore the meaning of their behavior in the context of their presumed Christian faith. Rather, he presents them simply as a force that challenged Walter's faith. 

A topic wholly ignored in Benjamin's extent writing during the war is abolition, and more generally African Americans. This omission is striking as Benjamin would spend much the next twenty years doing missionary work within the African American community.

Benjamin remained at Christ Church in Andover after the Civil War. In 1867 and 1868, he served as editor for The Church Monthly. He was awarded an A.M. degree from Trinity College in 1868, although the degree was honorary. 

In 1868, Benjamin left Christ Church and began to work in education. He moved to East Medway, MA and served as Head Master for St. Clement's School for Boys. He also published the book Easy Questions on the Various Sundays in the Year: Both Elementary and Progressive, for Larger and Smaller Classes. This book collected questions that had been posed in The Church Monthly.

Benjamin left Massachusetts for South Carolina in 1871. He arrived in Columbia on March 18. In Columbia, he was made Professor of Natural and Mechanical Philosophy and Astronomy at the University of South Carolina. This was a prestigious position that had previously been held by John LeConte. LeConte had left South Carolina around Fall, 1869, and his professorship had been given to Thomas E. Hart, a South Carolina native who had been teaching at Furman University. Professor Hart held both LeConte's former professorship and the Professorship in Mathematics and Civil and Military Engineering and Construction. After Benjamin arrived at the university, Professor Hart remained in the second professorship.

Benjamin was the first professor from the North to teach at the University of South Carolina. At least initially, South Carolina newspapers reported positively on Benjamin's hire. They noted approvingly that Benjamin's father had been a delegate to the 1860 Democratic National Committee held in Charleston. A January 1872 article in the Daily Phoenix acknowledged that Benjamin was the only professor unknown to the community, but it also reported that he was "without reproach and worthy of acceptation."

In addition to his work at the university, Benjamin was very active in the Episcopal Church. He created several associate missions that focused on missionary work to African Americans. A few months after he arrived (in May 1871), he began holding church services, first in a private home and then in the chapel of an inactive Episcopal church (Christ Church). However, services were largely discontinued in October, when Benjamin's first term teaching at the university started. 

The reason for discontinuing religious services was a major controversy. The Daily Phoenix reported that the African American politician Henry E. Hayne attended a September 24, 1871 church service over which Benjamin presided. According to the newspaper, Henry tried to take a position at the sacrament table next to a White Republican. The Republican took offense and left the church in protest. His departure provoked a major argument between congregants, and the congregation was declared disbanded. The newspapers cited this incident as evidence of the hypocrisy of White Republicans. Benjamin denied these reports in strong terms: he published a notice stating that "each particular sentence [in the article] is false." Furthermore, he stated that his religious position was of no political significance. The Daily Phoenix responded with an article in which it admitted the "general statement [that was reported] appears to have been incorrect" However, they stood by their assertion that Henry's presence was a source of disagreement.

Babbitt was again the center of political controversy in April 1873. That month some USC professors, including Benjamin, gave public lectures. Benjamin delivered a lecture on galvanism. While the lecture itself was uncontroversial, Associate Justice J. J. Wright attended the lecture and was upset with his treatment. Wright, an African American, was seated incorrectly, and he wrote a lengthy letter, published in the Columbia Evening Herald, in which he claimed students had arranged seating so as to enforce racial segregation. Conservative newspapers responded by citing Wright's statement as evidence of Republicans desire to force race issues onto the university.

The controversy over Wright's treatment at Babbitt's lecture took place in a climate of increasing political tensions at USC. Tensions culminated in October when the first African American matriculated at the university. The student was Henry E. Hayne, the politician at the center of the earlier controversy concerning Babbitt's congregation.

The matriculation of Hayne caused the departure of most of the students and antebellum faculty. Conservative newspapers condemned the university's decision to admit African Americans and recalled the alleged mistreatment of Hayne by Babbitt's congregation as evidence of Babbitt's hypocrisy.

After October 1873, Babbitt largely fell out of the public eye. However, he seems to have been well-regarded as faculty. He served as Chairman of the Faculty (a position similar to University President) from 1873 to 1875. Writing in the 1910s, Babbitt's former student C. C. Scott wrote that he was "not only a Christian gentleman but a scholar and philanthropist." White Conservatives, on the other hand, recalled Babbitt in very negative terms. In his history on Reconstruction, John S. Reynolds writes that Babbitt's election as professor was "distasteful to the white people" and says that "He was of unattractive appearance and small abilities and was generally accounted a carpetbagger on the lookout for a job."

Around this time, Benjamin became more active in the Episcopal church. In August 1873, the Bishop formally organized St. Luke's as a mission and Benjamin became the church's minister. Benjamin regularly held worship services in various halls and lodges within the city. By 1876, St. Luke's congregation had grown to about 20 families and the church was incorporated. To help manage the growing congregation, Benjamin's student Thaddeus Saltus began to help with church services. 

Babbitt lost his professorship after the University of South Carolina closed in 1877. However, he remained in Columbia, working as a clergyman. Despite the difficulties caused by the end of Reconstruction, Babbitt's congregation continued to grow. In 1883, he was able to begin constructing his own chapel, and he began holding services there in 1884.

Benjamin last appears in the news in March 1884. Newspapers reported that his (largely African American) congregants had asked that he be removed from his position as they preferred having an African American pastor. Despite the requests, Benjamin remained rector until 1886. He duties were taken over by Thomas Boston Clarkson, a White clergyman.

After stepping down from St. Luke's, Benjamin stayed in Columbia and continued to do missionary work among African Americans in the area until his death in 1888. He is buried in Juniper Hill Cemetery in Bristol, RI.

Publications by Babbitt

1) "Popular Objections to the Liturgy." The Church Monthly, Vol. 1, April, 1861. p. 105.

2) "The Word and Works of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ." The Church Monthly, Vol. 1, August, 1861. p. 37–41.

3) "Loyalty in the United States." The Church Monthly, Vol. 2., December, 1861. pp. 176–182.

4) "Exceptional Salvation out of the Church." The Church Monthly, Vol. 2., December, 1861. p. 183.

5) "Constitutional Episcopate." The Church Monthly, February, 1863. pp. 118-119.

6) A Sermon on the Death of Walter L. Raymond, a Union Soldier, delivered on Sunday, April 3, 1865. Andover: Printed by Warren F. Draper. 1865. 16mo. pp. 32.

7) "A Sermon Before the First Annual Convention of the Church Union" in Abbott, Edward, The Blade, the Ear, and the Full Corn. Printed by Vote of Convocation, Boston 1906.

8) Easy Questions on the Various Sundays in the Year: Both Elementary and Progressive, for Larger and Smaller Classes

 

Sources Cited

1) Historical Catalogue of Brown University, 1764-1904. Brown University, Providence, RI (1905). p. 205.

2). Browne, William Bradford, The Babbitt family history, 1643-1900.  Taunton, Mass. : C. A. Hack, 1912. p. 611-612.

3) 1850; Census Place: Plymouth, Plymouth, Massachusetts; Roll: 333; Page: 121b

4) 1860; Census Place: Andover, Essex, Massachusetts; Page: 165; Family History Library Film: 803496

5) 1870; Census Place: Bristol, Bristol, Rhode Island; Roll: M593_1471; Page: 45B; Family History Library Film: 552970

6) Journal of the Proceedings of the Sixty-Third Annual Convention of Diocese of Massachusetts, James B, Dow, Office of the Christian Witness and Church Advocate, Boston, MA (1853). pp. 79-80.

7) Journal of the Proceedings of the Sixty-Fifth Annual Convention of Diocese of Massachusetts, James B, Dow, Office of the Christian Witness and Church Advocate, Boston, MA (1855). p.18.

8) Representative Men and Old Families of Rhode Island, Volume 2. J. H. Beers & Co., Chicago (1908). pp. 1406-1407.

9) "Hotel Arrivals." The daily phoenix, March 19, 1871, p. 2.

10) "The State Capitol." The Charleston daily news, March 25, 1871, Image 1

11) "The State Capitol." The Charleston daily news, March 30, 1871, p. 1.

12)  "The Colored People and Their Radical Friends." The daily phoenix, September 26, 1871, p. 2.

13) The daily phoenix, September 27, 1871, p. 2.

14) The daily phoenix, September 28, 1871, p. 2.

15) "Our Correspondent and the South Carolina University" The daily phoenix, January 17, 1872, p. 2.

16) "Prof. Babbitt's Lectures." The daily phoenix, April 3, 1873, p. 2.

16) "Religious Intelligence." Charleston Daily News [SC]. May 25, 1872. p. 4.

17) "Judge Wright (as He Says) in the Wrong Place." The daily phoenix, April 6, 1873, p. 2.

18) "Refused to Take Their Own Pills." The daily phoenix, October 12, 1873, p. 3.

19) "What Broke Up Rev. Mr. Babbitt's Mission Church in 1871" The daily phoenix, October 17, 1873, p. 2.

20) Reynolds, John S. Reconstruction in South Carolina, 1865–1877. The State Co. Publishers, Columbia, SC. 1905 pp. 232–233.

21) "More Church Trouble." The times and democrat, March 18, 1886, p. 4.

An 1868 Advertisement for St. Clement's School for Boys
The Church Monthly

Students of the Radical University: Letters from C. C. Scott, Part 1

Among the more intimate records of the students at the University of South Carolina during Reconstruction are letters written by USC student C. C. Scott. The letter spans the period from 1873 to 1916. 

The first letter is an August 1872 letter from Cornelius to his father Tobias. At the time, Cornelius was 17 years old. He had graduated from the Avery Institute in Charleston a year earlier. He had spent the previous year studying at Claflin University in the town of Orangeburg, SC. He was still living in Orangeburg at the time of his letter.

In his letter, Cornelius asks his father about "Wm. Dart," "Paul," and "Alonzo." These people are William M. Dart, Paul J. Mishow, and Alonzo G. Townsend. They had started attending Howard's (College) Preparatory Department the previous year. Like Cornelius, all three were from Charleston, and presumably Cornelius's family was on friendly terms with them.

Cornelius mentions to his father that he received correspondence from "Mr. Cardozo." This is a reference to Frances L. Cardozo, an African American from Charleston who played a prominent role in South Carolina's Reconstruction government. At the time of Cornelius' letter, Cardozo held the position of Professor of Latin at Howard University and was a trustee at the University of South Carolina.

The final person mentioned in Cornelius' letter is "Sister Mattie." This is likely his sister Martha Eleanor Scott.

Orangeburg S. C.

Aug 6'' 72

My Dear Father:

I was very happy at [receiving?] your letter a few hours ago and now hasten an immediate reply.  I am sorry that you are so unsuccessful with your fans.  I hope you will sell them before you return [home?].  Did you mean that Wm Dart and Paul and also Alonzo are out at Saratoga?  What are they doing? Tell Dart I was just going to post this letter to him at Howard University.  I am not making money enough to support me now so I am going home as soon as I can make it [convenient]. Perhaps at the end of this week but at any rate within two weeks.  I heard from Mr. Cardozo that other day.  Please tell me what are the arrangements for me to go.  Sister Mattie is still here and well. She is going home at the end of this week.  I don't believe I have made over twenty dollars since I have been here.  My chief reason for coming home so soon is to take a little rest and prepare myself for Howard.  

Write soon to your ever affectionate son,

Cornelius C. Scott

Cornelius's next letter was written two months later, on October 10, 1872. Cornelius had just moved to Washington D.C. and started to attend Howard. 

His letter begins by describing his boat trip from Charleston to D.C. In describing the trip, he mentions having a conversation with the purser who says, "[he] is for Grant and Wilson." This is a reference to the presidential election. That year U. S. Grant was running for reelection. Henry Wilson was chosen as his Vice Presidential candidate after incumbent Vice President Schuyler Colfax had chosen not to run for reelection.

Cornelius describes being greeted by "the boys and especially Wm Dart and Paul" upon arriving at Howard. He then goes on to name several additional "boys": "Townsend," "John and Joe Morris," and "Stewart." These people are respectively William M. Dart, Paul J. Mishow,  Alonzo G. Townsend, John M. Morris, Joseph W. Morris, and T. McCants Stewart. William, Paul, and Alonzo were Black Charlestonians mentioned in Cornelius' first letter.  These were all African-Americans from Charleston that likely knew John and Joseph Morris and McCants were African-Americans from Charleston. McCants and Joseph had matriculated at Howard two years earlier, in 1870, while John entered the next year.

Cornelius also mentions meeting "Conyers" at Howard. This is James H. Conyers, another African-American from Charleston. Unlike the others Cornelius mentions, James was not a Howard student. Instead, he was attending the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, MD. James had passed the academy's entrance exams and had been sworn in as a midshipman on September 24, 1872, about two weeks before Cornelius was writing his letter. 

James was the first African-American student at the Naval Academy and was subject to much abuse. The day after Cornelius wrote his letter (on October 11), James was assaulted by other Academy students. While walking marching with other midshipmen, he was kicked and punched by a group of several students that included Academy's boxing champion George Goodfellow. The incident was reported in newspapers and investigated by Academy officials. James's assailants were dismissed from the Academy, but James continued to be subject to hazing. At the end of the year, he failed his academic examinations. He was allowed to return in October 1873 to retake the exams. However, he was still found to be deficient and dismissed.

Cornelius also mentions meeting a "Mr. Bland." This is another African-American Charlestonian at Howard: A. Mushington Bland. Mr. Bland was attending Howard's Law school.

Later, when discussing Howard University students, Cornelius mentions three Chinese students: Fung Afoo, Chou Awak, and Leon (or Leong) Sing. All three were Cantonese and from the Guangdong. Siu-Leung Lee suggested to the author that the given names are Anglicizations of 方亞富, 蔡亞華, and 梁亞成 respectively. All three had come to the U.S. for work. They had come to Howard in 1869 after receiving scholarships from the American Missionary Association. The Association funded their studies shortly after voting in favor of expanding their missionary work to include Chinese nationals. (Originally, the Association had focused on missionary work serving African-Americans.)

Cornelius also mentions two Native Americans students: "an Indian young man a student a little boy plucked up on the plains by Gen Howard" and "an Indian young miss." The "Indian young miss" was Minnie Tappan. Born Emmunuska, Minnie was a Cheyenne Indian who was originally from Colorado. She had been orphaned in 1864 when U. S. army troops killed her parents in the Sand Creed Massacre. After the massacre, she was claimed as a "mascot" by soldiers, taken to Central City, CO, and nicknamed Minnehaha (after a fictional character a Longfellow poem). In Central City, she lived with a White family  for 3 years, although during this period, the Cheyenne unsuccessfully petitioned for her return. In the summer of 1867, Cheyenne chiefs negotiated with a commission created by Congress, the Indian Peace Commission. These negotiations resulted in Medicine Lodge Treaty. After the treaty was signed, Commission members tried to return Minnie to the Cheyenne. However, she refused to go and instead was adopted by Samuel F. Tappan, a commission member. Samuel renamed her Minnie Tappan and brought her back to live with his family in Boston, MA. Around 1871, after Samuel moved his family to Washington D.C., Minnie matriculated at Howard University. Samuel likely helped arrange her studies at Howard as he enjoyed positive relations with the school. He had been active in the abolition movement, and two of his cousins were founders of the Americans Missionary Association, a strong supporter of Howard.

It is not entirely clear who the "Indian young man" is. Cornelius says that the student was "plucked up on the plains" by General O. O. Howard (at the time, President of Howard University). General Howard had recently traveled to modern Arizona to negotiate with a group of Apache, so this may be a reference to a student he me on that trip.

There are three students who Scott would likely have referred to as "Indian young men": Alson Douglas Bemo, Charles Robertson, and Philip Sheridan Larribee (or  Labaree). Alson was from Indian Territory (modern Oklahoma), and was living in Marshalltown around this time. His father was a Seminole, and his mother Creek. Charles was a member of the Squaxin Island Tribe in Olympia, WA. Philip was a member of the Arapaho Wind River Reservation  (in Wyoming Territory).

The African student is probably Jeremiah M. Mali. In Howard Univeristy records, Jeremiah is listed as coming from "Unkomasi, Africa" and "Natal, Africa." This likely means that he was from the area around the Umkomazi River in the British Colony of Natal in south-eastern Africa. This area is now the province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Jeremiah was likely a member of the Zulu people and had come to the U.S. under sponsorship by a missionary society.

Jeremiah was not the only African student at Howard. Also attending the university was Charles H. Gardner, a student from Cape Coast Castle (in modern Ghana). However, Charles was studying for law and thus would have had less interaction with Cornelius.

There were also two students from Liberia attending Howard: Georgiana Amos and James M. Priest. James was originally from Kentucky and had emigrated to Liberia in 1843. He started attending Howard shortly after serving as Liberia's Vice President. Nothing further is known about Georgiana, although it is likely that she had also immigrated to Liberia from the United States.

Besides other students he met at Howard, Cornelius mentions Mr. and Ms. Warren. This couple is Mortimer Warren and his Elizabeth. Mortimer was an educator from Connecticut and was serving as principal for the Avery Normal Institute at the time of the letter. Mortimer likely knew Cornelius from his time as a student.

Howard University

Washington D. C.

Oct 10'', 1872

My Dear Parents:

The other letter I wrote was merely to acquaint you of my arrival.

Now, I shall give you the particulars beginning from the time I left home till the present.

I began to feel sick just after we got past Fort Sumter.  Just as we began crossing the bar, about half past two oclock, I was called into dinner, of which I always got a plenty during my sojourn on the boat.  Just as I went into dinner the boat began reeling and tossing from side to side so that we could hardly remain in our seats at the table.

I began feeling rather unwell so that I left the table and stood at the side of the boat till about three oclock where I gave three successive cheers for New York and emptied all my dinner into the waters of the wide Atlantic whose waters are nearly as black as ink

I was there seasick in earnest but did not go to my berth (which was just hot as a bake oven.) until about five oclock.

I could not eat any supper that night on account of feeling so bad. The next morning I washed my mouth and drank some cool water which made me call for New York again three times.  I was so weak that I was about "played out."

So I put on my cloak and took a stool or chair forward and sat down in the sun for I had the chills.

The waiter then told me that breakfast was ready but I told him I was unable to eat anything. The purser insisted on my drinking a cup of coffee which I accordingly did but hardly had I handed the cup back when I went to the side of the boat once more to pay my tribute to New York which I did in an indescribable and yet ludicrous manner.

I heaved about five times and the two last times a good deal of life came from me and then I felt relieved.

From the time we left Charleston till we entered the Chesapeake Bay (Saturday afternoon) we had a rough time that young lady (who was the only passenger aboard except an Irishman who came as deck passenger, and myself) never left her berth from the time she went in until we entered the bay.

Two of the firemen and even the steward, was sick.

The only word the captain said to me was whether I was ever to sea before and I told him no.

The purser, (who is for Grant and Wilson) and I had quite a conversation and he was very polite to me.  Also the steward, waiter and the cook.  We were about eighteen hours on the Chesapeake and landed at Baltimore about half past seven.

It cost me one dollar to go from there to Washington Depot and one dollar and twenty cents from Baltimore to Washington where I arrived about half past ten and then took the railway for Howard University.

My trunk was brought up by the express company, a distance of a mile or two, for fifty cents.

The person gave me a ticket on which was marked the number of my [trunk?]. I did not receive my trunk til the Monday following. I was quite surprised to meet Conyers here, who was waiting for his money to come. He left here last Saturday for the academy. 

I met with a warm reception from the boys and especially Wm Dart and Paul.

Townsend and Paul room together. John and Joe Morris, Stewart by himself, Dart by himself and I by myself. We have ninety nine rooms and nearly every one is occupied. I am on the first floor back room, No 10, one of the coolest in the building. The place is called Clark Hall. Money was given by a Mr. Clark to build it. 

Then there is the University Building where we go to recite our lessons beside[s] the two buildings there is Miner Hall where the young ladies live and also where the boarding hall is. It contains thirteen tables with about twelve at each and about eight or ten waiters. The board is three dollars per week in advance and washing fifty cents per week in advance. Soon we will have to pay for gass [recte "gas"?] bill, room rent, fuel, tuition + e. I have now exactly fifteen dollars. I have paid about four dollars for books. There is a Greek Lexicon at a second hand bookstore (where I buy nearly all my books) for three dollars and a half. The cost price is six dollars. I could not buy it as I did not have the money. There are a great many books I shall want soon such as the "History of Greece," "Shakspeare's  [sic] works," Byrons works and various other useful books.

We have young men of intelligence here whose desire is to gain knowledge, and who are asking for it with their whole hearts. I joined a literary society composed of the senior and middle classes of the Preparatory department, last Friday night and was elected as Secretary of the board of directory by a majority of (9) nine to (five) 5 for my opponent. I expect to join the Young Men's Christian association very soon. I received a letter from Mrs. Warren a few days ago stating that Mr. Warren was sick but hoped he would soon be better and that he would soon be better and that he would try and send twenty five (25) dollars sometime this week. I have received the letter you alluded to.

I have seen but very little of Washington as yet but hope to tell you more about it at some other time. I gave the shrimps to Mr. Bland. He is well. I am a little behind my class in Greek but hope to [catch?] up with them soon.

Tell all my friends howde for me as I have not time to name them all and I haven't anytime to write them now. 

Tell Merton I will write him very soon and tell him we are reading Cicero's Oration against Cataline and the first three books of Xenophon's Anabasis. Ask sister Mattie did she do as I asked her. My best regard to Mrs. Benford, Brown, Price, Potter Thomas, Smith, [Simklar?], Myers, Misses Vaughn, Wagg and all their families.

Please see if my letter is in the office for me.

There are three Chinese here, Leon Sing, Chou Awak and Fung Afoo. Fund is very sociable, polite and funny. Sing is also very sociable, and good natured. We were playing football the other evening and in running at the ball we came in contact with each other and I being the heavier knocked him down: he just jumped up and went on playing and said nothing about it. We have also an Indian young man a student a little boy plucked up on the plains by Gen Howard. Also an Indian young miss, a student, and an African.

I know this letter will tire you all. My love to [Wifie?], [Nena?], Sister Fena, [Sowha?] [Sister?], [Sister Mattie], Mr. Carr, and all others.

Tell him shall read Plutarch's Lives very soon. At present I shall devote my spare time to Shakspeare and Dickens,

Now for the military affairs: my suit will cost twenty eight dollars, but I have a coat engaged from a student, perfectly good for seven dollars. Cost between 15 and 18 dollars new: the pants cost about 8 and the cap about two. So you see how much money it will take but I try to buy everything as cheap as possible. Please send the money as soon as possible. We have a library where we can get books to read.

Your Aff Son,

Cornelius C. Scott  

Written across the top of the second-to-last page of the letter is what appears to be a daily schedule.

Bugle sound for reveille 5.30 

Roll call 6 am

Inspection 6.35 15 am

Breakfast 7 am

roll call for dinner 12 am

Roll call for supper 4.45 pm

[areal?] 5 pm

Roll call 9 pm

[?] off

the gas 101/2pm

The prep students of the Radical University: Holmes Agnew

Holmes Agnew (b. Abt. 1862; d. August 5, 1931)

New Jersey.  White.

Occupation: advertising, clerk in store, merchant.

Father's occupation: physician

Mother's occupation: authoress

Holmes Agnew was born around 1862 to Mary Platt and Samuel J. Agnew. Mary was from a prominent and well-established New York state family. Her grandfather was New York congressman Jonas Platt and her father Michigan Attorney General Zephaniah Platt. Zephaniah was active in the abolition movement. For example, he served as vice president in the American Anti-Slavery Society. After the Civil War, he moved to South Carolina and served as judge for the 2nd Circuit Court from 1868 until his death in 1871. Mary herself became a successful writer later in life. Her most successful publications were a series of  short histories of various counties (A Short History of England, A Short History of France,...). 

The father John was born in Pennsylvania.  However, when John was young, his father became a professor at the University of Michigan and the family moved to Ann Arbor, MI. By the time he married Mary, around 1860, he had moved to Yonkers, NY.

Holmes was likely born in New Jersey. That state is listed as his birthplace in the 1900 U.S. Census. The 1880 U.S. Census states that Holmes was born in South Carolina, but this almost certainly an error for this would have required his parents to have traveled from (Union-controlled) New York state to (Confederate-controlled) South Carolina in the middle of the Civil War. 

The marriage of Holmes' parents did not last long. By 1871, they had divorced and Mary had remarried. Her second husband was widower Theodore W. Parmele. Theodore was a Civil War veteran from a distinguished New York state family, and he is described in more detail in the entry about his son Charles.

By the time she remarried, Mary had moved to South Carolina. Her wedding was held in Aiken, SC. This was part of the judicial district where Mary's father served as a judge. After the remarriage, Holmes lived with his mother and Theodore in Columbia.  Also living in the household were Theodore's children from his first marriage 

In Columbia, Holmes first attended the Columbia Male Academy. At the time, the academy was run by future state Governor Hugh S. Thompson. Many alumni of the academy later matriculated at the University of South Carolina. Future USC students studying with Holmes included his brother Charles Parmele, Charles J. and Edward M. Babbitt (sons of USC Professor Babbitt), Arthur D. Rivers, W. McBirney Sloan, Edwin W. Screven, and Thomas P. Thomas Jr.

Holmes entered the Preparatory Program at the University of South Carolina at some point between February 1875 and January 1876. Holmes' step-brother Charles started attending the college program at this time. The university closed before he completed the program.

After Reconstruction, Holmes moved with his family to New York City, where his stepfather was from. In 1880, he was living with his stepfather and working as a store clerk. By the late 1880s, he was working in advertising and as a merchant. However, around this time, he began spending much of time living wildly, spending much of his time carousing in the Tenderloin District. One newspaper described Holmes' behavior as follows: he "drove fast horses, wore clothes of the kind affected by men who want to make an impression on upper Broadway, spent freely, and achieved the summit of his ambition, which was to be known as a 'good fellow.'"

By the 1890s, Holmes' lifestyle began leading to legal issues. Newspapers began reporting on these issues in 1895. In January of that year, Holmes traveled from Southampton, England to New York City on a steamer. On the trip, he befriended another passenger, James M. Keene.  Upon landing, Holmes helped James and his wife get accommodations at the Hotel Marlborough, the hotel that Holmes was living in. A week after that, police came to hotel to arrest James. Newspapers alleged that, shortly before leaving England, James had stolen money from his employer to cover gambling losses. Despite the allegations, Holmes provided support to James, for example by accompanying him to court. The final outcome of the legal proceedings against James are unknown, but the New York police turned him over to U.S. officers. A month later, in March, he was under police custody in England and awaiting trial.

Within a few years, Holmes began to have serious financial problems. For example, in April, 1897, Holmes went to the Hotel Metropole cafe and proceeded to drink to excess, ordering absinthe cocktails and bottles of expensive champagne. Upon be asked to pay at the end of the night, Holmes claimed that he only had seven cents to his name. A hotel manager called the police, but the police just advised that the manager should have presented a bill earlier in the evening. The episode was widely reporting in New York newspapers.

By August of 1897, Holmes had taken to begging on the streets. He was regularly arrested for petty crimes like begging and public drunkenness. Periodically he was confined to a psychiatric hospital. Throughout the 1890s and 1900, Holmes' personal problems were widely reported by newspaper.

Except for a short period around 1900 when he and his mother moved to Washington D.C. and a period around 1905 when he was living in White Plains, NY, Holmes largely remained in New York City for the remainder of his life.

Newspapers appear to have largely lost interest in Holmes by 1910, although he continued to have personal problems and was periodically confined for psychiatric treatment. He died in 1931 while an inmate in Central Islip State Hospital.

Sources Cited

1) 1860; Census Place: Yonkers, Westchester, New York; Page: 501; Family History Library Film: 803880

2) 1880; Census Place: New York City, New York, New York; Roll: 870; Page: 58B; Enumeration District: 072

3) 1900; Census Place: Washington, Washington, District of Columbia; Page: 15; Enumeration District: 0048; FHL microfilm: 1240160

4) New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1905; City: White Plains; County: Westchester; Page: 13

5) New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1915; Election District: 01; Assembly District: 03; City: New York; County: New York; Page: 84

6) 1930; Census Place: Islip, Suffolk, New York; Page: 57B; Enumeration District: 0089; FHL microfilm: 2341385

3) New York, New York, City Directory: 1886, 1894, 1922.

4) NY State Death Index, New York Department of Health, Albany, NY. Certificate Number:50568.

8) "Foreign Way." Buffalo Morning Express and Illustrated Buffalo Express. February 6, 1895. pg. 2.

9) "Holmes Agnew A Beggar." The World (New York, New York). August 8, 1897. p. 51.

10) "Stolen Gold in his Trunk." The Sun (New York, New York). February 6, 1895, p. 2.

11) "Mrs. Keene Discharged." The World (New York, New York). February 7, 1897. p. 5.

11) "The Charges Against a Liverpool Clerk." Liverpool Mercury, etc (Liverpool, England). March 23, 1895. p. 5.

12) Brooklyn Daily Eagle. April 5, 1897. p. 7. 

13) "Holmes Agnew Begs Five Cents." The Sun (New York, New York). August 9, 1897. p. 1.

13) "Wouldn't Be Called Beggar." The World (New York, New York). August 10, 1897. p. 3.

14) "Young Agnew in Bow Street Court." The Sun (New York, New York). March 24, 1899. p. 2.

15) "Howard Agnew Arrested Again." The Sun (New York, New York). August 10, 1900. p .1.

16) The Standard Union. December 15, 1902. p. 5.

17) "Homes Agnew Under Arrest." The Evening World (New York, New York). May 13, 1903. p. 1.

18) "Howard Agnew in Bellevue." New York Tribune. May 2, 1908. p. 1.

19) "Columbia Male Academy Reunion Now Proposed." The State, May 2, 1926. p. 15.

The students of the Radical University: Horatio L. Fillebrown

Horatio Ladd Fillebrown (b. May, 1859; d. March 28, 1926)

Maine.  White.

Occupation: electrician, manager, typewriter dealer, 

Father's occupation: trader

Horatio Fillebrown was born in Maine around 1859 to James S. and Anna L. Fillebrown. In 1850, James and Anna were living in Readfield, ME and James was working as a trader. By 1860, they had moved to Auburn, ME and Fillebrown was working as a hardware dealer.

The father James served in the Union Army during the Civil War. He enlisted in the U.S. Army on May 3, 1861. He began as a lst Lieutenant and Adjutant in the 1st Maine Infantry Regiment. The 1st Maine was reorganized into the 10th Maine Infantry Regiment, and James was made Lieutenant Colonel of the new regiment on October 4, 1861.

James was at both the Battle of Winchester and the Battle of Antietam. He was wounded twice. The first time was while on reconnaissance in the Luray Valley in Virginia. Another soldier's pistol accidently discharged, and the pistol ball struck James in the leg. The second time was at Antietam. Towards the start of the battle, the commanding Colonel's horse was shot by a Confederate sharpshooter. Upon being shot, the horse bolted and ran James over. He was disabled for several days. 

After the Civil War, James and his family moved to South Carolia. By 1870, the family was living in Darlington County and James was working as a trial justice. They had moved Columbia by the mid-1870s. In Columbia, James worked as a clerk in the Auditor's Department of the Comptroller-General's Office.

The son Horatio registered as a student in the sub freshman class at the University of South Carolina on November 21, 1874. However, he spent less than a year at the university. In June, 1875, he left Columbia to attend the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD.  His appointment was made by U.S. Congressman Solomon L. Hoge. 

Horatio was admitted to the Naval Academy on June 19, 1875. He attended the academy for five years, completed the academic course with the class of 1880. At graduation, Horatio was ranked 43th out of a class of 61 cadet-midshipmen.

After he'd completed the Naval Academy's academic course, Horatio served in the Navy for two years, as was required of Academy cadets. He served as a cadet-midshipman on the USS Yantic, the USS Tennessee, and in Brooklyn, NY. The Yantic was a 849 ton gunboat, while the Tennessee was a 3,281 ton frigate. After completing his required service, Horatio left the Navy, resigning on July 17, 1882.

By the late 1880s, Horatio was living in Brooklyn, NY and working as an electrician. He had moved to Binghamton, NY by the 1890s. There he worked as a typewriter dealer.  He remained in the city, working in the typewriter sales, for the remainder of his life.

Horatio died in 1926. He is buried in Floral Park Cemetery.

Sources Cited

0) 1850; Census Place: Readfield, Kennebec, Maine; Roll: 257; Page: 395b

0) 1860; Census Place: Auburn, Androscoggin, Maine; Page: 749; Family History Library Film: 803432

1) 1870; Census Place: Whittemore, Darlington, South Carolina; Roll: M593_1493; Page: 629A; Family History Library Film: 552992

2) 1900; Census Place: Binghamton Ward 3, Broome, New York; Page: 11; Enumeration District: 0008; FHL microfilm: 1241009

3) 1910; Census Place: Binghamton Ward 3, Broome, New York; Roll: T624_925; Page: 14B; Enumeration District: 0010; FHL microfilm: 1374938

4) 1920; Census Place: Binghamton Ward 3, Broome, New York; Roll: T625_1085; Page: 8B; Enumeration District: 13

2) Annual register of the United States Naval Academy: 1875, 1876, 1877, 1878, 1879, 1889, 1881.

3) Navy Department Library - Naval History and Heritage Command; Washington, D.C.; U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Registry; Year: 1881, 1882, 1883.

4) Brooklyn, New York, City Directory: 1887, 1888, 1889.

5) Binghamton, New York, City Directory: 1899.

6) "South Carolina News." Yorkville Enquirer, March 25, 1875. p. 2.

5) Columbia, South Carolina Directory: 1875.

The prep students of the Radical University: Samuel Garfunkle

Advertisement for Charleston business that Samuel ran with his brother Benjamin
From Sheldon's Retail Trade of the United States, 1888. 

Samuel Garfunkle (b. Abt. 1863; September 27, 1933), 

South Carolina.  White.

Occupation: book keeper, salesman.

Father's occupation: clothier, merchandise (dry goods).

Mother's occupation: hoopskirt manufacturer.

Samuel Garfunkle was born  around 1863 to Moses and Mary H. Garfunkle. His parents had immigrated to the U.S., Moses from Austria and Mary from Russia. The last names suggests that the family was Jewish.

Samuel was born in Kentucky, but the family was living in New York City until around 1873 when they moved to South Carolina. The family was living in Charleston by 1874. Both parents worked in the clothing industry (the city directory lists Mary as a hoop skirt manufacturer). The family had left Charleston for Columbia by 1876.

Samuel matriculated as a preparatory student at the University of South Carolina at some point between February, 1875 and January, 1876. The university closed before he completed the program.

In 1880, Samuel was still living with his family in Columbia. His father was working as a clothier. The family returned to Charleston later in the 1880s.

Around 1887, Samuel and his brother Benjamin started the dry goods business "Garfunkel Bros" in Charleston.  The father Moses worked as the manager and a third brother, Aaron, as manager. The business (Note that these men are listed under the family name "Garfunkel,"but this also certainly the same as the "Garfunkle" family appearing in Columbia city records. For example, both families have a father and three sons with the same names.)

In Charleston, the Garfunkle family was involved in the Jewish community. Moses served as president of the orthodox synagogue Berith Shalom Orthodox synagogue (now Brith Sholom Beth Israel), and Samuel as the secretary. 

Around 1900, Samuel left the South and moved to New York City. He was joined by most of his family, including his father Moses and brother Benjamin. In New York, Samuel worked as a salesman and bookkeeper. He remained in the city until his death in 1933. 

Sources Cited

1) 1880; Census Place: Columbia, Richland, South Carolina; Roll: 1238; Page: 269B; Enumeration District: 163

2) 1900; Census Place: Charleston Ward 5, Charleston, South Carolina; Page: 15; Enumeration District: 0087; FHL microfilm: 1241520

3) 1910; Census Place: Manhattan Ward 12, New York, New York; Roll: T624_1020; Page: 19B; Enumeration District: 0492; FHL microfilm: 1375033

4) 1920; Census Place: Manhattan Assembly District 17, New York, New York; Roll: T625_1217; Page: 10B; Enumeration District: 1215

2) Charleston City Directory: 1875, 1890, 1892, 1893, 1898, 1912. 

3) Columbia City Directory: 1879.

5) New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1915; Election District: 19; Assembly District: 31; City: New York; County: New York; Page: 11

6) New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1905; Election District: A.D. 31 E.D. 15; City: Manhattan; County: New York; Page: 45

7) Index to New York City Deaths 1862-1948. Indices. Certificate Number:19097.

What's in an FBI record?

Page from Wiggins' FBI file

This blogpost is preceded by

• "Timmerman attacks, Spring 1957"
•  "Timmerman attacks, Spring 1958"
• "Timmerman attacks: Allen University and Benedict College"
• "Timmerman attacks: the Benedict professors"
• "Timmerman attacks: the Allen University professors"
• Timmerman Attacks: Hoffman Update"
• "What was Forrest O. Wiggins up to?"

Let's take a look at what an FBI record actually looks like. The image above is part of Forrest O. Wiggins' FBI file. What is in the document?

The upper-left corner tells us that this page is a FD-263 form. A FD-263 is a cover page for a full report. The top of the form tells us that this is a report produced by the Savannah office on information it generated. The information concerns Forrest O. Wiggins and is about a "Security Matter - C." In other words, it is about a security matter concerning communists.

The report was made on August 14, 1957, and it covers the following dates: March 14; April 10, 16, 17, 19, 24, 26; May 8, 15, 23; June 12, 13, 16, 17, 19, 27; July 2, 3, 10, 26; August 5.

We can match these dates with dates from other sources to get some idea of what was attracting the FBI's interest. For example, the first date is March 14. Looking at earlier FBI records, we see that this was the day that the FBI received copies of an Allen University Bulletin containing an essay by Wiggins in which he promoted "Communist information." 

The June dates, especially the 16th and 17th, can also be explained. On the 15th, the President of Allen University asked Wiggins to resign his position. The June dates presumably reflect reports to the FBI on the back-and-forth between Wiggins and the president on resigning.

Another significant date is August 5. The next day was an Executive Board Meeting where the Allen trustees discussed dismissing Wiggins. Presumably, the FBI solicited information about what would happen at the meeting.

The dates that don't appear in other records are also interesting. For example, why are there so many April dates? I don't know, but this is something to look out for when reading other parts of the record.

The upper-right corner contains a crossed out stamp that reads "confidential." This means that the document was originally classified as confidential, but the document as currently released contains no confidential information.

The PDF that I have does not contain all the original text. Three parts of the text are redacted. The federal government is allowed to redact text under some specific exceptions. The exceptions being used are cited next to the text. Sometimes the nature of the exception shreds light as to what the missing information is.

First redacted text

The first redacted text is in a box labeled "Report made by." Presumably this is the name of the FBI agent who wrote the report. His name is being withheld under exception b7c. This exceptions allows withholding of an investigatory record that was compiled for law enforcement purposes when disclosing it would constitute an unwarranted invasion of someone's personal privacy. The standard for what  constitutes an unwarranted invasion of privacy is low since courts have ruled that just having your name in a legal report could damaging. Presumably, standard practice is to redact FBI agents names under this exception. The next exception is more interesting.

Second redacted text

This second text is also withheld under b7c. However, the nature of this text is less clear than the first. It appears that this is a sentence describing what Wiggins ("Subject") was doing.  Furthermore, the reasons for withholding this aren't pro forma: the whole paragraph is describing Wiggins' activities but nothing else is redacted. I have no idea what is discussed here, but it certainly is intriguing.

Third redacted text

The third redacted text appears to be the name, or another identifier, of a confidential informant for the FBI. This text is withheld under exceptions b2 and b7d. These are presumably the standard exceptions that are cited when withholding an informant's identity. Exception b2 allows withholding of records "related solely to the internal personnel rules and practices of an agency," while Exception b7d allows withholding of "information compiled for law enforcement purposes [which] could reasonably be expected to disclose the identity of a confidential source." 

Lower-left corner

From the lower-left corner of the document, we learn who got copies of the form. The form was produced by the Savannah office, and they made 3 copies which went into file 100-4211. The main office in DC received 4 copies by registered mail ("RM") that were stored in file 64-25362.

The history of this record is documented by stamps at the bottom.

Stamps on the bottom of the page

Two stamps are "Confidential" and "Subv. Control." Both have been crossed out. We've already discussed the "Confidential" stamp. I'm guessing the second stamp indicated that this file had to do with the surveillance of "subversives" (in this case, somebody who promotes "communist" ideas).

Slightly more significant is the stamp that reads "Copies Destroyed Nov 16 1961." I'm guessing that copies were destroyed as a matter of routine housecleaning. By 1961, there wasn't much interest in the records (Wiggins had left South Carolina) and keeping 7 copies of these records would have taken up a lot of space (this was pre-computers!).

Another stamp seems to read "63 Aug 26 1957 classified by." I don't know what the "63" stands for, but the August date falls a little over a week after the form was filled out. I'm guessing this indicates when the report was filled away.

There are a few notations on the document that I don't know how to interpret. For example, there is a handwritten remark directly above the (redacted) name an informant. The remark was written on August 27, 1957 which is the day after the form was classified. However, I can't make out what the rest of the text says. Let me know if you have any idea!

Handwritten remark.
Let me know if you can read it.

What was Forrest O. Wiggins up to?

Forrest O. Wiggins
University of Minnesota Yearbook, 1949

This blogpost is preceded by

• "Timmerman attacks, Spring 1957"
•  "Timmerman attacks, Spring 1958"
• "Timmerman attacks: Allen University and Benedict College"
• "Timmerman attacks: the Benedict professors"
• "Timmerman attacks: the Allen University professors"
• Timmerman Attacks: Hoffman Update"

Forrest O. Wiggins was one of the Allen University faculty members who was dismissed in the 1950s at the insistence of South Carolina Governor Timmerman. In his public statements, Governor Timmerman made vague claims that Professor Wiggins and the other faculty members were pursuing "typical [Communist Party]" projects.  The projects, he claimed, involved teaching "hate white, hate Southern, and hate State." As evidence, he gestured to records held by the federal government.

I received Wiggins' FBI files under the Freedom of Information Act.  (Thanks, New Left!) Large parts of the file are redacted, but they give an insight into what was happening.

The early life of Wiggins

Wiggins was born in 1907 in Vincennes, Indiana to Charles and Cora Wiggins. The early 1900s saw large numbers of Blacks in the South move to Indiana, especially to its urban centers. The Wiggins family was unusual. Unlike most Blacks in the state, they had deep roots: both of Wiggins' parents and most of his grandparents were born in Indiana.

By the time Wiggins was born, his parents had established a solid middle-class household for themselves. The father worked as a barber, and he had achieved enough professional success that he owned his own barber shop. However, the marriage was evidently an unhappy one, and the parents separated while Wiggins was a child. After the divorce, Wiggins had essentially no relationship with his father. By 1920, he was living with his mother and her second husband, Andrew Haynes, in Indianapolis.

The move from Vincennes to Indianapolis was a major one. Vincennes was a small city of 17,160. Its Black population was minuscule: only 136 Blacks lived there (about 1.6% of the population). In contrast, Indianapolis was the state capitol and by far the most-populous city with 314,194 residents. Largely because of the availability of manufacturing jobs, the city's Black population was growing rapidly. By 1920, Blacks represented 11% of the city population (about 43,679 residents), making the city a regional center for Black life. 

In Indianapolis, Wiggins' stepfather Andrew worked for a railroad company. His mother also entered the workforce, first as a saleslady and later as a beauty operator. Wiggins attended Arsenal Technical High School. At the time, the student body was overwhelmingly White. Wiggins was one of only three Blacks in his graduating class of 380. 

Neither Wiggins' parents nor his stepfather had completed high school, but Wiggins appears to have done well as a student. For example, the school yearbook notes his abilities as a public speaker. Wiggins graduated from Arsenal Tech in 1924.

Portion of Wiggins' high school yearbook (Wiggins is center-top).
The Arsenal Cannon yearbook, Vol XXIII, No. 17. 
Via Ancestory.com

After graduating from high school, Wiggins attended Butler University, a small private school in Indianapolis. Politically, the university was relatively progressive. Blacks had attended the school since the 1880s, albeit in small numbers. The year Wiggins matriculated; Blacks made up about 4% of the 1,290-person student body. However, during this time, racial tensions were increasing city-wide. In the summer of 1927, the university's Board of Directors adopted a policy of limiting the number of Black students admitted to ten per year. The next year – Wiggins' senior year – the number of Black students admitted dropped by three-quarters. 

Despite an increasingly unfriendly campus climate, Wiggins graduated from Butler with his A.B. degree in 1928. He then studied in France for a year and a half. After returning to the US, he taught Moorehouse College.  While teaching, he continued his education at the University of Wisconsin. In 1931, he was awarded an A.M. degree in philosophy from the university. For his degree, he submitted the thesis "The utilitarian theory of property from Plato to J. S. Mill."

After receiving he received his Master's, Wiggins was hired as an associate professor by Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, NC.  Wiggins continued his studies at Wisconsin during this time. In 1938, he received his PhD in philosophy from the university. His dissertation was titled "The moral consequences of individualism."

It is unclear what Wiggins did the year after he got his PhD. FBI records state that he taught at Howard University from 1939 to 1941, but Howard University records only document that he taught there during the 1940-41 academic year. That year he was employed as an Instructor in the Humanities and Romance Languages. While in D.C., he married Ethel Doris Johnson. 

Ethel had been born in North Carolina, but she grew up in Columbia, South Carolina. Her parents were middle-class. Her father worked as a public-school principal, her mother as a teacher. Ethel herself was college educated, having been a standout student at Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte. Likely she met Wiggins while while he was teaching at Johnson C. Smith and she was a student. After graduating, she returned to living with her parents and worked as a teacher. However, in late 1940 or early 1941, she had married Wiggins and moved to D.C.

Later that year Wiggins and his wife moved to Durham, NC to teach at North Carolina College for Negroes (now North Carolina Central University). In 1943, while teaching in Durham, he was hired by the Department of Education to teach English in Haiti. It was in Haiti that Wiggins first drew the attention of the FBI.

Wiggins enters the FBI files

Wiggins traveled to Haiti to teach English around February 1943. He taught at a combined high school and junior college in Cap-Haïtien. Originally, he had planned to stay there until the summer. However, on August 14, 1943, he applied to extend his stay by six months.  The application appears to have triggered the FBI's interest. Five days later, on the 19th, the FBI Main Office wrote a memo about him.  The memo stated that a "reliable, confidential source" reported that Wiggins was acting as "an active anti-White and anti-British propagandist" in Haiti. On the basis of this information, the office recommended that an investigation be conducted. 

Ultimately, Wiggins did not extend his stay in Haiti. He flew back later that August. When he disembarked at the airport, he was met by an FBI Special Agent who was waiting to interview him. The interview didn't produce much. In addition to collecting basic biographical information, the agent asked about the allegations that he was engaged in propaganda activities. Wiggins acknowledged that he had written a number of newspaper articles, but he denied that any of them were anti-English or anti-White. He said that the only article that he was criticized for was a 1942 Durham Herald article. In the article, he expressed his belief that Blacks should be allowed to work in the defense industry and receive the same salary as Whites. The FBI agent does not appear to have regarded the matter worth pursuing. The report he submitted concluded: "No further inquiry in this matter is contemplated."

After his return to the U.S., Wiggins continued teaching at HBCUs. He first continued teaching at North Carolina College for Negroes. However, at some point between 1943 and 1946, he moved to Louisville, KY to teach at Louisville Municipal College.

The year 1946 marked a major professional change for Wiggins. That year he moved to Minneapolis, MN to teach at the University of Minnesota. 

Wiggins in Minnesota

In September 1946, Wiggins was appointed as a full-time instructor in the University of Minnesota's Philosophy Department.  This employment was an honor.  Wiggins was one of the first African Americans to be employed at a flagship state university. Ethel found work as a social worker.

In Minnesota, Wiggins was active in left-wing politics on campus and in Minneapolis more generally. He openly spoke out against American capitalism and militarism and promoted civil rights for African Americans. 

Starting around April 1948, political and business leaders began writing to the university administration to complain about Wiggins.  For example, a bank vice president wrote the university president to complain about a newspaper article he read about Wiggins' teaching.  According to the article, Wiggins had organized a classroom activity where students drafted blueprints for an ideal America. The vice president felt this exercise involved promoting inappropriate ideas that were critical of the U.S. government. The complaints increased over the next few years. For example, in 1950, state congressman Howard Ottinger wrote to the university president to complain about a public speech he heard Wiggins deliver.

The FBI began receiving new information about Wiggins in 1949, as complaints to the university administration were increasing.  That year the regional FBI office received a report from an informant that there was reason to believe that Wiggins was a member of the Communist Party (presumably the Communist Party of United States American or CPUSA). Later, informants said that Wiggins was a member of the Socialist Workers Party. The FBI investigated the claims, but the only supporting evidence they could collect was circumstantial. (For example, Wiggins had made public statements consistent with the "Communist Party Line," and his name was on a list found in a Minneapolis Communist Party bookstore.) A 1952 summary report on Wiggins' activities in Minneapolis reported that he had contacts with leaders in the Community Party USA and the Socialist Workers Party and gave speeches "which followed the CP line," but notably did not assert that he was a member of any revolutionary organization. 

The University of Minnesota president initially defended the university's employment of Wiggins. He responded to Wiggins' critics by distancing himself from Wiggins' political views but standing by the university's decision to employ him.

In late 1951, the president reversed his position. That December he sent Wiggins a letter informing him that his contract would not be renewed. Although his department chair had recommended him for a promotion to an assistant professorship, Wiggins was still an instructor at the time and thus he was on a contract that required yearly renewal.

The letter informing Wiggins that his contract would not be renewed gave no justification for the decision. However, when the decision was made public, it caused an uproar among students and faculty. Under public pressure, the president claimed that his decision had been made on the basis of the dean's negative evaluation of Wiggins' scholarly record. However, the chair of the philosophy department challenged this statement by issuing a signed letter stating that the department unanimously disagreed with the president and recommended Wiggins' reappointment. 

The letter issued by the Wiggins' chair was part of an outpouring of public support. Student support was particularly strong. Student groups submitted petitions protesting the president's decision. By February 1952, over 500 students had joined protests against the administration. They were supported by other organizations including the state branch of the NAACP, the Negro Labor Council, and the Progressive Party of Minnesota.

One organization was notable in its failure to support Wiggins. The local chapter of the AAUP announced that the evidence it reviewed did not establish a violation of academic freedom and thus they did not recommend further action. The chapter explained its decision in a 22-page report written by a 3-person committee. The report reads as a whitewash. Although state politicians had written letters to the president complaining about Wiggins, the report does not mention them and instead states that the committee found no evidence that the decision been made for political reasons. The committee members acknowledged that the university president might have acted, in part, out of a concern over negative publicity. However, they downplayed the significance if this, writing that "It would be difficult, if not impossible, for a conscientious administrator to isolate" Wiggins' research from his political statements when assessing someone's scholarship.

The AAUP committee reported that it found the decision not to reappoint Wiggins had been made on the basis of his scholarly record and that the assessment of his record was done properly. This is a remarkable statement. Wiggins had the unanimous support of the philosophy faculty, and the negative evaluation was based on the dean's personal evaluation. The dean appears to have been unfit to analyze the work of philosophy professor as he had no training in the field. He worked exclusively in Library Science (his dissertation was "Conditions affecting use of the college library"). In their report, the committee addressed this issue by simply dismissing it: "even unanimous opinion of any so-called department does not necessarily represent the opinion of the best informed colleagues." 

The support for Wiggins was successful in getting the issue into the spotlight. His non-reappointment made national news and was reported by the New York Times, for example. However, it unsuccessful in reversing the administration's decision. Wiggins left Minnesota in June 1952.

Wiggins moved to Columbia, SC to work at Allen University as a Professor of Philosophy and Romance Languages. 

A student asks the UM Regents to reappoint Wiggins
The Gopher, Volume 65, 1952

Wiggins in South Carolina

Once Wiggins had moved to South Carolina, the responsibility for monitoring him passed from the Minnesota FBI office to the Savannah, GA office. In October 1953, the Minnesota office provided the Savannah office with a summary report on Wiggins.

The Savannah office of the FBI collected information on Wiggins, but they found little of interest. A confidential informant reported that he had no information about Wiggins engaging in subversive activities. The only information offered was that Wiggins made a comparison between democracy in the U.S. and in Russia in a class. 

In May 1953, after his first year at Allen, Wiggins took a yearlong leave of absence to study in Mexico. He traveled to Chahhuila, Guanajuato, Morelia, and Mexico City. During this period, Wiggins marriage was under severe strain. Ethel did not join him, and in February 1954, while Wiggins was still in Mexico, she divorced him for desertion.

Wiggins' international travel increased the FBI's interest in him. However, the FBI's efforts were largely limited to documenting where in Mexico Wiggins traveled to and reporting that they had no evidence that he was participating in subversive activities. 

Wiggins appears to have enjoyed the trip. After he returned to South Carolina, he published an article in the Indianapolis Recorder about his experience. He celebrated Mexico as a county where Blacks can travel without experiencing pervasive racial discrimination. He contrasted this with the United State, where a Black man traveling on vacation has to constantly worry about being refused service at restaurants and hotels. White Americans, Wiggins wrote, also benefit from the climate in Mexico as they soon shed their racial prejudices 

Wiggins returned to Allen University to teach in Fall 1954. In September, the Minneapolis office of the FBI issued an important memorandum. The memorandum announced that an informant who had been submitting information on Wiggins was deemed "unreliable." Attached to the memorandum were amended copies of a report that had been sent to the Savannah office. Furthermore, they advised that the information given by the informant should be regarded as questionable and not disseminated unless corroborated by other sources. It is unclear if the existing records reflect the information from the unreliable informant.

That Spring the Savannah office of the FBI made a major effort to collect information on Wiggins. In January, the office applied for a 30 day mail cover surveillance. (A mail cover surveillance involves the Post Office recording information on the outside (or cover) of letters and sending it to the FBI). However, the application was denied. Shortly after the mail cover request was denied, the Savannah office produced a report on the information offered by an informant in Columbia, but the informant simply reported that he was unaware of Wiggins being involved in any Communist Party activities.  The office also received a report from the Charlotte office reporting on Wiggins' activities in the 1940s.  The final action the office took was a request for permission to interview Wiggins, but this too was denied.  

Half a year of efforts in collecting information on Wiggins yielded nothing of substance. This seems to have convinced the FBI that Wiggins was not worth monitoring. In May, Wiggins was removed from the FBI's security index (used to track individuals deemed dangerous to national security) at the recommendation of the Savannah office. For next 2 years, there were no interactions between the FBI and Wiggins.

Wiggins' apartment near Allen University in 2020
Photo courtesy of author

The State Government Attacks

Wiggins next appears in FBI records in March 1957.  That month the Savannah office of the FBI received a letter regarding Wiggins. The letter is unavailable, but it was a request for information about Wiggins and Horace Davis (a professor at neighboring Benedict College). 

The request was taken seriously. The Savannah office was instructed to respond to the letter by telephone and communicate information with the caveat that it was to be made clear that the information was furnished in the strictest confidence and that it cannot be attributed to the FBI.

The request was almost certainly made by South Carolina Senator Olin D. Johnston or a representative of his office. Internal communications show that the FBI quickly connected the request to a nomination hearing that Johnston had participated in. Johnston served on the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Davis had written to the committee to protest against a nomination to the Supreme Court. Davis had written the letter because the nominee had ruled unfavorably in a lawsuit he had filed. Davis had sued to challenge his dismissal from Kansas City University for refusing to answer questions about whether he'd been a communist. 

The committee not only disregarded Davis's protest, but Johnston grew concerned that universities in his state might be employing communists. The day of the hearing Johnston told news reporters that he thought this should not be allowed and that he was going to investigate the matter.

It is unclear why information about Wiggins was requested. He was completely uninvolved in the nomination hearing and had only tenuous ties to communism. Wiggins may have simply been the only other professor Johnston had heard about. Wiggins dismissal from the University of Minnesota had made national news.

Johnston himself appears to have had little interest in Wiggins. Johnston publicly spoke out against Horace Davis's employment at Benedict College. However, he seems to have largely lost interest in the matter after Horace resigned in late March. While the controversy about alleged communist infiltration of Benedict and Allen would continue to be debated for over a year, Johnston would play no role in that debate.

As the public spotlight focused on Wiggins again, the FBI renewed its surveillance of him. In addition to collecting information from confidential informants, the Savannah office reapplied for mail cover surveillance on Wiggins. This time the application was approved. Larges parts of the FBI's reports are redacted, so it is unclear exactly what information was collected. For example, an August 14, 1957 report contains information by a source at Allen University who apparently witnessed something involving Wiggins while working late at night. However, it is impossible to figure out what was reported since most of the text is redacted. The redactions were made under Exemptions 7(c) and 7(d). This indicates that the text was collected for law enforcement purposes and is withheld to protect people's privacy and the identities of confidential sources.

An August 14, 1957 FBI report on Wiggins. Much of the text is redacted
Photo courtesy of the author

The FBI closely followed the goings-on at Allen and Benedict, but they did not seem to find much relevant information. The most incriminating information collected about Wiggins was that he promoted communist ideas in an essay he published in the Spring 1985 Benedict College Bulletin, and he subscribed to American Socialist. The American Socialist was a publication of the Socialist Union of American (a group that splintered off from the Socialist Workers Party). In February 1958, an FBI agent recommended that the investigation of Wiggins be closed. 

While the FBI did not find Wiggins to be a subject of interest, both the press and the state government remained closely engaged with the issues surrounding his employment at Allen. Ultimately, the state government was successful in pressing the university to remove Wiggins. The 1957-58 academic year was his last in Columbia. In October 1958, the FBI reported that Wiggins had moved to Dallas, TX and was working at Bishop College.

Photo of Forrest O. Wiggins in FBI file

Life after Allen

Wiggins only stayed in Texas for a year. After the 1958-59 academic year, he left to teach at Edward Water College in Jacksonville, FL. He moved a second time in summer of 1961. In June 1961, he was appointed Professor of Languages and Literature at Savannah State College (in Georgia). He stayed at Savannah State for most of the 1960s. In January 1968, he moved to West Virginia State University. There he rejoined his friend and former Allen University colleague Edwin D. Hoffman. He remained at West Virginia State for the rest of his career. 

The FBI continued monitoring Wiggins for most of the 1960s. However, their actions were largely limited to transferring files between field offices and performing a routine review (e.g. checking Wiggins' credit rating and arrest record). The last extent FBI report on Wiggins was issued in February 1968, shortly after he moved to West Virginia.

Wiggins remained at West Virginia State until he retired. He then moved to Brevard County, Florida. He lived there until his death on October 26, 1981.

Forrest O. Wiggins, ca. 1968
The Arch Yearbook, 1968