by Bob Jacobsen '63

Elizabeth Crump enrolled at Arizona Territorial Normal School in 1924. That record is among the earliest evidence of African-Americans studying at what is now Arizona State University.

Corroborating oral history shared by alumni and published materials from the period confirm that African-Americans were enrolled at Normal as early as 1920, but official records fail to acknowledge many of these students.

"That was the situation everywhere," Emerson Harvey '39 told the State Press in 1977. Harvey, who died in 1993, stressed that African-Americans were not treated like other Americans in the early part of the 20th Century. "There just wasn't any way to fight it."

Even the yearbooks prior to 1950 seldom pictured African-Americans. There were no African-American student-body officers. There were no African-American athletes until the fall of 1935. The first pictures in the yearbooks of an African-American social club did not appear until 1939.

Crump, who went on to teach grade school in Phoenix and earn her master's from Arizona State College in 1952, probably attended the Normal School after Benton James was graduated. One Hayden Library listing indicates James was the first African-American graduate from the school in 1924. James' yearbook photo, however, is included with the senior class of 1923.

The first African-American mentioned in ASU's official records is Blanche Warner. She is pictured in the 1932 volume of Statistics for the Academic Year. Warner was from Tucson, lived in Phoenix and her major was kindergarten or primary education. These volumes include her name for the next four years until 1936, when she graduated.

There is also a picture of a Mabel Slaughter in the 1934 yearbook as a graduating senior. She is also listed as being a member of the Commerce Club.

In the 1935-36 volume of Statistics for the Academic Year near the middle of the book stands a page with a list of minority students titled "Foreigners Born in the U.S."

Many African-American students are listed here, while 21 are listed in another category as "Negroes." Only one African-American student, a Dorothy Jones, is listed as being from Phoenix. All the rest are listed as being from out of state. Irene McClellan King's name is on the list, even though she had lived in Laveen, Ariz., since 1920. She enrolled at Arizona State Teachers College in 1935, after attending Phoenix College.

"My senior year (at ASTC) you stood in line to ask the dean to let you in on credit," King, who died in 1999, had said in a 1981 published interview. "Then you had to pay your registration fee before the end of that semester. I was coming up for graduation not knowing how I was going to get it paid.

"I had my graduation invitations and pictures to pay for. Black women could do housework. You got $1 a day and bus fare. I got off the bus from working one morning, started through the campus and heard a person say they had a notice from the office for me to do some work to pay for my tuition. I went straight over to Old Main and asked if they had any work.

"They said, 'nothing but housecleaning.' So before my final examination, I scrubbed woodwork, stopped and went and took the exam. Then I came back and worked some more, and when the time came I had paid for my tuition."

One Japanese-American gentleman, William Kajikawa, is listed as a Foreigner born in the U.S. with his race indicated as "yellow." Kajikawa has been associated with Arizona State University for almost 70 years as a teacher and coach. He recalls the unequal treatment African-Americans had to endure in the early part of the century.

"I remember a baseball player named Joe Island, and a football player named Emerson Harvey. I think they were the first Blacks to play sports at ASU. They couldn't eat in the cafeteria and couldn't live in the dorms. A lot of them commuted from Phoenix. They used to eat in the basement of Old Main.

"When I got back from the war in 1946, there was an icebox at Old Main, and they would come in and eat their lunch there. It was hard for them, they couldn't swim in the pool, drink from the fountains and couldn't use the rest rooms."

Island, an African-American who enrolled in 1935, said there were about 15 African-Americans on campus when he arrived. They couldn't live in the school's dormitories. They couldn't even live in Tempe or eat in the school's dining halls. "So we found a hamburger place close to campus called Dad's Place, and that's where we ate," he said.

Island earned his B.A. in education in the spring of 1937. He was the first African-American athlete to compete for what is now Arizona State University.

Island played baseball for the ASTC Bulldogs in 1935 and during spring 1936. He played the outfield and first base, and in his words, was "pretty good."

"The players accepted me fine," said Island. "I remember we played a game in Tucson and the cafŽ we went into would not serve Blacks. So the rest of the team walked out with me. They were very supportive."

"Coming to ASU (ASTC) was the best thing that happened to me. It helped me grow and prepared me for life. Education was one of my main things, and I remember once I graduated from ASU, I knew I had reached one of my goals."

The institution's first recognized African-American social group, the Dunbar Club, was started in 1935 with Island becoming the president for two years. The ASC yearbook did not include a photograph of the club.

The first membership consisted of 15 African-American students and had an active program throughout the year. Its purpose was to promote friendship among its members and with other students on the campus. Of primary interest to the members was the choral group sponsored by the organization. The singers specialized in spiritual ballads and their programs aroused favorable comment.

"It was our only social outlet," said Island, who turned 90 in December.

Among Island's friends was Harvey, who not only became the first African-American football player for ASTC, he was the first to participate at the college level in the entire Southwest.

Harvey's football picture was displayed inside the Varsity Inn in 1937, but he wasn't allowed inside the restaurant. Nor was he allowed to live in a campus dormitory or eat in the dining halls.

On football road trips, he couldn't stay with his teammates in the team hotel. When he graduated in 1939, he did not receive the maroon and gold blanket given to letter winners.

Harvey played both defensive end and blocking back for Coach Rudy Lavik. He remembers players from other teams singling him out for punishment.

"We were playing Texas Western," he told the State Press, "and there was this big tackle who said, 'Boy, this is going to be a long night for you.' We fought tooth and nail for 60 minutes, and after they won the game, he congratulated me for being tough. I congratulated him, too."

Harvey, who it was said was a quiet, unassuming young man with a great sense of humor, said his fellow Bulldogs stuck up for him as well.

"On the team we were real close," he said, "real brothers as far as football was concerned, blood brothers. But off the field, society took over and we didn't associate."

By 1940, the yearbook began to include more of the school's African-American students. Juanita Favors and Inez Wilson were pictured as graduating seniors. Juanita majored in social studies and Inez in psychology. There were very few pictures, however, of African-Americans participating in activities, the exceptions being LeRoi Chapelle on the track pages and Leon Cherry as a member of the Commerce Club.

In 1941 both Chapelle, an English major, and Lorena Miller, biological science, were pictured in the yearbook as graduating seniors. There was one photo of Ira O'Neal wearing a letter sweater, but no indication of the sport.

William Warren was president of the Dunbar Club, which coordinated an annual picnic, a Christmas breakfast, an annual spring dance and a joint dinner with the Pilgrim Fellowship for activities.

In 1947 Morrison Warren (William's brother) and George Diggs were becoming valuable members of the football and track teams respectively, and Joe Batiste was becoming a track star. The Dunbar Club was alive and well, and membership seemed to be increasing.

That same year Morrison Warren developed a strong loyalty to his school. As a member of the Boarder Conference, Arizona State College was told by the Texas schools to leave its African-American football players at home. Administrators at ASC vowed only to play in games where all its players would be welcome.

Diggs enrolled at ASC after serving his country in World War II. Work was tough to find, and his mother-in-law, Lola Warren, suggested college.

In those days, there were very few African-Americans on campus. They were still not allowed to live in the dormitories, not allowed to eat in the dining halls on campus and not allowed to even live in Tempe. George, a member of the Dunbar Social Club, came to school from Phoenix via the bus or with his brother-in-law, William Warren, in William's car.

Diggs lettered in football in 1947 and '48 and was one of the top performers for the ASC track team. He became friends with a white sprinter, Frank Miller Bostock from North High School.

"One day we were sitting on campus and talking after one of our classes, and Bostock said, 'let's go to the Varsity Inn and get a bite to eat,'" said Diggs. "I thought, 'Oh, really! I can go there?' When we sat down to order, I was the only black guy. I was just following them. If Blacks weren't allowed in there, I didn't know, because nobody told me."

The waitress came over to get their orders, and Diggs said she kept looking at him strangely, but didn't say anything. The next day they went again.

"The manager greeted us at the door," said Diggs, "and said he was glad to see me there. He didn't know why the other Blacks on the campus didn't eat there, too, because they certainly were welcome. So I continued to eat there. It was a very good experience for me at ASC in those days, it was all smooth."

But all was not smooth when the newly named Sun Devil football team traveled. Diggs recalls one trip to Wichita State University in Kansas during 1946. "The coaches and administration thought there might be trouble for Morrison (Warren) and me there, so they wanted to fly us there in a separate plane, suit us up late and have us run on the field just before the game started," said Diggs.

After arriving in Wichita, Diggs and Warren checked in to the hotel and decided to take a walk downtown.

"When we got back to the hotel," said Diggs, "I spotted our luggage with our nametags near the front door. The young man at the front desk said he was sorry, but he didn't know the hotel would not accept Blacks. He had tears in his eyes. We had no idea where we were going to stay."

But a maitre d' in the dining room overheard the conversation, and told Diggs and Warren to wait 10 minutes. He would help them find a room.

"He was getting off work, and was going to drive us to another hotel," said Diggs. "We were in the colored part of town. We got a room, got up the next morning and had no idea where the stadium was or how to get there. But the maitre d' came back on his way to work and drove us back to the team hotel. Everybody was looking for us, and when we arrived they were sitting around outside the hotel.

"The best part was watching how big their eyes got when we drove up in this guy's Cadillac. That was fun."

"I'm glad we played (even though the Devils lost, 34-19)," Diggs said. "By doing something like that, I'd like to think we were paving the way for future generations. Someone had to get it started."

The way was paved for African-Americans at ASC to participate in the Greek system when the Kappa Alpha Psi social fraternity was founded in 1949. The institution had become more accepting, but it took until the 1960s before African-Americans were allowed to live in campus housing.

Earline Wilburn Foster enrolled at Arizona State University in the fall of 1962. She was among the initial wave of African-American women to live in campus dormitories.

"I just enrolled, and moved into North Hall (the freshman dorm)," said Earline, who, after graduation, married ASU football great Gene Foster. "Nobody said anything about me moving in, nobody did anything about it, and in fact I had two white roommates."

While Foster moved into North, her cousin, Karen Kerry, and Karen's roommate, Donna Ward, were assigned to East Hall. They were sophomores, and were not required to live in the freshman dorm. Foster said she knew of a few other African-American coeds who lived in the dorms before her.

"Sharon Edwards and Betty Jean Howard, had previously lived in McClintock and East Halls," said Foster. "And two others, Veronica Davenport of El Paso and Jackie Laster of Phoenix, were also a year ahead of me and I think they also may have stayed on campus."

Racism extended beyond the student body as well. Professor Emeritus John L. Edwards, who holds a master's and a doctorate from ASU, recalls difficult situations he faced as a result of being an African-American faculty member.

"I taught a class about the problems teachers face, and how they handle them," said Edwards. "During my first day I had four Anglo students walk out of the class as soon as I walked to the podium. Two came back and apologized because the students who remained were impressed with my knowledge and experience. After that it was pretty easy."

The university's African-American tradition dates back at least 80 years. Numerous African-American graduates of ASU have gone on to great accomplishments, like the first Black Ph.D. recipient in 1963, Jesse Wilmer Jones; and educators, like Gladys Styles Johnston, the first African-American woman to become an ASU Dean (of Education) in 1986. She later became Chancellor of the University of Nebraska at Kearney. Other examples include local educators Martha Louise Steward and Principal Harold Fuller of Mesa, plus George Benjamin Brooks, Jr., who earned his Ph.D. in wildlife and fisheries sciences.

African-Americans from ASU who have excelled in sports include Major League Baseball home run hitters Reggie Jackson and Barry Bonds; Olympic Gold Medal winners Joe Caldwell (basketball) and Henry Carr (200-meter sprinter) and Herman Frazier (1,600-meter relay); and football greats Mike Haynes, now in the NFL Hall of Fame, and John Jefferson.

Many of these accomplishments were made possible by the countless obstacles overcome by African-American students of earlier times like Earline Foster. Besides helping break the color barrier for campus housing, she became the first African-American to run for Homecoming royalty. "I didn't get it," she said. But a few years later in 1967, Curly Culp, an African-American, was named Homecoming King.

Like many before her, Foster helped pave the way for African-Americans to attend Arizona State University with all the same rights and privileges as students of any other race. She almost seemed destined for this role. Her sixth-grade teacher was Elizabeth Crump.

Many thanks to Associate Archivist Chris Marin '74, '82 M.A. of the Archives/Manuscripts section of the Hayden Library for helping conduct the research for this project. Marin located every book and document available on the history of African-Americans at ASU.

Also thanks to Professor Emeritus John Edwards '58 M.Ed., '65 Ph.D. who found so many needed telephone numbers. Edwards helped locate Earline Wilburn Foster '66, one of the first African-American women to live in a campus dorm, and ASU's first Black baseball player, Joe Island '37.

And thanks to Ms. Foster, who knew and found Winstona Aldridge '47 M.Ed. whose recollection of Ms. Crump added to the story.

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Profiles of ASU's early African-American alumni

The first African-American social fraternity was established at Arizona State College in 1949. The membership included, front row, from left: Gerald D. Crawford, Arthur Dibrel and Lloyd Engram. Back row, from left: Del A. Green, William B. Shaw and Bobby Washington.

The Dunbar Social and Literary Club 1939-40. This was ASU's first social group for African-American students, organized in 1935. Pictured from left, first row: Othello Phillips, Esther White, Juanita Favors, Camille Brewster, Evelyn Henry and Tommie Dotson. Middle row: William Warren, Evelyn Mack, Lorena Miller, Jeanette Wilson, Frances Williams, Eddie James Hodge and Elizabeth Myers. Back row: Cleoh Robinson, Lubbock Taylor, Leroi Chapelle, Robert Bigellow, Edgar Gardner, William Johnson and Leon Cherry.

Emerson Harvey in his football picture from the 1939 Sahuaro yearbook.

Benton James, senior class photo from the 1923 yearbook. James is recorded as the first African-American graduate from the Normal School in 1924.

President G. Homer Durham with ASU's first Ph.D. recipients in June 1963. From left are John H. Mabry, Virginia K. Maresca and Jesse W. Jones. The fourth recipient, Montrose Wolf, is not in the photograph.

A recent reunion of African-American women who lived on campus during the early 1960s included, from left: Earline Wilburn Foster, Karen Kerry Lehman, Betty Jean Howard Milton, Mary Lou Ayala Mellman, Chris Marin and Margie Flores.