Oscar James Dunn: a Case Study in Race & Politics in Reconstruction
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
University of New Orleans ScholarWorks@UNO University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations Dissertations and Theses Fall 12-17-2011 Oscar James Dunn: A Case Study in Race & Politics in Reconstruction Louisiana Brian Mitchell University of New Orleans, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td Part of the African American Studies Commons, American Studies Commons, Cultural History Commons, Political History Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Mitchell, Brian, "Oscar James Dunn: A Case Study in Race & Politics in Reconstruction Louisiana" (2011). University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations. 1351. https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/1351 This Dissertation is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by ScholarWorks@UNO with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Dissertation in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. This Dissertation has been accepted for inclusion in University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UNO. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Oscar James Dunn: A Case Study in Race & Politics in Reconstruction Louisiana A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the University of New Orleans in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Urban Studies by Brian Keith Mitchell B.A., University of New Orleans, 1998 M.A., University of New Orleans, 2002 M.S., University of New Orleans, 2002 December 2011 Brian Keith Mitchell 2011 ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express special thanks to my dissertation advisor, the late Dr. Joe L. Caldwell, for providing guidance, suggestions, and critical analysis throughout the research and writing of this dissertation. Without his assistance the completion of this dissertation would not have been possible. I am also grateful to the members of my committee— Co-Chairs Drs. Mary Niall-Mitchell and Michael Mizell-Nelson, who graciously filled in for the late Dr. Caldwell, and committee members Drs. Louis Crust, and Alvin Mitchell, who have all been patiently devoted to assisting me in the completion of this dissertation. I owe a debt of gratitude to the following individuals and institutions, each of whom has provided support, assistance, invaluable leads and research materials: Drs. Caryn Cosse-Belle and Arnold Hirsch; local historian, Barbara Trevinge; local historian and archivist Greg Osborn from the New Orleans City Archives; the Williams Research Center, the Historic New Orleans Collection; the Iowa Masonic Library; the Minnesota Historical Society; the Schomburg Center for the Research in Black Culture; the Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies, the New Orleans City Archives, the New Orleans Conveyance Office, the New Orleans Notarial Archive; Tulane University‘s Jones Hall Louisiana Research Collection; Princeton University Library; and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill‘s Southern Historical Collection. I would additionally like to thank my family for supporting my educational endeavors, providing me with stories regarding our illustrious ancestor and graciously offering babysitting services when required. I am and will always be indebted to my wonderful wife, Camille iii Guess-Mitchell, my son, Mason Alexandre Mitchell, and my daughter, Chloe Grace Mitchell and last but not least my mother, Shelia Dunn-Ward, for inspiring my work and pushing me to make progress even when I was discouraged or distracted. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................... viii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS .......................................................................................... ix ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... x CHAPTER I: Introduction ............................................................................................. 1 Understanding the complexities of Ethnicity and Class in Reconstruction New Orleans .................................................................................................................... 3 CHAPTER II: Literature Review .................................................................................. 6 Specific Literature in Regard to Oscar James Dunn ............................................ 19 CHAPTER III: Methodology......................................................................................... 22 The Problem .......................................................................................................... 23 My Hypothesis ...................................................................................................... 25 CHAPTER IV: Giving Roots to the Rootless: The Origin of Oscar James Dunn (1822 1865)……………………………………………………………………………………..26 Dunn’s Parents ..................................................................................................... 27 Oscar James Dunn’s Youth ................................................................................... 35 Dunn the Music Teacher ....................................................................................... 38 A Plasterer Again .................................................................................................. 41 Dunn the Mason .................................................................................................... 44 Dunn the Soldier ................................................................................................... 46 v What a Difference a Place Makes: Geography in Dunn‘s Early Life ................... 51 Reaching a Consensus on Dunn's Origin .............................................................. 56 CHAPTER V: Oscar J. Dunn’s Political Ascension ................................................... 61 Outside of the Political Arena ............................................................................... 79 Civil Rights and the Riot of 1866 ......................................................................... 87 White Lodge, Black Lodge ................................................................................... 91 Cracks in the Foundation ...................................................................................... 94 CHAPTER VI: The Negro Lieutenant Governor and the Republican Schism (1868-1869) ......................................................................................................................................... 104 The Reluctant Candidate .................................................................................... 105 The Test Oath Imbroglio ..................................................................................... 112 Dunn‘s Inauguration ........................................................................................... 116 The Metropolitan Police Bill .............................................................................. 117 The Civil Rights Bill ........................................................................................... 123 There and Back again: The First Black Political Junket ..................................... 132 A Homecoming of Sorts ..................................................................................... 144 Ending the French Masonic Invasion ................................................................. 147 The Lieutenant Governor‘s New Home .............................................................. 149 CHAPTER VII: No Greater Divide (1870-1871) ...................................................... 155 The Masquerade Misadventure ........................................................................... 155 Back in the Slammer Again ................................................................................ 158 The Voodoo Exorcism ....................................................................................... 160 vi Airing Their Dirty Laundry in the Winds of Change ......................................... 164 Warmoth‘s Presidential Visit ............................................................................. 170 The Failed Coup: While the Cat was Away........................................................ 172 The Two Conventions ........................................................................................ 182 The Longest Second Line .................................................................................. 189 Hard Times and Fond Memories ........................................................................ 202 CHAPTER VIII: Dunn-Forgotten Hero ..................................................................... 215 BIBLIOGRAPHY ......................................................................................................... 222 APPENDIX A: John Parson’s Biography of Dunn ................................................... 247 APPENDIX B: J. Henri Burch’s Masonic Eulogy of Oscar J. Dunn ....................... 253 APPENDIX C: Dryden’s Biography of Dunn ............................................................ 257 APPENDIX D: Dunn’s Inaugural Address ...............................................................