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In Plain Sight: African Americans at Andersonville National Historic Site a Special History Study

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In Plain Sight: African Americans at Andersonville National Historic Site a Special History Study NATIONAL PARK SERVICE • U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR In Plain Sight: African Americans at Andersonville National Historic Site A Special History Study December 2020 2QWKH&RYHU 7RSLPDJH7KUHHXQLGHQWLILHGZRPHQQHDU$QGHUVRQYLOOH³$QGHUVRQYLOOH6KDQW\´LQIROGHU GDWHG³´$PLVWDG5HVHDUFK&HQWHU7XODQH8QLYHUVLW\1HZ2UOHDQV %RWWRPLPDJH*URXSRI$IULFDQ$PHULFDQJLUOVFRXWVSODFLQJIODJVRQPDUNHUVDW$QGHUVRQYLOOH 1DWLRQDO&HPHWHU\RQ0HPRULDO'D\6XPWHU&RXQW\0D\&RXUWHV\*HRUJLD$UFKLYHV 9DQLVKLQJ*HRUJLD&ROOHFWLRQVXP (7,& Andersonville National Historic Site In Plain Sight: African Americans at Andersonville National Historic Site, A Special History Study Georgia December 2020 Evan Kutzler, Julia Brock, Ann McCleary, Keri Adams, Ronald Bastien, and Larry O. Rivers $33529('%<$3$335352929('(' %<< 6XSHULQWHQGHQW$QGHUVRQYLOOH1DWLRQDO+LVWRULF6LWH6X6XSHSHULULQWQWHQHQGHGHQWQW $Q$QGHGHUVUVRQRQYLYLOOOOHH1D1DWLWLRQRQDOD +LVLVWRWRULU FF 6L6LWHWH )R)RU CONTENTS Acronyms and Abbreviations .................................................................................................................... iii Illustrations .................................................................................................................................................. v Introduction ................................................................................................................................................ xi Chapter One: From Slavery to Freedom at Andersonville ....................................................................... 1 Slavery in Southwest Georgia .................................................................................................................. 2 Building Andersonville ....................................................................................................................... 7 Black Prisoners at Andersonville ............................................................................................................ 11 A Graveyard and a Free Home .............................................................................................................. 20 Chapter Two: The Sumter School, 1866–1874 ......................................................................................... 29 The Origins of Sumter School................................................................................................................ 30 The Teachers of Sumter School ............................................................................................................. 32 The Dangers of Teaching and Learning ................................................................................................. 34 Fundraising and Marketing ................................................................................................................... 37 The Struggle over Social Reform ........................................................................................................... 38 Fleecing the Freedpeople ...................................................................................................................... 41 The Later Years of Sumter School ......................................................................................................... 44 Tables ................................................................................................................................................... 49 Chapter Three: Earth Moving ................................................................................................................... 57 Work, Freedom, and Andersonville National Cemetery, 1865–1900 ..................................................... 57 Remaking the Cemetery ....................................................................................................................... 61 Preparing the Modern Landscape ......................................................................................................... 71 Anchoring Black Freedom ..................................................................................................................... 74 From Workspace to Commemorative Space .......................................................................................... 79 A Problem or a Park .............................................................................................................................. 84 Chapter Four: “Through the Crucible of Suffering”: African Americans and Andersonville National Cemetery in the Jim Crow South, 1900–1950 .......................................................................................... 87 The Continuation of Memorial Day Celebrations................................................................................... 88 African American Workers at the National Cemetery ............................................................................ 94 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 103 Chapter Five: The Civil Rights Movement in Americus and Sumter Counties .................................... 109 The Movement in Americus ................................................................................................................ 111 From Albany to Americus .................................................................................................................... 112 African American-Owned Businesses and the Movement .................................................................... 115 A Young People’s Movement ............................................................................................................. 117 Terror in Americus .............................................................................................................................. 119 i ANDERSONVILLE SPECIAL HISTORY STUDY Andersonville as Symbol ..................................................................................................................... 124 Continuing Reprisals Against Protesters .............................................................................................. 126 Integrating the Schools ....................................................................................................................... 128 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 131 Chapter Six: Creating a National Park, Displacing an African American Community....................... 135 Andersonville in the Popular Imagination ............................................................................................ 137 Promoting Tourism and Economic Development ................................................................................. 140 Creating the First Park Plan ................................................................................................................. 142 Requesting a National Park ................................................................................................................. 146 Telling the Story .................................................................................................................................. 152 Identifying African American History at the Park ................................................................................. 154 African American Community Around the Park .................................................................................. 155 Working at the Park ............................................................................................................................ 172 African Americans and the National Cemetery .................................................................................... 179 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 185 Chapter Seven: Interpreting African American History at Andersonville National Historic Site ...... 191 The Camp Sumter Story ...................................................................................................................... 194 Emphasizing the Mission ..................................................................................................................... 201 The “High Ground” and Beyond ........................................................................................................ 212 Conclusion: Telling New Stories ............................................................................................................. 227 Bibliography ............................................................................................................................................. 233 ii ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS AMA American Missionary Association AMAA American Missionary Association Archives AME African Methodist Episcopal AXPW American Ex-Prisoner of War, Inc. CBCVB Black Caucus Veterans Braintrust CRC Civil Rights Congress FBI Federal Bureau of Investigation GAR Grand Army of the Republic GHC Georgia Historical Commission GMP General Management Plan HIAP Historic Interpretive Apprentice Program HRMP Historic Resource Management Plan HRS Historic Resource Study LRIP Long-Range Interpretive Plan NAACP National Association for the Advancement of Colored People NACW National Association of Colored Women NARA National Archives and Records Administration NHS National Historic Site NPS National Park Service PEPC Planning Environment and Public Comment
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