Research Catalog

Title

Schomburg Center Scrapbooks : Father Divine.

Publication

1931-1949.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

2 volumes (50; 50 leaves) : $b illustrations ; $c 31 cm

Summary

• These scrapbooks (1931-1949) are about religious leader and businessman Father Divine and his followers and contain ephemera and clippings from a variety of both African American and mainstream newspapers. Father Divine is referred to as both a religious leader and cult leader, depending on the publication. There is a focus on Divine's acquisition of property, referred to as "heavens," for worship purposes, and investigations into Divine's finance's. There are many articles exploring the behaviors and belief systems of Father Divine and his followers, called "angels," including their belief in peace, conflicts with non-believers, and banquets which were free of charge and open to the public. Also covered are Father Divine's interactions with law enforcement, including several arrests and court cases.
• Publications include African American newspapers The Afro American (Baltimore), Chicago Defender, New York Age, and Pittsburgh Courier, as well as New York Post, New York Times, New York World Telegram, and Time magazine (New York). Not all clippings include date and source information.

Donor/Sponsor

Home to Harlem Project funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation

Uniform Title

• Afro-American (Baltimore, Md. : National ed.)
• Chicago defender.
• New York age (New York, N.Y. : 1887)
• Pittsburgh courier.

Alternative Title

Father Divine

Subjects

• Religious fanaticism > 20th century
• Scrapbooks
• Clippings (information artifacts)
• Peace movements > United States
• Peace > Religious aspects
• Newark (N.J.)
• Brooklyn (New York, N.Y.)
• Faithful Mary, 1894-
• Cults > New York (State) > New York > 20th century
• Kingston (N.Y.)
• Father Divine
• African American clergy
• La Guardia, Fiorello H (Fiorello Henry), 1882-1947
• Saratoga Springs (N.Y.)
• African American religious leaders > New York (State) > New York
• Sayville (N.Y.)
• Religious facilities > United States
• United States > Religion > 20th century
• African American business enterprises
• United States > Religion > Economic aspects > 20th century
• Yonkers (N.Y.)
• Harlem (New York, N.Y.)
• New Rochelle (N.Y.)
• Philadelphia (Pa.)

Genre/Form

• Clippings (information artifacts)
• Scrapbooks.

Note

• Compiled and bound by the New York Public Library
• The staff who assembled the scrapbooks noted their initials alongside the articles they clipped. The staff responsible for these volumes are AJ, CMN, EJ, EW, FNR, JC, JP, MN, MPT, MS, MW, RS, VK, and WA.
• Initials EJ likely belong to E. Johnson and MS likely belong to M. Starke, both of whom clipped periodicals at the 135th St. New York Public Library branch. Initials VK likely belong to Vincent Kerr, Assistant Research Worker, RS likely belong to Ruby Scott, Clerk-Typist, and MN likely belong to Marie Neal, Library Clerk, assigned to the 135th St. branch through the Works Progress Administration.

Access (note)

• Researchers are restricted to the microfilm copy in: Sc Micro R-707 r. 4

Cite As (note)

• Schomburg Center Scrapbooks, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library

Terms of Use (note)

• Permission of the copyright holder is required for duplication

Biography (note)

• The Schomburg Center Scrapbooks are a collection of 296 volumes assembled by library staff between the 1920s and 1960s, to supplement the collection of black history resources that would later form the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. The staff were strategic in their clipping, choosing to highlight black voices and topics of particular interest to the African American community. The scrapbooks are organized by topic and consist primarily of newspaper clippings, unless otherwise noted.

Provenance (note)

• The Schomburg scrapbooks may have grown out of the clipping file, when librarian Catherine Latimer assigned WPA workers to clip African American and mainstream newspapers and assemble them into scrapbooks. Two or three scrapbooks on Marcus Garvey went missing around 1960

Call Number

Sc MG 958 (Father DIvine)

OCLC

1099570735

Title

Schomburg Center Scrapbooks : Father Divine.

Production

1931-1949.

Type of Content

text

still image

Type of Medium

unmediated

Type of Carrier

volume

Restricted Access

Researchers are restricted to the microfilm copy in: Sc Micro R-707 r. 4

Cite As:

Schomburg Center Scrapbooks, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library

Terms Of Use

Permission of the copyright holder is required for duplication

Biography

The Schomburg Center Scrapbooks are a collection of 296 volumes assembled by library staff between the 1920s and 1960s, to supplement the collection of black history resources that would later form the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. The staff were strategic in their clipping, choosing to highlight black voices and topics of particular interest to the African American community. The scrapbooks are organized by topic and consist primarily of newspaper clippings, unless otherwise noted.

Provenance

The Schomburg scrapbooks may have grown out of the clipping file, when librarian Catherine Latimer assigned WPA workers to clip African American and mainstream newspapers and assemble them into scrapbooks. Two or three scrapbooks on Marcus Garvey went missing around 1960

Spine Title

Father Divine

Added Title

Afro-American (Baltimore, Md. : National ed.)

Chicago defender.

New York age (New York, N.Y. : 1887)

Pittsburgh courier.

Research Call Number

Sc MG 958 (Father DIvine)