C.T. Vivian Oral History Interview: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

The oral history consists of four digital files: 2011.174.6.1a, 2011.174.6.1b, 2011.174.6.1c, and 2011.174.6.1d.

C. T. Vivian recalls growing up in Macomb, Illinois, working in Peoria, Illinois, and his call to the ministry. He discusses attending the American Baptist Theological Seminary in Nashville, Tennessee, where he met other civil rights activists and participated in demonstrations. He remembers planning the Freedom Rides, his imprisonment at Mississippi State Penitentiary (Parchman Farm), the Children's Crusade in Birmingham, Alabama, and working for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: March 29, 2011
• Created by: Civil Rights History Project, American, founded 2009
• Interview of: Rev. C. T. Vivian, American, 1924 - 2020
• Interviewed by: Taylor Branch, American, born 1947
• Subject of: American Baptist Theological Seminary, American, founded 1924
• Subject of: Mississippi State Penitentiary, American, founded 1901
• Subject of: Children's Crusade, American, founded 1963
• Subject of: Southern Christian Leadership Conference, American, founded 1957
• Type: video recordings
• Type: oral histories
• Type: digital media - born digital
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: Duration: 4 hr., 6 min., 19 sec.
• Dimensions: Total: 391.9 GB
• Place collected: Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Macomb, McDonough County, Illinois, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Peoria, Illinois, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Birmingham, Jefferson County, Alabama, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: American South
• Topic: Associations and institutions
• Topic: Baptist
• Topic: Children
• Topic: Civil Rights
• Topic: HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities)
• Object number: 2011.174.6.1a-d
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in partnership with the American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture and The American Folklife Center, Library of Congress Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.