Rodney Hurst Oral History Interview: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

An oral history interview and conversation with author Rodney Hurst. It consists of three versions of a digital video recording, two camera card files (2025.12.7.1.1 and 2025.12.7.1.2, .mxf files) and one edited file (2025.12.7.1.3, .mov file).

Mr. Rodney L. Hurst, Sr. was interviewed by Temple University student James Gray on August 3, 2023, as part of the Social Justice Conversations Oral History Project. The interview took place at the home of Mr. Hurst’s son in Jacksonville, FL. At the time of the interview, Mr. Hurst was 79 years old.

This oral history interview consists of two distinct sections: an “interview” section (part 1) and a “conversation” section (part 2, 01:16:44). In part 1, Mr. Hurst discusses his early life and educational experiences in Aiken, South Carolina. He discusses the fatal bombing of Harriette and Harry Moore’s home in 1951. He describes his involvement with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Youth Council, sit-ins at the Jacksonville Woolworth’s in 1960, and the events of “Ax Handle Saturday.” Mr. Hurst also discusses his decision to join the Air Force, recounts a story about being targeted for arrest because of his civil rights activism, and recalls serving in the honor guard for President Kennedy just before his assassination. He recalls his time at the March on Washington, his search for a job in Jacksonville, and his time working at Prudential. In part 2, Mr. Hurst and Gray discuss the history of racism and white supremacy in the US, race and policing, and the suppression of Black history, including how Christian religious teachings have been “Europeanized.” Mr. Hurst also discusses his involvement with renaming Westside High School in Jacksonville, and the importance of young people in movements for social change. Finally, Mr. Hurst reflects on the responsibility the Black community has in teaching Black history.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: August 3, 2023
• Created by: National Museum of African American History and Culture, American, founded 2003
• Recorded by: Trudy Hutcherson, American
• Recorded by: Candace Dane Chambers, American
• Interviewed by: James Gray III
• Interview of: Rodney L. Hurst Sr., American, born 1944
• Subject of: Harry Tyson Moore, American, 1905 - 1951
• Subject of: Harriette Vyda Simms Moore, American, 1902 - 1952
• Subject of: Rutledge Pearson, American, 1929 - 1967
• Type: video recordings
• Type: oral histories
• Type: digital media - born digital
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: Duration (2025.12.7.1.3, edited): 2 hr., 14 min., 55 sec.
• Dimensions: File size: 223 GB
• Place filmed: Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida, United States, North and Central America
• Place captured: Aiken, Aiken County, South Carolina, United States, North and Central America
• Place captured: Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: Christianity
• Topic: Civil Rights
• Topic: Communities
• Topic: Education
• Topic: Hate crimes
• Topic: Labor
• Object number: 2025.12.7.1
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• 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 and Culture Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.