Thomas Walter Gaither Oral History Interview: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

The oral history consists of ten digital files: 2011.174.43.1a, 2011.174.43.1b, 2011.174.43.1c, 2011.174.43.1d, 2011.174.43.1e, 2011.174.43.1f, 2011.174.43.1g, 2011.174.43.1h, 2011.174.43.1i, and 2011.174.43.1j.

Thomas Gaither, Ph. D. recalls growing up in Great Falls, South Carolina, attending Claflin College, and leading the college's National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) chapter. He remembers the student sit-ins in Orangeburg, South Carolina, joining the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), and being arrested for protesting in Hollywood, Florida. He discusses organizing the Freedom Rides, his belief in nonviolence, and earning his Ph. D. in biology at the University of Iowa.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: September 12, 2011
• Created by: Civil Rights History Project, American, founded 2009
• Interview of: Thomas Walter Gaither Ph. D., American, born 1938
• Interviewed by: Joseph Mosnier Ph. D.
• Subject of: Claflin University, American, founded 1869
• Subject of: National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, American, founded 1909
• Subject of: Congress of Racial Equality, American, founded 1942
• Subject of: University of Iowa, American, founded 1847
• Type: video recordings
• Type: oral histories
• Type: digital media - born digital
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: Duration: 2 hr., 10 min., 47 sec.
• Dimensions: Total: 217.91 GB
• Place collected: Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Great Falls, Chester County, South Carolina, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Orangeburg, South Carolina, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Hollywood, Browar County, Florida, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: American South
• Topic: Associations and institutions
• Topic: Civil Rights
• Topic: Education
• Topic: HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities)
• Topic: Prisons
• Object number: 2011.174.43.1a-j
• 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.