Funeral program of Henry Clay Whitlow, Jr.: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

Digital copy of a funeral program for Henry Clay Whitlow Jr. The funeral program consists of black ink printed on two sheets of pink paper, folded in a landscape orientation, and stapled together at the top to produce eight pages. The first page, or cover, has a black border around the edge and a gold-embossed rose in the bottom left corner. The cover reads [In Celebration of the life of / Henry Clary Whitlow, Jr. / January 22, 1909 April 15, 1994]. The service took place at Vernon A.M.E. Church and was officiated by Rev. Maurice K. Majors.

The first interior spread (page 2) is blank at the top. The bottom of the first interior spread (page 3) is titled "A Life to Be Forever Celebrated" and includes information about the service with a photo of Whitlow to the right of the text.

The second interior spread (pages 4-5) features a quote by Booker T. Washington along the top; an obituary for Whitlow that describes his early life, family, religious activities, and professional career as an educator and principal at Carver Jr. High School and Booker T. Washington High School in Tulsa; and an acknowledgement from the family printed below the obituary. There are two photos on this spread, one in the top left corner and one of Whitlow talking on a phone in the bottom right corner.

The third interior spread includes the "Order of Service" from processional to recessional at the top of the spread (page 6). The bottom of the spread (page 7) is blank.

The last page, or back cover, lists the pallbearers and flower bearers.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: April 19, 1994
• Printed by: Unidentified
• Subject of: Henry Clay Whitlow Jr., American, 1909 - 1994
• Subject of: Vernon African Methodist Episcopal Church, American, founded 1905
• Subject of: Booker T. Washington High School, American, founded 1913
• Owned by: Eddie Faye Gates, American, 1934 - 2021
• Type: digital images
• Type: programs
• Type: digital media - born analog
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: File size (overall): 437.21 MB
• Place collected: Tulsa, Tulsa County, Oklahoma, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: African Methodist Episcopal
• Topic: American South
• Topic: American West
• Topic: Communities
• Topic: Education
• Topic: Families
• Topic: Funeral customs and rites
• Object number: 2014.117.70
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Eddie Faye Gates, Tulsa OK, author, historian, community activist
• 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: Restrictions likely apply. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.