The Civil Rights History Project: Survey of Collections and Repositories

Arthur B. Spingarn papers

Repository: Library of Congress. Manuscript Division

Collection Description (Extant): Civil rights leader and lawyer. Correspondence, memoranda, minutes of meetings, wills and estate files, reports, briefs, hearing and trial transcripts, and other papers relating chiefly to Spingarn's service with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) as vice president, chairman of the legal committee, and president (1911-1965).

The papers of Arthur Barnett Spingarn (1878-1971), a lawyer and civil rights leader, span the years 1850-1970, with the bulk of the material concentrated in the period 1920-1955. Only a limited amount of correspondence and other material relates to Spingarn's personal or family life, and only glimpses of his law practice appear in the personal correspondence and various legal files. The documentation relates principally to his service with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) as vice president, chairman of the National Legal Committee, and president.

Access Copy Note: The papers of Arthur B. Spingarn are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.

Date(s): 1850-1968

Digital Status: No

Existing IDs: MSS40949

Extent: 35,000 items ; 66 containers plus 2 oversize ; 30 linear feet ; 58 microfilm reels

Finding Aid URL: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms997006

Language: English

Related Archival Items: Other collections of papers in the Manuscript Division containing significant correspondence and references to Arthur B. Spingarn include the records of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund Records, and the papers of Roy Wilkins.

Rights (Extant): Copyright in the unpublished writings of Arthur B. Spingarn in these papers and in other collections of papers in the custody of the Library of Congress is dedicated to the public.

Subjects:

African American lawyers
Civil rights--Cases
Du Bois, W. E. B. (William Edward Burghardt), 1868-1963
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
Spingarn, Arthur B. (Arthur Barnett), 1878-1971
White, Walter Francis, 1893-1955
Wilkins, Roy, 1901-1981

Genres:

Manuscripts
Photographs
Speeches
Transcripts