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September 14, 1959

MEMORANDUM

TO: Governor J. P. Coleman

FROM: Zack J. Van Landingham

SUBJECT: Clyde Kennard

Reference is made to my memoranda of September 3 and September 9, 1959, relative to the above entitled matter.

On September 10, 1959, Mr. John Reiter ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^, Director of Security, Mississippi Southern College, Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and I interviewed Dr. Charles W. Smith, ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^ a negro doctor, at his office at 606 Mobile Avenue, Hattiesburg, Mississippi. The interview took place from 11:53 a.m. to 12:08 p.m. on that day. Dr. Smith was very cold, indifferent, and suspicious during the interview. He would not sit down nor did he invite us to have a seat in his office.

During the interview, Dr. Smith claimed that he did not know that his name had been given as a reference by Kennard in connection with his application to enter Mississippi Southern College. He claimed he did not know anything about Kennard’s efforts to enter Mississippi Southern College. Dr. Smith admitted that he was the personal physician of Clyde Kennard and that he had made a physical examination of him in December, 1958. Dr. Smith stated, however, that he [had] not made any physical examination of Clyde Kennard since December, 1958. During the interview Dr. Smith was asked on two separate occasions whether he had examined Clyde Kennard since December, 1958, and on both occasions he stated he had not performed any such examination since December, 1958. Dr. Smith said that, in fact, he had not even seen Clyde Kennard in several months. Dr. Smith claimed that he was not close to Kennard and did not feel that it would serve any purpose for him to contact Clyde Kennard and try and influence him to withdraw his application from Mississippi Southern College.

Prof. N. R. Burger, ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^ Principal of Rowan School on Royal Street, Hattiesburg, Mississippi, was interview on September 10, 1959. Prof. Burger’s home telephone number is Juniper 4-6848. He was interviewed at his office at the Rowan School. Prof. Burger gave the impression during the interview that he was deathly afraid of being classified by the negroes as an “Uncle Tom” and a traitor to his race. He even referred to the fact that if it got out that he was in any way assisting the State Sovereignty Commission in trying to prevent Kennard from entering Mississippi Southern College that his own school [unclear]

ICC-A[G?]

Index

1-27-34

[stamp of STATE SOVEREIGNTY COMMISSION with date of SEP 18 1959 with lines for INDEXED, SERIALIZED, and FILED, initialed by [?]]

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would turn against him and that he would be denounced in the northern press. Burger gave the definite impression also that he thought Kennard had a right to enter Mississippi Southern College and that he did not want to be placed in a position of trying to block Kennard’s right to enter Mississippi Southern College. Burger did state that he did not feel that Kennard had a chance of getting into this school at the present time and he did not think that Kennard should try to press his right to enter the school at this time. He felt that Kennard should delay his right to enter Mississippi Southern College for a time and not surrender these rights. Burger expressed the opinion that eventually the University of Mississippi and all school of higher education in Mississippi would accept negroes, but he did not think this was the proper time to push this issue. Burger is willing and, in fact, anxious for Kennard to withdraw his application to enter Mississippi Southern and is willing to do anything he can to assist in getting Kennard to withdraw his application, just so long as Burger is in the background and is only giving advice and counsel. He does not want to talk to Kennard personally about this if he can get out of it. He, however, did reluctantly agree to interview Kennard along with Mr. Dave A. Matison if Mr. Matison thought this was the proper thing to do.

Prof. Burger referred the writer to Clarence Bates ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^ who is the agricultural teacher at the Earl Trevillon School which is a school for negroes in Forrest County. He said that Bates had formerly been the agricultural teacher for the negro school at Eatonville, Mississippi, and had taught Kennard. Burger thought that Bates would be in a position to know who was close to Kennard and close to Kennard’s mother in order that such individuals might be contact and an effort made to get them to use their influence on Kennard’s mother or Kennard himself to withdraw his application from Mississippi Southern. Prof. Burger also suggested that Rabbi Mantinband be contacted as the Rabbi is supposed to be a close friend of Kennard.

On September 10, 1959, I interviewed Clarence Bates, the agricultural teacher at Earl Trevillon School. The home phone of Clarence Bates is Juniper 2-3758. Bates appeared to be a very level headed [sic] and intelligent negro. He was in agreement that Kennard should not be attempting to try to enter Mississippi Southern. Bates was very anxious that no racial tension be aggravated at the present time. He suggested the name of George Knight ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^, a white man who owns a farm in Eatonville which is close to the farm of Clyde Kennard. He, however, stated that George Knight is presently in the hospital, having had a heart attack. He thought that George Knight would have considerable influence in talking to Clyde Kennard’s mother. Bates also suggested the name of

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Jimmy Bodaman, ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^ a rural mail carrier, who is a white man who has influence, according to Bates, with Kennard’s mother, Leona Smith. Bates also gave the name of Huber Holder, a white man formerly owned a farm close to Kennard’s farm at Eatonville, but who has since moved to the vicinity of Petal, Mississippi. Bates felt that Holder would have considerable influence with Clyde Kennard. Bates agreed to meet with Prof. N. R. Burger and work out plans for certain negroes to contact Kennard and Kennard’s mother, Leona Smith. He gave the names of the following negroes whom he thought would be influential with Kennard and Kennard’s mother: Robert Lindsay, Ernest Chapman, Gilbert Watts, Ore Kelly, Albert Carter, [sic] He said all of the above negroes live in and around Earonville [sic]. Bates said that he would get together with Burger and see if they could work out some plans for contacting these negroes and having them use their influence on Kennard and his mother to get the application withdrawn.

On September 10, 1959, I talked with Mr. Jimmy Bodaman, Rt. 1, Box 111, the rural mail carrier for Eatonville and community. Mr. Bodaman who is a white man and owns a farm in that community stated that Leona Smith, the mother of Clyde Kennard, is employed by him and that he would be glad to talk to her with reference to using her influence in getting her son, Clyde Kennard, to withdraw his application to enter Mississippi Southern College. He stated, however, that Leona Smith is a very stubborn type of negro woman and he doubts whether or not she would listen to him. It was Mr. Bodaman’s opinion that it might be well to let Kennard get his head “skinned up” to a certain extent and it would do him a lot of good.

Attempt was made to locate Huber Holder ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^, the white man who had moved to the vicinity of Petal, Mississippi. It was learned that he is presently employed by the Mississippi Power Company at their sub station on George Street, Petal. However, contact with this place determined that Holder had the day off on September 10, 1959. His residence was located about 7 miles from Petal on the Richton Road. However, no one was home at the time agent [sic] made his call on September 10, 1959.

On September 10, 1959, I called upon Rabbi Charles Mantinband, ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^ 808 Mamie Street, Hattiesburg. His telephone number is Juniper 4-7787. Rabbi Mantinband said he first got acquainted with Clyde Kennard through Dave A. Matison who is a member of Rabbi Mantinband’s congregation. He stated that he had had Kennard do some work for him around the synagogue and had found Kennard to be a very intelligent, clean-cut, honest negro who has a mind of his own. Rabbi Mantinband said that he had talked with Kennard several times in the past to try and

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dissuade him from his plan of applying for entrance to Mississippi Southern College. He said he had told Kennard that the thing for him to do was to go on to some other school and obtain his degree first and that he might then have a better chance of getting into the graduate school at Mississippi Southern College.

Rabbi Mantinband said that Kennard fancies himself as a crusader. He said that he had at one time asked Kennard whether he was interested in getting an education or just interested in leading a crusade and Kennard told him that he guessed he was just a crusader. Rabbi Mantinband said that Kennard has expressed the desire to break down the integration barriers in Mississippi for the negroes. The Rabbi, however, agreed to talk again to Kennard and try to dissuade him from filing his application to Mississippi Southern. He said that he thought that if both he and Dave A. Matison met together and talked with Kennard that they would have a better chance of success. However, the Rabbi was rather pessimistic about any results they might obtain in this regard.

On September 10, 1959, I talked with Mr. Dave A. Matison ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^ at his department store at Hattiesburg. Mr. Matison said that Kennard had told him of his intention to file an application in September, 1959, for entrance to Mississippi Southern. Matison said he had attempted to talk Kennard out of this, but Kennard would not change. Matison said that he had offered to finance Kennard’s education at the University of Chicago but Kennard had refused. Mr. Matison said that Kennard told him that he was not in this thing alone, but that he had very strong backing which indicated to Matison that Possibly [sic] the NAACP was backing Kennard in his attempt to enter Mississippi Southern College. Matison said that he believed Kennard actually wanted to be roughed up and get a bloody nose in order to appear as a martyr in leading the negroes. He further said that Kennard “eats up” this publicity and recognition that he received in his attempt to enter Mississippi Southern College. Mr. Matison said that he does not think that anyone or anything will change Kennard’s mind in his attempt to enter Mississippi Southern.

Matison stated that Kennard had tried to borrow $4,000 from him to buy some land adjacent to Kennard’s farm. Matison, in the past, had always assisted Kennard in such ventures, and he told Kennard he would be glad to assist him this time, but that Kennard would have to heed his advice and withdraw his request to enter Mississippi Southern College which Kennard declined to do and Matison, therefore, refused to advance him the money to buy the farm. Mr. Matison agreed to talk to Kennard in the presence of Rabbi Mantinband and said that he would

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meet with Rabbi Mantinband on that evening, September 10, 1959, and they would lay plans to talk to Kennard and try to persuade him to withdraw his application to Mississippi Southern College.

On September 11, 1959, I telephonically contacted Mr. Matison around 11:00 a.m. at which time he told me he had met with Rabbi Mantinband and that he had made an appointment to meet with Kennard and Rabbi Mantinband at 4:00 p.m. September 11, 1959.

On September 10, 1959, I talked with Mr. Albert Hulet [sic]^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^, owner of Hulett Funeral Home, 205 Bay Street, Hattiesburg, and also Mr. W. R. Winstead^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^, one of the officials at this funeral home. Mr. Hulett said he had several negroes, Levi Simmons, ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^ and others who lived out in the community where Kennard lived and he would get these negroes to contact Kennard and use pressure in getting him to withdraw him [sic] application from Mississippi Southern. He said that Simmons and some of the negroes had brought pressure on him before when Kennard tried to enter this school and had persuaded him that all of the negroes would lose out in the long run if he persisted in his efforts. On September 11, 1959, I again contacted Mr. Hulett and he said that Simmons had been over to see Kennard on the previous night, but he did not know the outcome of his conversation with Kennard. Mr. Hulett said he had let Simmons know and these negroes know that it might mean their own job if they did not get Kennard to withdraw his application. He felt that they would do everything they possibly could to see that he did not file his application or go through with his attempt to enter Mississippi Southern College.

On September 11, 1959, acting upon information furnished by Dr. W. D. McCain to the effect that he had heard that some co-operative in Hattiesburg had filed a suit against Kennard, I contacted Mr. D. L. Williams^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^, office manager of the Forest [sic] County Co-Operative, 401 Jackson Street, Hattiesburg, telephone Juniper 2-3545. Mr. Williams said that his company had filed a suit for approximately $4,300 against Clyde Kennard based upon three contentions: 1. The commercial egg account. Kennard, it seems, had contracted to sell all of his eggs to the Co-Operative, but had been selling some on [the side to?] other individuals. 2. Equipment which the Co-Operative [unclear] Kennard and which he had not paid for. 3. An open farm [account?]. Mr. Williams said that the Co-Operative had gone out to Kennard’s farm and picked up all [of?] his hens and sold them, applying them to his account. He said, however, that before this was done they had tried to work out some agreement with Kennard and had suggested that Kennard give them a second deed of trust on his farm, but he had refused to do so. They had filed this suit approximately two weeks ago, according to Mr. Williams. He said the attorney for the suit was Mr. W. V. Murray^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^. The writer attempted to contact Mr. W. V. Murray whose office is in the [Conner?] Building, Hattiesburg, telephone Juniper 4-5573.

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However, Mr. Murray was not in at the time of my call.

Mr. C. L. Willison, ^[strikethrough]0[strikethrough]^ Southern Farm Bureau Insurance Company, advised that his company had been carrying the Liability Automobile Insurance on Clyde Kennard. However, when they learned that he was attempting to enter Mississippi Southern, they were afraid that some foul play might take place and the company had cancelled the policy upon Mr. Willison’s recommendation.