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Title: |
Josephus Hicks Collection of Church Records, Photographs, and Audio/Visual Materials |
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Repository: |
Western Reserve Historical Society
Phone: 216-721-5722 http://www.wrhs.org |
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Creator: |
Hicks, Josephus |
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Dates: |
1940-1996 |
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Quantity: |
3.61 linear feet (9 containers and 1 oversize folder) |
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Abstract: |
Josephus Hicks was an African American photographer and historian who lived in Cleveland from the mid-1930s until his death in 1998. In addition to photographing people and events in the Cleveland African American community, Mr. Hicks wrote the history of St. John A.M.E. Church, the Mount Zion Church and the Hough area of the city. The collection consists of church records, photographs, 16mm film, and audio LPs. |
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Identification: |
MS 5366 |
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Location: |
closed stacks |
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Language: |
The records are in English |
Josephus Hicks (1908-1998) was born in Newbury, South Carolina. He was raised in Alabama where his father worked as a steelworker and local minister. Mr. Hicks attended prep school at South Carolina State College in Orangeburg, South Carolina, where he earned a pre-medical degree in 1932. He taught and coached football in Anderson, South Carolina, until moving to Cleveland in 1936.
Mr. Hicks served as assistant superintendent of the Sunday school at St. John A.M.E. Church located at 2261 East 40th Street. He was a member of the Mount Zion Congregational Church, which was located on Cedar Avenue until 1954, when it moved into the Grandin Mansion on Magnolia Avenue near University Circle. Mr. Hicks also served as a probation officer and supervisor at the Cleveland Juvenile Court for 32 years.
In addition to his work in local churches and with the Cleveland Juvenile Court, Mr. Hicks was a noted photographer and local historian. He compiled and authored histories of St. John A.M.E. Church (1956) and a biography of Johnson Chestnut Whittaker (1994).
Mr. Hicks was president of the Glenville, Ohio, Area Community Council, and was the first president of the local chapter of the Delta Alpha Lambda fraternity.
The Josephus Hicks Collection of Church Records, Photographs, and Audio/Visual Materials, 1947, ca. 1940s-1996 and undated, consists of records related to church activities, photographs of family, friends, and events, as well as a large collection of 16mm film documenting various church and local events and two audio recordings (78rpm LPs).
This collection will be of interest to researchers of the African American community in Cleveland, Ohio during the 1950s through the 1970s, particularly the East Cleveland and University Circle Areas. Anyone interested in the life and career of Josephus Hicks will also find this collection of note.
This collection is of value to those studying the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Cleveland, Ohio, particularly St. John African Methodist Episcopal., St. James African Methodist Episcopal, and Mount Zion African Methodist Episcopal Churches.
The largest series in the collection is the 16mm films. These include recordings of church activities, such as choirs and weddings, and also formal dinners, picnics, and sporting events which will be of interest to researchers looking into social activities, fashion, and mannerisms of the 1950s through early 1970s.
Most notable of the films are scenes from African American football games played in Cleveland, as well as color scenes of the crowd and events prior to a benefit football game between two historically black colleges, Wilberforce and Kentucky State, played at League Park, in Cleveland, Ohio, during the late 1940s. Also included are action scenes filmed during a Cleveland Buckeyes Negro League baseball game, played at League Park during the 1940s.
In addition to a focus in the African American community, the films are also of interest to students of the mid-20th century, including fashion, interior design, architecture, sports, and street scenes. One particular film was compiled from various films Mr. Hicks recorded during the 1950s in, and around Cleveland, Ohio.
Access to portions of this collection is restricted. Consult WRHS Curator of Manuscripts for more information.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Almost all of the films are in 16mm format and will require the use of an appropriate reel-to-reel projector for viewing.
[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 5366 Josephus Hicks Collection of Church Records, Photographs, and Audio/Visual Materials, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Gift of Kenneth Hicks in 2010.
Processed by Robert Suriano in 2016.