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Collection Title: Owen (David) Freedom Summer Collection
Collection Number: M350
Dates: ca. 1964 - 1989
Volume: .75 cubic foot
Provenance: David Owen donated this collection on November 13, 2001.
Restrictions: Available for research use by the serious student and
scholar.
Copyright: This collection may be protected from unauthorized copying
by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code).
Biographical/Historical Sketch:
David George Owen, from Pasadena, California, was a student of Oberlin College
in Oberlin, Ohio. While attending Oberlin, Owen became interested in the Civil
Rights movement, and, though he considered working other places for pay, he
applied to work with the Mississippi Freedom Summer Project of 1964.
During that summer, Owen, age nineteen, worked in Hattiesburg, Mississippi canvassing
local black neighborhoods to encourage voter registration. In July of that summer
two local men attacked David Owen, who was with two other workers, beating the
three volunteers with iron bars. The other volunteers who were beaten were Rabbi
Arthur Lelyveld and Lawrence Spears. In August 1964, Owen asked to be transferred
to work in Laurel, Mississippi where he worked for the remainder of the summer.
After the Freedom Summer project officially ended, David Owen took a short trip
to New Orleans, Louisiana and then returned to work for civil rights in Mississippi.
He was first assigned to work in Clarksdale, but later returned to Hattiesburg.
He remained in Hattiesburg until early January 1965 when he returned to Oberlin
College.
Sources:
Contents of the Collection.
General notes from the collection case file.
Scope and Content:
This collection consists of information concerning David Owen's involvement
in the Mississippi Freedom Summer Project in 1964. Forms of material present
include personal correspondence, newspaper clippings, and information concerning
various civil rights organizations. Also included are a photograph of David
Owen and several issues of The Southern Patriot. Of particular interest is a
newspaper clipping detailing a physical attack against David Owen, Lawrence
Spears, and Rabbi Arthur Lelyveld, which occurred during the group's Freedom
Summer activities in Hattiesburg.
Box and Folder List:
| Box 1: |
|
| Folder 1: |
Correspondence: Correspondence from David Owen to his family
(Originals) |
| Folder 2: |
Correspondence: Correspondence from David Owen to his family
(Typescripts) |
| Folder 3: |
Correspondence: Miscellaneous Correspondence |
| Folder 4: |
Photograph: Photograph of David Owen at a California Institute
of Technology YMCA function |
| Folder 5: |
Articles: Newspaper Clippings Concerning the Civil Rights
Movement and David Owen's attack. |
| Folder 6: |
Organizations: Material concerning the Council of Federated
Organizations (COFO) |
| Folder 7: |
Organizations: Material concerning the Mississippi Freedom
Democratic Party (MFDP) |
| Folder 8: |
Organizations: Material concerning the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference (SCLC) |
| Folder 9: |
Organizations: Material concerning the State Historical Society
of Wisconsin |
| Folder 10: |
Organizations: Material concerning the Student Non-Violent
Coordinating Committee (SNCC) |
| Box 2: |
|
| Folder 1: |
The Southern Patriot (ca. 1964-1968) |
Related Collections:
E185.93 Faces of Freedom Summer (Photographs by Herbert Randall).M6 R36 2001
AM98-42 Lelyveld (Rabbi Arthur J.) Collection, 1964 (This collection contains
newspaper articles about a physical attack on David Owen.)
M351 Randall (Herbert) Freedom Summer Photographs, 1964-2001 (Photograph
numbers 176, 182, 186, and 187 include David Owen.)
AM 99-74 Spears (Lawrence D.) Civil Rights Collection, 1964-1999
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