Belle C. LaFollette to JS Williams
Title
Belle C. LaFollette to JS Williams
Creator
La Follette, Belle Case, 1859-1931
Identifier
SE072413a
Date
1913 July 22
Description
B.C. LaFollette writes to the Assistant Secretary of the Treasury asking for the names of the three girls who violated the segregation policy at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
Source
US National Archives and Records Administration 450/79/10/3 box #6 entry 12 A1
Publisher
Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library & Museum
Subject
African-Americans--segregation
Contributor
Althea Cupo
Maria Matlock
Language
English
Provenance
Digital copy acquired from federal archives by previous WWPL Archivist, Heidi Hackford.
Text
Hon. J. S. Williams,
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury,
Washington, D. C.
Dear Sir:
In the reply which Mr. Ralph made to my inquiry as to segregation of races at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, he says:
"The colored assistants are permitted free access to the lunch rooms and are furnished the same food as that furnished the white assistants and there have been no objections on the part of the colored girls to using the tables assigned them, except on the part of three colored assistants who persisted in sitting at the tables occupied by white girls after one or two of the white girls had made an objection to them occupying the same table. A kindly suggestion was made to them that it would be best for them to occupy tables with girls of their own race, but, as they persisted in disregarding the suggestion, it was necessary for me to give them positive directions to use the tables assigned to the colored assistants."
Will you kindly ask Mr. Ralph to furnish me the names and addresses of the three girls to whom he refers?
Thanking you for your courtesy, I am
Respectfully,
Belle C. La Follette
(Mrs. Robert M.)
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury,
Washington, D. C.
Dear Sir:
In the reply which Mr. Ralph made to my inquiry as to segregation of races at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, he says:
"The colored assistants are permitted free access to the lunch rooms and are furnished the same food as that furnished the white assistants and there have been no objections on the part of the colored girls to using the tables assigned them, except on the part of three colored assistants who persisted in sitting at the tables occupied by white girls after one or two of the white girls had made an objection to them occupying the same table. A kindly suggestion was made to them that it would be best for them to occupy tables with girls of their own race, but, as they persisted in disregarding the suggestion, it was necessary for me to give them positive directions to use the tables assigned to the colored assistants."
Will you kindly ask Mr. Ralph to furnish me the names and addresses of the three girls to whom he refers?
Thanking you for your courtesy, I am
Respectfully,
Belle C. La Follette
(Mrs. Robert M.)
Original Format
Letter
To
Williams, John Skelton, 1865-1926
Files
Collection
Citation
La Follette, Belle Case, 1859-1931, “Belle C. LaFollette to JS Williams,” 1913 July 22, SE072413a, Race and Segregation Collection, Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library & Museum, Staunton, Virginia.