In the Face of "Jim Crow": Prosperous Blacks and Vacations, Travel and Outdoor Leisure, 1890-1945

In the summer of 1870, the nation's most famous ex-slave and revered abolitionist, Frederick Douglass, wrote to an associate, "Heretofore, colored Americans have thought little of adorning their parlors with pictures. They have to do with the stem, and I may say, the ugly realities of life. Pictures come not with slavery and oppression and destitution, but with liberty, fair play, leisure, and refinement."' When Douglass penned these lines, the vast majority of ex-slaves had experienced only five years of freedom. There were stories of a few fabulously successful blacks, most of whom had earned their freedom years, even decades earlier. However, the average freedman worked long hours for little more than subsistence wages. In the eyes of whites, and perhaps for many blacks as well, any thoughts of significant black leisure appeared far-fetched, even unnatural. In the late nineteenth century, however, determined blacks found ways to enjoy leisure, and this often irritated whites. Such "conflict" provided part of the backdrop for the famous Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court decision of 1896 which institutionalized segregation in public accommodations until 1954. Prosperous blacks from New Orleans were arranging large group excursions by rail to resort areas along the Gulf Coast. The presence of significant numbers of well-dressed blacks enjoying themselves offended some whites, who pressured the railroads to enforce state segregation laws. In response, a group of well-connected blacks, supported by liberal white friends, sued the railroads. This eventually led to the famous decision, which allowed "separate but equal" public accommodations.2 A century ago, "Jim Crow" segregation became the law of the nation. Despite all of the obstacles and prejudice they faced, by the late nineteenth century several thousand blacks nationwide had established distinguished careers, prosperous businesses, comfortable homes, and impressive incomes and investment portfolios.3 Comparatively little attention has been paid to them. Aside from biographies of distinguished blacks, most scholars have concentrated on the masses of blacks who suffered relentless oppression, grinding poverty, and distressingly narrow opportunities for improving their circumstances during the "Jim Crow" era. Certainly the experiences of the downtrodden deserve attention, but so do lives of those who defied all the odds and gained wealth. How could affluent blacks spend their disposable income? Under