Steve Whitaker Papers

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: MSS 2019-007

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Press clippings and correspondence received and collected by Whitaker, relating to Emmett Till and racism in the American South, including poll tax receipts and a 1962 pamphlet on the integration of the University of Mississippi campus.

Dates

1960-2019

Language of Materials

English

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open to all researchers.

Box 1 and 2 contain loose items, non-archival containers and folders, and bound volumes in very poor repair, and some items are housed in ways that hinder access. Researcher access should be guided where possible.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright restrictions may apply to works in this collection. Re-use or copying beyond Fair Use may require permission from the rights-holder. Please contact lib-specialcollections@fsu.edu for more information.

Biographical Note

Hugh Stephen "Steve" Whitaker was born September 22, 1939 in Charleston, Mississippi. Whitaker earned a BA from University of Mississippi, an MA in History from Florida State University in 1963, and a PhD from Florida State University in 1965. His master's thesis A Case Study in Southern Justice: The Emmett Till Case was an early academic work on the infamous 1955 murder of Emmett Till. Whitaker leveraged personal contacts and experiences in Mississippi to research and write the thesis.

Whitaker remained a resident of Tallahassee, FL after graduation from Florida State University. He died there on February 6, 2023.

Sources

Cully's MeadowWood Funeral Home. (2023) "Hugh Stephen Whitaker." https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/tallahassee-fl/hugh-whitaker-11140079

Extent

4 folders (Box 1818)

1.5 Linear Feet

Additional Description

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by Steve Whitaker by SCA deed of gift in 2019.

Additional materials donated by Mrs. Whitaker in September 2023 via Davis Houck, College of Communications.

Works by Whitaker

Whitaker, H. Stephen. (1963). A Case Study in Southern Justice: The Emmett Till Case (master's thesis). Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida. http://purl.fcla.edu/fsu/etd-05272004-140932

Whitaker, H. Stephen. (1965). A New Day: The Effects of Negro Enfranchisement in Selected Mississippi Counties (doctoral dissertation). Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida. http://purl.flvc.org/fsu/lib/digcoll/etd/2985406