Biography/History:

Charles J. Cunningham was an African-American who was born in Lee County, Mississippi. He had at least one sister who was married and living in Sherman, Pontotoc County, Mississippi, in June 1932. Cunningham graduated from Lee County Training School, Tupelo, Mississippi, around 1929. He briefly attended Alcorn College (now Alcorn State University), Claiborne County, Mississippi, in 1930. Cunningham transferred to Lane College, Jackson, Tennessee, and subsequently graduated with a bachelor of science degree in 1934. By the late 1930s, Cunningham had taught mathematics and science for four years and worked toward a master of science degree at Atlanta University (now Clark Atlanta University), Atlanta, Georgia.

Scope and Content:

This collection consists of a journal, letters of application, and school papers of Charles J. Cunningham of Tupelo, Lee County, Mississippi. These items document Cunningham’s formal education and early teaching career.

The journal was kept by Cunningham from 1929 to 1933. Although sporadic, the entries offer details of his life, including academic and social activities. Cunningham also records the names of classmates and friends.

The letters of application chronicle Cunningham’s searches for part-time employment while attending school, as well as for positions as a teacher or principal in the South. They also reflect Cunningham’s educational career and contain references to African-American schools in Mississippi and the South from 1929 to 1939. Cunningham applied for positions at Lee County Training School, Okolona City Schools for the Colored in Chickasaw County, and Union County Training School in Mississippi.

The school papers consist of notes, compositions, and class notebooks. The notes include summaries of chapters from various educational textbooks. The compositions cover a range of topics such as high-school administration and the meaning of education. Included is an unsigned poem entitled “If We Understood,” which was possibly composed by Cunningham, and poems and quotations that Cunningham copied from other sources. The class notebooks consist of two geometry notebooks and one home-economics notebook. Both geometry notebooks are from classmates of Cunningham and contain proofs and theorems. The first was kept by Everett Cunningham while attending Coahoma County Agricultural High School in 1925. The second was kept by Otis William(s) while attending Lee County Training School in 1928. The undated home-economics notebook includes recipes and charts on the culinary uses of various cuts of meat. It also contains short compositions on the nutritional value of game and poultry, green peppers, and protein.

Series Identification:

1. Journal. 1929-1933. 1 folder.

   Box 1, folder 1

2. Letters of Application. 1931-1939. 1 folder.

   Box 1, folder 2

3. School Papers. 1925-1937; n.d. 7 folders.

   Box 1, folders 3-9