The Twin City star. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1910-19??, 1912-11-09
HALF CENTURY
OF FREEDOM
Mayor BlalkenauTg informed Of
Proposed Exposition.
WRIGHT HEADS DELEGATION

Il
His Cordial Corporation In Plans
For Holding Fiftieth Anniversary
Celebration In Philadelphia In 1918.
| BY WHITTIER H. WRIGHT.
Philadelphia. Mayor Blankenburg
was recently visited by delegation of
cOlored men who requested him to take
a special interest in the celebration OF
the fftieth anniversary Of the freedom
Of the colored people. with view to
having the exposition held In this city
| next year. The mayor heard the dele
CATION very interestedly and promised
| to cooperate with the colored citizens
In making the exposition success.
Among those In the delegation Were
Bishop Benjamin T. Tanner. Bishop
Levi j. COppin. Bishop Evans Tyree
Of the African Methodist Episcopal
church. Bishop J. s. Caldwell and Bish-
on q. T.. blackwell of the A. NJ. E..
Zion church. Hon. Harry w. Bass,
member of the Pennsylvania legisla-
tnre: Hon. Richard A. Cooper. member
Of council: Richard r. Wright. Jr.. edi-
tor of the Christian Recorder: Walter
r. Hall. leading colored merchant. and
others.
The principal speech was made by
r. X. Wright. Jr.. Ph. D.. author of
the History Of the Negro In Pennsyl.
vania.' who n the director of exhibits
of the proposed exposition. DR.. Wright
said that Jan. I. 1913. will mark the
fiftieth anniversary of the famous
emancipation proclamation issued by
Abraham Lincoln for the freedom Of
the slaves. The cOlored population Of
PENNSYLVANIA will celebrate this jubilee
year with an exposition showing the
progress Of the race during the fifty
years Of It's freedom.
There has been remarkable progress
of the Negro from a physical point of
view. showing his ability to survive.
According to the United States census
of 1910. there were 4.441.S $50 Negroes
In the country. Fifty years later. in
1910 the census gave the number Of
Negroes az 0.S2S.294. an increase Of
over 1OO per cent. Fifty years ago they
We're located chiefly in the south. To
day they are scattered over all the
states.
Fifty years ago these people were
largely illiterate. Not more than ten
In hundred could at that time read
and write. their illiteracy being esti.
mated I'm 1860 at 30 per cent Slowly
this has been cut down until In 1910
It was reported by the census at 3O.5
per cent. The remarkable progress Of
the Negro in cutting down illiteracy is
realized by comparison with foreign
countries. According to the latest re-
port Of the bureau Of education. the H.
literacy Of Austria was 26.2 per cent,
Of Hungary 40 per cent. Of Italy %
per cent. og Spain 4S.7 per cent and
of Russia 70 per cent.
This progress in education has been
made chief! by the growth Of the
public school system. Fifty years ago
practically no Negroes attended public
schools. There are today more than
2.OOOOOO colored children in the pub
lie schools OF the country. and these
are taught by some $4,000 colored
teachers. who have developed within
the last fifty years. The colored people
have developed during these years
about $50 private institutions. manned
and controlled by colored people.
They have contributed during these
fifty years to these schools something
over $5O.O0O0OO. besides the amount
which they have contributed In taxes.
The hest information available gives
the part Of taxes contributed to edu-
cation by Negroes In the south as
something like SE,.O00.O00. Fifty years
ago there We're hardly dozen Negro
college graduates. During these fifty
years more than 5000 Negro young
men and women have graduated from
colleges and have won honors In Har-
ward. Yale. Columbia. Pennsylvania,
Oberlin and other well known Ameri-
can universities.
In 1000 there were 1880 manufactur-
ers, go bankers and brokers. 9.O9S re-
tail merchants. 40 wholesale mer-
chants. 1877 commercial travellers. 415
bOOkkeepers and accountants and 150
officials In banks. Negroes maintain
loyal business leagues all over the
country and have organized National
Negro Business league. National Press
association. national Bankers associa-
tion. National Funeral Directors asso-
citation. etc.
Fifty years ago Negroes In the pro-
fessions were practically unknown and
unthought Of. There are today $4,000
Negroes In professions. representing
physicians. lawyers. teachers. profess
sors In colleges. journalists. engineers.
literary people. artists and others.
| There has also developed In these
fifty years the home owning Negro.
1t was my privilege to study for the
state department Of Pennsylvania
home owning In that state. and. to my
surprise and to the surprise Of the
head of the bureau OF Industrial sta
tfstics, without covering half the state
we received the names Of nearly 1000
Negro property holders as against 1000
and some odd returned in 1900 for the
vuholo 1knt a 4 VI