More Than the Woodward Thesis: Assessing the Strange Career of Jim Crow
Author(s): Howard N. Rabinowitz
Source: The Journal of American History, Vol. 75, No. 3 (Dec., 1988), pp. 842-856
Published by: Organization of American Historians
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1901533
Accessed: 17-08-2015 10:35 UTC
Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/page/
info/about/policies/terms.jsp
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content
in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship.
For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].
Organization of American Historians is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Journal of
American History.
http://www.jstor.org
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
MoreThan the WoodwardThesis:
AssessingThe StrangeCareer
ofJimCrow
HowardN. Rabinowitz
Sinceitspublicationin 1955,C. VannWoodward's
TheStrangeCareerofJimCrow
has had a fundamental
impacton thestudyofAmericanracerelations.Although
bestknownforits so-calledWoodwardthesis,thatis onlypartof the book as it
emergedthroughfoureditionsovertwenty
years,and no one has assessedthework
in its entirety
sincethe finaleditionappearedin 1974.
WhatI wantto do, then,is to considerthreeofthecontributions
ofStrangeCareer.The first,
ofcourse,is theWoodwardthesisconcerning
theorigins,
timing,and
natureofsegregation
or,as Woodwardsometimescallsit,JimCrow.The secondis
theconceptoftheSecondReconstruction
as a wayofgainingperspective
on Reconstructionor, in Woodward'sterm,the "FirstReconstruction."
The thirdis the
masterful
but neglectedconcludingchapterto the 1974 edition,whosestrengths
ironically
pointup some of the limitations
of the earliersectionsand editionsof
Career.
Strange
I suspectthatI have read StrangeCareerin its variousformsmoreoftenthan
I havereadanyotherbook,exceptperhapsWoodward's
OriginsoftheNew South.
as
I
I
to
this
was
to discovernotonly
Nevertheless, began prepare
essay,
surprised
thatthe book was evenmoresubtleand substantive
thanI had remembered
but
also thattherewasa need to getthedifferent
editionsstraight.
In fact,theStrange
Careerhashad severalcareers,
and I thinkitimportant
toreviewbriefly
thestructure
of thefoureditionsbeforewe considerthe contributions.
What we reallyneed is
somethingcomparableto Woodward'seditionof the MaryChesnutdiaries.1
Everything
beganwiththeJamesW. RichardLectures,
whichWoodwardwrote
theBrownv.BoardofEducation
duringthesummermonthsimmediately
following
decisionand presentedbeforea biracialaudienceof about one hundredat the
HowardN. Rabinowitzis professor
ofhistory
at theUniversity
ofNew Mexico.Earlierversions
ofthisarticlewere
presentedat the annual meetingof the AmericanHistoricalAssociation,Chicago,December1986,and to the
University
ofChicagoSocialHistoryWorkshop,
October1987.The authorwouldliketo thankall participants
for
theirhelpfulcomments.
1 C. VannWoodward,
ed., MaryChesnut'sCivil War(New Haven, 1981).Woodward'sbiographer
devoteda
thoughtful
chapterto TheStrangeCareerofJimCrow,but concentrated
on theoriginsof thesegregation
issue.
Therearemerelyscattered
references
to otherpartsof the book,and he missesthesignificant
differences
among
the variouseditions.JohnHerbertRoper,C. VannWVoodward:
Southerner
(Athens,1987), 171-200,247, 338.
842
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
CareerofJimCrow
Assessing
TheStrange
843
forthelecturesbecamethe
ofVirginiain October1954.The manuscript
University
editionofStrangeCareer,publishedin 1955. A briefprefaceand
copyforthefirst
and theSouth"arguedfortheuse of
entitled"Of Reconstructions
an introduction
of
the
asserted
the essentialdiscontinuity
history
to help understand presentand
AlternaWoodwardthenturnedin chapter1 to the "Forgotten
southernhistory.
South;in chapter2 to the
tives"of fluidracerelationsin thepost-Reconstruction
"Capitulationto Racism"at the turnof the century;and in chapter3, "The Man
fromWorldWarI totheBrowndecision.2
on theCliff,"
tothecourseofracerelations
addeda chapter4, "'Deliberate
Twoyearslaterina paperbackedition,Woodward
Speed' vs. 'MajesticInstancy"'thatbroughteventsup to 1957.He soughtnotonly
in theSouthsince1954butalsotoprovide
toexplaintheworsening
ofracerelations
forchangeweremore
renewedgroundsforoptimismbynotingthattheprospects
The 1957 edition remainsa
promisingthan duringthe FirstReconstruction.
one. It wastheonlyone in whichthesubtitle,A BriefAccount
strangely
forgotten
whichmodifiedsomeofWoodofSegregation,
appearedon thecover;itsforeword,
in successive
ediwiththeotherprefaces
wasnotreprinted
ward'soriginalargument,
tions;and muchof its finalchapterwas latereliminated,includingan extended
comparisonof the tworeconstructions.3
provedlongerlasting.The prefacesaid thenewversionsought
The 1966revision
totakeadvantageofthenewperspective
providedbytheadditionalyearssince1955,
contributions
as wellas to bringtheaccountup todateand toconsidernewscholarly
to thefield.The originalintroduction
remainsintact,thoughwithouta title;the
altered,espeappearas chapters2 to 4 withsectionsslightly
originalthreechapters
A newchapter1,"Of
on northern
racerelations.
ciallyto includemoreinformation
exsome of the modifications
incorporates
Old Regimesand Reconstructions,"
themostserious
adds somenewones,and considers
pressedin the 1957foreword,
as a productof the turn-of-thechallengesto Woodward'sview of segregation
South.Thereis also a newconcludingchapter(chapter5), "The Declining
century
YearsofJimCrow,"thatincorporates
partof thefinalchapterof the 1957edition
and carriesthestoryto theclimactic
weekin August1965thatwitnessedboththe
signingoftheVotingRightsActand theoutbreakoftheWattsriot.The 1966ediwiththeaddition
tionalsomarksthecoming-of-age
ofStrangeCareeras a textbook
of an indexand an updatedlistof suggestedreading.4
The processof "textbookization"
wascompletedin the 1974edition.Following
is identicalto thepreviousone untilpage
a briefbutimportant
thisversion
preface,
racerelations,the rest
181;exceptforthe deletionof some materialon northern
ofthebookdiffers
fromthe1966versiononlyin theadditionofa sixth
significantly
The newchapterbeginswithWattsand
chapter,"The CareerBecomesStranger."
2 C. VannWoodward,Thinking
History(Baton Rouge,1986),82-83; Roper,C.
Back: The Perilsof Writing
194; C. VannWoodward,The StrangeCareerofJimCrow(New York,1955).
VannWloodward,
3 C. VannWoodward,The StrangeCareerofJimCrow(New York,1957).
4 C. VannWoodward,
TheStrangeCareerofJimCrow(New York,1966).Fortheadditionofmaterialon postracerelations,see esp. 71-72.
bellumnorthern
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
844
TheJournal
ofAmerican
History
closeswitha typically
ironicassessment
oftheseeminghightide(in theearly1970s)
of blackseparatist
rejectionofJimCrow'send.5
Duringtheprocessofrevision,
StrangeCareerevolvedfroma lectureseriesmeant
fora local,predominantly
southernaudience,whichaimedto providea historical
forhopesthatdesegregation
wouldbe peacefuland successful,
intothe
foundation
texton thenatureofAmericanracerelations
mostwidelyusedsurvey
sincetheCivil
tohisinitialqualifiers
and provided
War.Alongtheway,Woodwarddrewattention
further
modifications.
Afterall, as he put it in the originaledition,"SinceI am
. . . dealingwitha periodof thepast thathas not been adequatelyinvestigated,
to have
and alsowitheventsofthepresentthathavecometoo rapidlyand recently
it
is
I
make
and
rather
that
some
beenproperly
inevitable
shall
digested understood,
In thatspiritandwiththebenefit
mistakes.
I shallexpectandhopetobe corrected."6
ofadditionalyearsofscholarship
and perspective,
it is timeto turnto threeofthe
contributions
of the StrangeCareer.
The heartof the book remainsthe Woodwardthesis.In his recentmemoirs,
confirms
thedefinition
ofthethesishe gavein a 1971essay,"TheStrange
Woodward
It was,he wrote,"first,
Careerof a HistoricalControversy."
thatracialsegregation
in the Southin therigidand universal
formit had takenby 1954did not appear
withtheend ofslavery,
but towardtheend of thecentury
and later;and second,
thatbeforeitappearedin thisformthereoccurred
an eraofexperiment
and variety
in racerelationsoftheSouthin whichsegregation
wasnottheinvariable
rule."7As
Woodwardput it in theoriginaland subsequenteditionsofStrangeCareer,it was
not untilthepost-1890periodthata rigidsegregation
code "lentthe sanctionof
lawtoa racialostracism
thatextendedtochurches
and schools,tohousingandjobs,
to eatingand drinking.
Whetherbylawor bycustom,thatostracism
exeventually
tendedto virtually
all formsofpublictransportation,
to sportsand recreations,
to
hospitals,orphanages,prisons,and asylums,and ultimatelyto funeralhomes,
The reference
morgues,and cemeteries."8
to customis misleading,however,
since
forWoodward,
theexistence
ofa lawenforcing
despitehispartialdisclaimers,
segregationhas alwaysbeen thekeyvariablein evaluatingthe natureof racerelations.
And in all editionsofthebook,mostoftheexamplesofflexibility
beforethe1890s
havecome fromthe moderateSouthAtlanticstates.
Woodwardeasilyweathered
thefirst
and evenincorporated
that
waveofcriticism
appeared.In the new firstchapterof the 1966 edition,he acceptedRichardC.
in antebellumsoutherncitiesbut discountedits
Wade'sdepictionof segregation
importancebecausean all-pervasive,
legallyenforcedsystemwas absentand the
about the extentof
region'surbanizationlimited.Leon E Litwack'srevelations
in thepre-CivilWarNorthimpressed
segregation
Woodwardmore,and he broad5 C. VannWoodward,The StrangeCareerofJimCrow(New York,1974).
Ibid., (1955), iX.
' Woodward,Thinking
Back,82-83. Fortheoriginalquote in theearlieressay,see C. VannWoodward,
American Counterpoint:
Slaveryand Racismin the North-South
Dialogue (Boston,1971),237.
8 Woodward,
StrangeCareer(1955), 8; ibid. (1957), 8; ibid. (1966), 7; ibid. (1974), 7.
6
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
The StrangeCareero0jim Crow
Assessing
845
oftheNorthas a result,buthe remindedreadersthathis conened histreatment
in the South.Joel Wilwiththe rootsof segregation
cernhad been primarily
order"by the end of
liamson'sargumentforthe existenceof a "duo-chromatic
becauseSouth
lacking
in South Carolina,likeWade's,was found
Reconstruction
bein somerespects,"
but moreimportantly
Carolina"mayhavebeen exceptional
Having
in theSouth,racerelations
had notyetcrystallized.
causethere,as elsewhere
withhis criticsand evenincludedsomeadditionalexdealtfirmly
but graciously
Woodwardthenadded a newsectionto thebeginning
amplesofearlysegregation,
CharlesE. Wynes'ssupport
thatspotlighted
Alternatives")
ofchapter2 ("Forgotten
forthe Woodwardthesisin Virginia.9
in his 1974
developments
historiographical
Woodwarddid notconsiderfurther
Controversy."
readersto "TheStrangeCareerofa Historical
edition,insteadreferring
Otherstudieshad appearedsinceWoodward's1971essaythataimedto document
or to argueforitslatercrystalliand earlyappearanceofsegregation
theprevalence
to thinkthatthose
wascorrect
zation,and morewouldfollowafter1974.Woodward
alterthe debate,and theydo not merit
subsequentworksdid not significantly
here.10
detailedconsideration
soughtto go beyondthenarrowquestion
somehistorians
however,
Increasingly,
did theSouthhave,and whendid theSouthhaveit,a debate
ofwhatsegregation
thatoftenseemedto comedownto whetherthebourbonglasswashalffullorhalf
Forexample,althoughI had enteredthefrayin 1967gearedtowriteparasitic
empty.
widespreadlegallyenforcedcemedelightedto discover
history
and wastherefore
by1865and thepresenceofJimCrowBiblesin 1868,I soonsought
terysegregation
theconsiderto movethedebatein a newdirection.Insteadofsimplychronicling
thatexistedpriorto 1890,I askedwhatithad replaced.I discovered
able segregation
segregaexclusionofblacks,ratherthanintegration;
ironically,
thatitwasnormally
in thestatusof blacks,ratherthana
tionoftentherefore
markedan improvement
9 Ibid. (1966), 13-29,33-34. RichardC. Wade,Slaveryin theCities:TheSouth,1820-1860(New York,1964);
After
NorthofSlavery:TheNegroin theFreeStates,1790-1860(Chicago,1961);JoelWilliamson,
LeonF.Litwack,
1861-1877(Chapel Hill, 1965); CharlesE. Wynes,
Slavery:TheNegroin South CarolinaduringReconstruction,
1961).
Race Relationsin Virginia,1870-1902(Charlottesville,
10Woodward,
and GeorgeBrown
StrangeCareer(1974),viii.In additionto Wynes,RaceRelationsin Virginia,
ofStrange
Tindall,SouthCarolinaNegroes,1877-1900(Columbia,S.C., 1952),whichanticipatedthebasicthrust
or implicitly
supportthe Woodwardthesis:FreniseA. Logan,The Negro
worksexplicitly
Career,the following
and RobertP.Jones,"RaceRelationsin Louiin NorthCarolina,1876-1894(ChapelHill, 1964);HenryC. Dethloff
BlackNew Orleans,1860-1880
9 (Fall, 1968),301-23;JohnW. Blassingame,
LouisianaHistory,
siana,1877-1898,"
(Chicago,1973);Dale A. Somers,"Blackand WhiteinNewOrleans:A Studyin UrbanRaceRelations,1865-1900,"
JournalofSouthernHistory,40 (Feb. 1974), 19-42;JohnWilliamGraves,"Townand Country:Race Relations
ofVirginia,1978).In additionto Wiland UrbanDevelopmentin Arkansas,1865-1905"(Ph.D. diss.,University
liamson,AfterSlavery,Wade, Slaveryin the Cities,and VernonLane Wharton,The Negro in Mississippi,
worksprovidecontrary
1865-1890(Chapel Hill, 1947),whichcan be used to challengethe thesis,thefollowing
in AnteBellumNew Orleans,"AmericanHistorical
"RacialSegregation
evidencefortheSouth:RogerA. Fischer,
TheSegregation
in Louisiana,1862-77(Urbana,1974);
Struggle
Review,74 (Feb. 1969),926-37; RogerA. Fischer,
Ira Berlin,SlaveswithoutMasters:TheFreeNegroin theAntebellumSouth(New York,1974);JosephH. Cartwright,The TriumphofJimCrow:TennesseeRace Relationsin the 1880s(Knoxville,1976). For a discussionof
summary
oftheinitialstages
234-60. Fora convenient
AmericanCounterpoint,
additionaltitles,see Woodward,
Mass.,1968). I havedealtmore
(Lexington,
of the debate,seeJoelWilliamson,ed., The OriginsofSegregation
and
in HowardN. Rabinowitz,
"Segregation
withthedebateincludingitsmostrecentdevelopments,
thoroughly
possession).
(in HowardN. Rabinowitz's
Reconstruction"
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
846
ofAmerican
TheJournal
History
setback.That view has been widelyaccepted,most notablyand generously
by
Woodwardhimself.11
JohnCell embracedmyviewand thenshedfurther
lighton
theoriginsofsegregation
in theAmericanSouthand South
theissuebycomparing
Africain a bookthatWoodwardconsiders
moresupportive
oftheWoodwardthesis
in comparative
thanI do. It is worthnoting,however,
thatCell'sexperiment
history
and GeorgeFredrickson's
beforeit owedmuchto thepioneeringcomparisons
with
SouthAfricafoundin StrangeCareer,whosetitleforthe"Man on a Cliff'chapter
is takenfroman essaybyAlan Paton.12
The debateovertheWoodward
thesishasbeenfruitful.
YetithasoftenbeenfrusforWoodward's
sincethemastercontinuesto absorbwhattheysee
trating
critics,
as knockout
blowsand eventoincorporate
adversaries'
weaponsintohisownarsenal.
A careful
readingofStrangeCareerhelpsexplainwhythiscouldhappen.Fordespite
all thathas been written
about it, thecontoursoftheWoodwardthesisarenot at
all clear.Ratherthanbeinga firmly
etchedthesis,Woodward's
is hedged,
argument
as he recalledin his memoirs,by "the carefully
noted exception,the guarded
theunstatedassumption,
qualification,
the cautionary
warning[which]wasoften
or brushedaside."13
overlooked
Indeed,Woodwardwentto greatlengthsin thevarious editionsto avoidmisinterpretation.
Despitehis emphasison the importance
oflaws,he wrotein thefirst
edition"lawsarenotan adequateindexto theextent
and prevalence
ofsegregation
and discriminatory
in theSouth."The same
practices
phraseappearsin all subsequenteditions,butbeginningin 1966,Woodwarditalicized it to make sure no one missedthe point.14 He also soughtto be evenmore
11 HowardN. Rabinowitz,
"FromExclusionto Segregation:
SouthernRace Relations,1865-1890,"
Journalof
AmericanHistory,
63 (Sept. 1976),325-50; HowardN. Rabinowitz,
RaceRelationsin theUrbanSouth,1865-1890
(New York,1978).ForWoodward's
reaction,
see C. VannWoodward,"Foreword,"
in HowardN. Rabinowitz,
Race
Relationsin the UrbanSouth(Urbana,1980),ix-x; C. VannWoodward,reviewofRace Relationsin the Urban
SouthbyHowardN. Rabinowitz,Journal
44 (Aug. 1978),476-78; and Woodward,Thinking
ofSouthernHistory,
Back,96-97. Forthe responseof others,see, forexample,EricAnderson,Race and Politicsin NorthCarolina,
1872-1901:The Black Second (Baton Rouge, 1981),ix; Lawrence0. Christensen,
"Race Relationsin St. Louis,
MissouriHistoricalReview,
1865-1916,"
78 (Jan.1984),123-36;JohnCell, TheHighestStageof WhiteSupremacy:
The Originsof Segregation
in SouthAfricaand the AmericanSouth (New York,1982), 133-34, 175-76, 180;
GeorgeFredrickson,
WhiteSupremacy:
A Comparative
Studyin Americanand SouthAfricanHistory(New York,
1981),262-63.
12 Cell,HighestStageofWhite
Supremacy,
133-34,175-76,180;Fredrickson,
WhiteSupremacy.
Forhisassessmentof Cell's book,see C. VannWoodward,"The Edificeof Domination,"New Republic,Dec. 27, 1982,pp.
33-35; and Woodward,Thinking
Back,97. In addition,JoelWilliamson,who had been largelyresponsible
for
openingtheoriginaldebate,soughtto "moveto one side,and beginagain,"thoughin facthe is stillusingWoodward'sworkas a jumping-off
point.SeeJoelWilliamson,TheCrucibleofRace:Black-White
Relationsin theAmericanSouthsinceEmancipation(New York,1984),viii-ix,491-93.Woodwardhimselfsoughtto go beyondthedebatebyapplying"competitive"
and "paternalistic"
modelsofracerelations
to thelatenineteenth-century
southern
experience;
Woodward,
AmericanCounterpoint,
243-60. Fortwootherefforts
to savetheWoodwardthesisbyapproachingit froma different
perspective
thanhad Woodward,see thecyclicalexplanationin AugustMeierand
ElliotRudwick,"A StrangeChapterin theCareerof'JimCrow,"'in TheMakingofBlackAmerica:Essaysin Negro
Lifeand History,
ed. AugustMeierand ElliottRudwick(2 vols.,NewYork,1969),II, 14-19;andJ.MorganKousser
andJamesM. McPherson,
eds., Region,Race,and Reconstruction:
Essaysin Honorof C. VannWoodward
(New
York,1982),xxv-xxvii.
13 Woodward,
Thinking
Back, 93.
14 Woodward,
StrangeCareer(1955), 87; ibid. (1957), 87; ibid. (1966), 102; ibid. (1974), 102. Woodward
withtherelativeimportance
struggles
oflawsin manyplaces.The bestexamplesin additionto thepagesalready
cited,are theprefacesto the lastthreeeditions:ibid. (1957), xi-xvii;ibid. (1966), v-ix;ibid. (1974), v-viii.See
also ibid. (1966), 24-25, 29, 31 and ibid. (1974), 24-25, 29, 31.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
Assessing
The StrangeCareerofJimCrow
847
precisein his use of evidence.In all editions,WoodwardusesNegrojournalistT.
recollections
ofhis 1885tripalongtheSouthAtlanticseaboard
McCantsStewart's
of
The treatments
are identical,except
the
illustrate
absence
rigidsegregation.
to
and peraccountis introduced
bythesentence"Morepertinent
thatthe1955/1957
of the Negro himself";the 1966/1974accountbegins,
suasiveis the testimony
whethertypicalor not,is the experienceof a Negro."15
"Morepertinent,
pointdoes notalwaysrestwiththecareless
YetthefaultformissingWoodward's
of law,Strange Career is oftenconreader,forin mattersbesidesthe importance
WoodOftenthatis to thegood,makingthebookmorecomprehensive.
tradictory.
claimsthathe islookingsimplyat segregation,
definedas thephysical
wardregularly
aboutpodistancebetweentheraces,butthereis a wealthofvaluableinformation
and
other
matters
mere
segrethatgo wellbeyond
juryservice,
liticalparticipation,
refarelessfortunate.
DespiteWoodward's
gation.Atothertimesthecontradictions
ofsegregation,
theoriginaleditionmakesclear
erenceto theprogressive
extension
ofracerelations
militia
did notincludechurches,
thattheclaimsaboutthefluidity
welfare
and a widerangeofactiviinstitutions,
companies,schools,stateandprivate
of the book,an additionto theoriginalparaties.In the 1966and 1974versions
forexample,makesWoodward's
graphon stateand privatewelfareinstitutions,
a pracpointmoreexplicitbynoting,"Bothtypeshad usuallymadeit[segregation]
thenormin manyareasfromat least1865
ticeall along."16
Not onlywassegregation
enforced
bylaw.TheWoodward
on,itwasoften,as inthecaseofschools,admittedly
thancommonly
had little
thesisis therefore
muchnarrower
believedand ironically
relevanceforthe cause thatmostconcernedWoodwardat the timehe conceived
In essence,thethesiscoveredthesituation
thebook,thatis, schooldesegregation.
restaurants,
and otherplacesofpublic
and inhotels,theaters,
inpublicconveyances
accommodation.Woodwardwroteout whole aspectsof southernlifefromthe
thusat theverybeginning,dependingon yourpointof
boundsofhis argument,
view,eitherloadingthe dice or concedingmuchof the game to his critics.
Woodwardhas obviouslyfaredbestwithinthestrictgroundruleshe had establaws
trueofpublicconveyances,
wheresegregation
lished.The thesisis particularly
exof post-1890originand wherea degreeof integration
weregenerally
certainly
on first-class
railroadcars.Yettheevidenceaboutvariousforms
isted,thoughrarely
mostnotablythelimitedimpactofthe1875CivilRights
ofpublicaccommodation,
morecommonthan
that
segregation
bycustomwasalmostcertainly
Act,suggests
On Woodward'sterms,thatconclusionmightbe a victoryforthe
integration.17
thesis,but a somewhathollowone.
Woodwarddoes notmention
1s Ibid. (1955), 19; ibid. (1957), 19; ibid. (1966), 38; ibid. (1974), 38. Although
T. McCantsStewart's
Negro,and thatmayhelp explaintheease withwhichhe
color,he wasa verylight-skinned
traveledthroughthe South.
16 See ibid. (1955), 15-16,83-84; ibid. (1957), 15-16,83-84; ibid. (1966),99; ibid. (1974),99. Exclusion
from
Health
"FromExclusionto Segregation:
welfare
institutions
had beentheinitialpolicy.See HowardN. Rabinowitz,
and WelfareServicesforSouthernBlacks,1865-1890,"Social ServiceReview,48 (Sept. 1974), 327-54.
"TheEnforcement
oftheCivilRightsActof 1875,"Prologue,6 (Winter1974),225-35;
17JohnHope Franklin,
Race
(NewYork,1987),132-37;Rabinowitz,
CharlesA. Lofgren,
ThePlessyCase:A Legal-HistoricalInterpretation
Relationsin the UrbanSouth,186-89, 195-96.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
848
ofAmerican
TheJournal
History
The weightoftheevidenceseemsto be on thesideofthosewhofindsegregation
deeplyingrainedin southernlifein the immediatepostwaryears,if not before.
itis notclearthatthesystem
ofsegregation
becameso rigidafter
Moreimportantly,
or thatit did so whenhe averred.
as Woodwardsuggests,
the turnof thecentury
Georgiaand Tennesseeblacks,forexRecentstudiesof earlytwentieth-century
waspervasive,
activities
continuedto
integrated
ample,notethatwhilesegregation
mixing
exist.I suspectfurther
probingwill revealmanyinstancesof interracial
amongthe lowerclasses.18
throughat leastthe 1930sand evenlater,particularly
thatafter1900"blacksceasedto
assertion
surprising
despiteWoodward's
Similarly,
corrected
in a laterchapter,scattered
blackscontinuedto vote
vote,"onlyindirectly
in citiessuchas Atlantaand Memphis,even
theSouthand sometimes,
throughout
By juxtaposingthe AmericanSouth and
playeda pivotalrole in local politics.19
remindus thatthetwentieth-century
SouthAfrica,Cell and Fredrickson
social,pobetweentheracesin theSouthwerenever
litical,and especiallyeconomicbarriers
as greator rigidas Woodwardposits.Indeed, I thinkwe have probablybeen
spendingtoo muchtimeon thewrongend of theWoodwardthesis.We need to
duringthe allegedlyrigidperiodof segregation
knowas muchabout the fluidity
It wouldalso help
as we knowabouttherigidity
duringtheallegedlyfluidyears.20
such as thoseinvolvingphone
to knowif supposedlynew formsof segregation
coincidedwiththeappearanceofnew
and waterfountains
merely
booths,elevators,
inventions.
oftheWoodwardthesis?Woodwardseems
Whatthenhas been thesignificance
behaviorand theprospects
to havebeenwrongabouttheextentofnonsegregated
in that realm duringthe Reconstruction
and postfor forgottenalternatives
intothestudyof
Reconstruction
periods,buthe did injecttheissueofsegregation
had
history.
Woodwardstatedthatpreviousobservers
southern
nineteenth-century
in thepostwarperiod,buthe does notgive
assumedtheprevalence
ofsegregation
whilecertainly
takenforgranted,wasnota major
anynames.In fact,segregation,
18 JohnDittmer,
BlackGeorgiain theProgressive
Era,1900-1920(Urbana,1977);LesterC. Lamon,BlackTennesseans,1900-1930(Knoxville,1977).Woodwardnotesthata 1940parksegregation
in Atlantaprovided
ordinance
an exceptionforthe GrantParkzoo; Woodward,
StrangeCareer,(1955), 104;ibid. (1957), 104;ibid. (1966), 117;
ibid. (1974), 117.Yettheremightbe someconfusionherebetweenexclusionand segregation
sincethe zoo had
been segregated
at itsopeningin 1890.See Rabinowitz,
RaceRelationsin the UrbanSouth,190. Forthepassage
of newlawsduringthe 1930sand even1940s,see Woodward,StrangeCareer,(1955) 102-4; ibid. (1957), 102-4;
ibid. (1966), 116-18;ibid. (1974), 116-18.
19 Woodward,
StrangeCareer(1955); 91; ibid. (1957), 91; ibid. (1966), 106,ibid. (1974), 106. Forreference
to
the"virtualexclusion
fornearlyhalfa century"
ofNegrovoters,
seeibid.(1955),124;ibid.(1957),124.Forreference
to the exclusionof "all but a tinypercentage
oftheNegroesfromthepollsin theSouthernstatesfornearlyhalf
a century,"
see ibid. (1966), 141;ibid. (1974), 141.On thepoliticalroleof blacksin Atlanta,see Dittmer,Black
Georgia,147-48; on Memphis,see Lamon,Black Tennesseans,
42-47, 55-58, 222-23. Fora broaderdiscussion
of blackvotingbeforethe 1950s,see V. 0. Key,Jr.,SouthernPoliticsin Stateand Nation(New York,1949).
20 Cell, HighestStageof WhiteSupremacy,
192-275;Fredrickson,
WhiteSupremacy,199-282.Fora largely
unsuccessful
attemptto minimizethe differences
betweenthe SouthAfricanand and southernexperiences,
see
RobertJ. Norrell,"Castein Steel:JimCrowCareersin Birmingham,
Alabama,"JournalofAmericanHistory,73
(Dec. 1986),669-94, esp. 671,694. Althoughin StrangeCareerWoodwardfrequently
admittedexceptions
even
at thepeak oflegalizedJimCrow,in Thinking
Back he arguesthat"thenewlawswereofprofoundsignificance.
Theyrigidified
practice,
eliminatedexceptions,
and appliedto all on thebasisofracealone."Woodward,Thinking
Back, 96.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
CareerofJimCrow
TheStrange
Assessing
849
issuein the studyof the postbellumSouthpriorto StrangeCareer.EvenGeorge
of the Woodwardthesis
thoughmorelimited,anticipation
Tindall'spenetrating,
forSouthCarolinahad arousedlittleattention.
as in the
ofhistory
to explain"greatleaps" in thewriting
It can be as difficult
unfoldingof historyitself.PerhapsevenWoodwardcannotfullyaccountforthe
was able to drawon the workof
timingand shape of his argument.He certainly
in theuses
interested
especiallysocialpsychologists
Tindalland ofsocialscientists,
ofscapegoatsand thenatureofprejudice,suchas KonradLorenzand GordonAllforOriginsoftheNew
research
ownprimary
Woodward's
port.Norshouldweforget
briefin theBrownv. BoardofEducationcase. But more
Southand a supporting
ofothers.Criticalto opening
orthetheories
wasinvolved
thanthe"facts"ofhistory
wasWoodit witha startling
perspective
a wholenewfieldforstudyand infusing
and discontinuous
witha morehopeful,diverse,
ward'sdesiretoprovidesoutherners
And in the
thechallengesofdesegregation.21
"usablepast"withwhichto confront
that
thatfollowedin itswake,theWoodwardthesisled to newfindings
controversy
issueof the originand extentof segregation.
the narrower
transcended
issueintoSouthern
thantheinjectionof thesegregation
Evenmoreimportant
ofdishas beenWoodward's
profoundinsightintotheimportance
historiography
nain thestudyofsouthernracerelationsand especiallythewatershed
continuity
happenedin
tureof the 1890s.It is now clearthatsomethinghighlysignificant
lawswerealsouthernracerelationsduringthe 1890s.Thoughmanysegregation
of
legislathe
post-1890
importance
readyon the books,Woodwardis rightabout
evenwhencomingin newareas,did not createa
tion.Those laterlaws,however,
Rather,theyadded the forceof additionallawsto a
new systemof segregation.
notingthat
inpractice.Cell reacheda similarconclusion,
alreadywidespread
system
in political
of
racial
not
in
the
but
the
contact,
reality
shift
the
during 1890scame,
and law.In hisrecenttourde force,The CrucibleofRace,JoelWilliamson
rhetoric
agreesbut adds to the equationthe sharpincreasein racialviolence.22
The questionremains:Whydid thingschangein the 1890s?Woodwardattributed the alteredracial climateto the erosionof northernliberalismand the
radicalsto defending
ofsouthern
and agrarian
conservatives
weakenedcommitment
thatmostPopulists
has demonstrated
blackpoliticalrights.Yetrecentscholarship
abouthavinga biracialcoalitionand thatconservawere,at best,alwaysambivalent
legislaactuallyled in the fightfordisfranchisement
tives,ratherthanfollowing,
from
be
tion.23
Besides,boththosegroupshad alreadylongexpectedto segregated
blacksin schools,churches,and placesof public accommodation.
21 Tindall,SouthCarolina
withthe
Negroes.In theoriginaledition,Woodwardcitedseveralbooksconcerned
Race Distinctions
GilbertThomasStephenson,
legalstatusof blacksbut did notsingleout themostimportant,
had arguedthatJimCrow
in AmericanLaw (London,1910),whichhe mayhavehad in mindsinceStephenson,
newapproachto the
on Woodward's
Forinfluences
practices.
lawsoftensimplygavetheforceoflaw to customary
subject,includingworkon a brieffortheBrownv.BoardofEducationofTopeka,347 U.S. 483 (1954). See Roper,
C. VannWoodward,171-200;and Woodward,ThinkingBack,81-90.
82-102;
22 Rabinowitz,
RaceRelationsin the UrbanSouth,330-33; Cell, HighestStageof WhiteSupremacy,
Williamson,CrucibleofRace, 180-223.
23 ForWoodward's
explanation,see Woodward,StrangeCareer,(1955) 51-64,whichis reproducedin ibid.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
850
TheJournal
ofAmerican
History
Thewithdrawal
ofnorthern
supportforblacksaloneremainsa convincing
reason
forthe changesof the 1890s.But therewereotherforces,treatedonlyindirectly
byWoodward.As Williamsonnotes,theeconomichardtimesofthelate 1880sand
early1890sand thethreatofrenewednorthern
in southern
Republicaninterference
affairs
encourageda shiftin racialattitudes.Cell, drawinginspiration
fromWoodward'sOriginsofthe New South,also emphasizesthe alteredeconomicsituation
in theSouthduringthe 1890s.24
AlthoughI wouldagreewithCell and Williamson,
I thinktheybothignorea possiblesourceencouraging
the creationof a morede
jurepatternofracialsegregation.
As I havearguedelsewhere,
segregation
emerged
inpartdue totheefforts
duringReconstruction
ofwhiteRepublicans
and theirblack
allies,twogroupsWoodwardlargelyignores.Becausesegregation
replacedexclusion,theycould see it as an improvement
in thestatusof blacks,especiallywhen
it was presentedas providingseparatebut equal treatment.
By the 1890swhite
Republicanswere,exceptin a fewpartsof the South,no longera majorfactorin
theracialequation.Blackswere,however,
and theirresistance
tode factosegregation
mayhavehelpedmovewhitesoutherners
in the directionof additionallaws.No
one, to myknowledge,
has soughtto followup thatline of inquirysystematically
sinceI presentedit in the mid-1970s,but I thinkit worthpursuing,particularly
givenCell'sconclusion
abouttheroleofSouthAfrican
blacks'"growing
uppityness"
in forcing
whitesto resortto apartheidin an effort
to controlthem.25
And strange
as itmightseem,duringtheentiredebateovertheWoodward
thesis,therehas been
in theJimCrowstatutes
remarkably
littleinterest
themselves,
and no one has satisfollowedthelifeofa statutefromitsoriginsthrough
factorily
passageand theeffects
ofimplementation.26
I mightadd thatin theprocessofsortingout thereasonsfor
(1957), 51-65;ibid. (1966),69-82; ibid. (1974), 69-82. Forchallengesto Woodward's
interpretation
of Populist
racialattitudesand behavior,see GeraldH. Gaither,Blacksand the PopulistRevolt:Ballotsand Bigotryin the
"NewSouth"(University,
Ala., 1977);and BartonC. Shaw,The Wool-HatBoys(BatonRouge,1984).Forconservativeresponsibility
fordisfranchisement,
seeJ. MorganKousser,TheShapingofSouthernPolitics:Suffrage
Restrictionand theEstablishment
of the One-Party
South,1880-1910(New Haven, 1974). Woodwardhas onlypartly
acceptedtheviewsofhiscritics
on PopulismbutfindsKousser'sargument
morecompelling.Woodward,Thinking
Back, 39-40, 69, 97.
24 Williamson,
CrucibleofRace, 112-14;Cell, HighestStageof WhiteSupremacy,
82-170.Althoughhe acknowledgedthe role of politicaland economicforces,Williamsonemphasized,misguidedly
in myview,psychosexualreasonsfortheriseof"Radicalism"
after1889.See Williamson,CrucibleofRace,111-79.See alsoHoward
N. Rabinowitz,
"Psychological
Disorders,Socio-Economic
Forces,and AmericanRaceRelations,"
Slavery& Abolition,7 (Sept. 1986), 188-94.
25 Rabinowitz,
RaceRelationsin theUrbanSouth,333-39; Rabinowitz,
"FromExclusionto Segregation,"
350;
Cell,HighestStageof WhiteSupremacy,
192-229,esp. 212.Foran endorsement
ofmyposition,withoutnewevidence,seeLofgren,
PlessyCase,25-26. Fora mentionofwhitefearsofthe"newNegro"thatdoesnotgiveenough
credenceto thejustification
forsuchfears,see LindaM. Matthews,
"KeepingDownJimCrow:The Railroadsand
the SeparateCoach Billsin SouthCarolina,"SouthAtlanticQuarterly,
73 (Winter1974), 117-29.
26 Twoattempts
wouldhavebenefited
fromgreaterattentionto rollcall analysisand to theeffects
ofthelaws:
Matthews,
"KeepingDownJimCrow";andJohnWilliamGraves,"The ArkansasSeparateCoach Law of 1891,"
7 (Oct. 1968),531-41.On whiteRepublicancommitment
Journalofthe
West,
toseparatebutequal trainaccommodationsin Tennessee
in 1881,see StanleyJ.
Folmsbee,"TheOriginoftheFirst'JimCrow'Law' JournalofSouthern
History,
15(May1949),243-47. Fora suggestive,
butonlypartially
convincing,
economicinterpretation,
seeWalter
E. Campbell,"Profit,
Prejudice,and Protest:UtilityCompetitionand the GenerationofJimCrowStreetcars
in
Savannah,1905-1907'"GeorgiaHistoricalQuarterly,
70 (Summer1986),197-231.Foran economicinterpretation
marred
bymisleading
claimsoforiginality
and an inadequategraspofthesecondary
literature,
seeJennifer
Roback,
"ThePoliticalEconomyofSegregation:
The Case ofSegregated
Streetcars,"Journal
ofEconomicHistory,
46 (Dec.
1986),893-917.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
Assessing
The StrangeCareerofJimCrow
851
changein the 1890sit wouldhelp to be moreprecisein theuse ofJimCrowand
and disfranchisement
that
to avoidthelinkagebetweensegregation,
proscription,
of boththesupporters
and criticsoftheWoodwardthesis.For
cloudsthethinking
of blacksor the frightening
long beforethe de jure disfranchisement
increasein
had becomethe normin muchof southernsociety.27
lynching,
segregation
A secondcontribution
ofStrangeCareerhasbeenlesscontroversial.
Justas Woodwardfeltthattherecentoriginsof segregation
mightmakeit easierto overcome,
he believedthattheforcesofreform
werebetterpositionedin the 1950sthanthey
In his view,the nationin 1955wasin themidst
had been duringReconstruction.
a termlaterused interchangeably
ofa "NewReconstruction,"
with"SecondReconuntilthe latterunaccountably
struction,"
completelyreplaced"New Reconstruction"in the 1966edition.28
ForWoodward,theNew or SecondReconstruction
had
In the 1955,1966,and
farbetterprospects
forsuccessthantheFirstReconstruction.
1974editions,he keptcomparisons
to a minimum,stressing
theimpactofWorld
and thecomWarII and theCold War,thegreater
powerofthefederalgovernment,
in thetwentieth
mitmentofbothpoliticalpartiesto desegregation
In the
century.
1957edition,however,
duringa timeofrenewedsouthernresistance
to desegregation,Woodwarddevotedfivepagesofhisconcludingchapterto reasonswhycondiin the mid-1950sthanin the 1860s
tionsfavoring
changeweremoreencouraging
thenewone wasnotso strongly
and 1870s.UnliketheearlierReconstruction,
tied
to thefortunes
ofa singleparty,blackswerein a stronger
position,therewasmore
wereunifiedin theirsupport,theborderstatesand
supportin theSouth,churches
as in the
mid-Southwereon therightside,and therewerealreadytangibleresults,
of highereducation.This timereconstruction
was national,rather
desegregation
thansectional,in scope and support.29
no longerfeltthe need to be so defensive
By 1966,Woodwardevidently
about
whileincortheprospects
forchange,and he eliminatedtheextendedcomparison
materialin thenewedition.The restof
poratingmostofthechapter'sremaining
histreatment
wasessentially
thesameexceptfortheexpandedaccountofthenew
and the name change.Unfortunately,
the persistence
of
periodof reconstruction
languagefromtheearliereditionsresultedin someconfusionas to periodization.
fromthelate
Woodwardcontinuedto datetheoriginsoftheSecondReconstruction
1930s;he arguedthatit reachedfullmomentumin thefirstdecade afterthewar
27 Woodward
thisviewin itsclassicformin a passageretainedin subsequenteditions:"Thepolicies
expressed
of the
thatare oftendescribedas the immutable'folkways'
of proscription,
segregation,
and disfranchisement
aliketolegislative
reform
and armedintervention,
areofmorerecentorigin[thantheimmediate
South,impervious
ofsegregation
is compost-Reconstruction
period]."Woodward,StrangeCareer(1955),47. JohnCell'sdefinition
with"segregation"
but someparableto Woodward's"JimCrow"(whichWoodwardoftenused interchangeably
socialpractices
andcustoms,
politicalpower,
timesmorebroadly):"aninterlocking
ofeconomicinstitutions,
system
to keepanother(or others)
law,and ideology,all ofwhichfunctionbothas meansand endsin one group'sefforts
"The
14. On Cell'sapproach,see HowardN. Rabinowitz,
in theirplace."Cell,HighestStageof WhiteSupremacy,
Not-So StrangeCareerofJimCrow,"Reviewsin AmericanHistory,12 (March1984), 58-64.
28 Woodward,
StrangeCareer(1955),9-10, 124;ibid. (1957),9-10, 124,155,175,179;ibid. (1966),9-10, 135,
139; ibid. (1974), 9-10, 135, 139,209.
29 Ibid.(1957),174-78.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
852
TheJournal
ofAmerican
History
and wasdividedintotwoerasbytheBrowndecision.But althoughhe retainedin
that"the SecondReconstruction
the 1974 editionthe earlierstatement
showsno
signsofhavingyetrunitscourseor evenofhavingslackeneditspace,"in his new
of the SecondReconstruction
concludingchapterhe observed,"The foundations
had, in fact,begunto crumbleduringtheJohnsonAdministration."30
Mostotherscholarsand politiciansstilluse the termto describethe situation
thenumberis untoday,though,giventhepoliciesoftheReaganadministration,
the questionsabout durationforthe moderstandably
shrinking.
Disregarding
seemsto have greatvalue as a
ment,the conceptof the Second Reconstruction
ofthelimitations
ourunderstanding
oftheFirstReconstruction.
meansofenlarging
wasespecially
ofcourse,thecontrast
usefulbecauseitsuggested
ForWoodward,
that
had a betterchanceforsuccessthanthefirst.
Yetas Woodwardrealtheneweffort
ized, it is bestto use thetermas a shorthand
wayofnotingthatafterWorldWar
II federalpolicyonce again becamevitallyconcernedwiththe statusof blacksin
America.Obviouslytherewerethedifferences
betweenthetworeconstructions
with
forsuccess,as alreadynoted,but in a passagefoundin all ediregardto prospects
tions,whichhas been overlooked
bythosewhogliblyuse theterm,Woodwardobservedthatthe SecondReconstruction
"addresseditselfto all the aspectsof racial
relations
thatthefirst
attackedand evensomethattheFirstReconstruction
avoided
He
or neglected." thenmentionsas examplesthe attackson segregation
in the
armedservicesand in the publicschools.31
And here,I think,is the keypoint.Unlessextremecautionis employedwhen
usingthetermSecondReconstruction,theeffect
willbe to distortthemeaningof
theFirstReconstruction.
It seemsto me thattheFirstand SecondReconstructions
in theirchancesforsuccess;theywereaboutverydifferent
notonlydiffered
things.
ForthatreasonWoodwardmighthavebeen betteradvisedto stickto thetermNew
whichhasa stronger
connotation
ofdifference.
The onlypolicyaim
Reconstruction,
thatreallylinkstogether
is thedesiretoincreasethepolitical
thetworeconstructions
powerofblacks,thoughin itsenforcement
theVotingRightsActis much
provisions
thananything
stronger
earlier.Forif I am correct
about theFirstReconstruction's
emphasison equal accessand acceptanceof segregation,
evenforthoseareasin
whichWoodwarddoes notacknowledge
itsexistence,
thenthereis no comparison
withtheintegrationist
oftheSecondReconstruction.
thrust
itis clearthat
Similarly,
theemphasison jobs,housing,and othereconomicconditions
had no counterpart
in theFirstReconstruction,
otherthanperhapsthe largelyabortiveefforts
at land
and taxreform.
And certainly
redistribution
thereis a worldofdifference
between
thecallforequal opportunity
thatdominatedtheFirstReconstruction
and thedemandforequalityofconditionthat,at leastafter1965,threatened
to controlthe
SecondReconstruction.
But I don'tthinkwe shouldbe surprisedbythosedifferences.Norshouldwesuccumb,as somehave,tothetemptation
to damntheproponentsof the FirstReconstruction
fornot goingfarenoughin theirreform
efforts,
30 Ibid.
31
(1974), 8, 209.
Ibid. (1955), 10-11;ibid. (1957), 10-11;ibid. (1966), 9-10; ibid. (1974), 9-10.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
AssessingThe StrangeCareerofJimCrow
853
resists.32
Afterall, it would be ahistorical
and
a temptation
Woodwardstaunchly
Americans
unjusttoexpectmid-nineteenth-century
to believeand actliketheirlate
to promote
twentieth-century
descendantsor to createcomparableinstitutions
change.
oftheSecondReconstruction
Woodward's
treatment
led himnaturally
intothe
doesnotstand
penetrating
concluding
chapterofthe1974edition.Itscontribution
Many
out liketheWoodwardthesisor the conceptof the SecondReconstruction.
oftheideas are derivative,
coveredin more
and the eventshavebeen increasingly
detailbyothers.Its greatness
lies in thewayWoodwardhas broughttogetheran
impressive
amountofmaterialin a briefspace,presentedit in theelegantand eloquentstylethatcharacterizes
therestofthebook,and madesoundjudgmentsthat
continueto flyin thefaceofmuchliberaland radicalcantnow,as theydid when
writtenfourteenyearsago.
Woodwardbeganwiththe obviousquestion:Why,afterthe greatsuccessesin
and votingrights,
did blackurbanAmericaexplode?His answerwas
desegregation
thatthe issuesbeingsettleddid not affect
poor blacksand thatthe emphasison
nationalist
thrust
ofmanyblackleaders.The fight
integration
ignoredthegrowing
forthe end of legalJimCrowthatseemedso criticalin 1954nowpaled nextto a
rashofsocioeconomic
northeballotcouldsolve.
problemsthatneitherintegration
thatproduced
Woodward
and deprivation
writes
withcompassionofthefrustration
and separathenorthern
riotsand theshifttonewleaderswhoespoused"liberation
Yetin themidstof bothblack
tion,"ratherthan"integration
and assimilation."33
to the
and whiteliberalsupportforsucha shift,Woodwardremainedcommitted
America.
hopes of 1954,thatis, to an integrated
interprets
the 1974concludingchapteras
JohnRoper,Woodward'sbiographer,
a productofWoodward's
driftduringtheyearsbetweenthe
allegedlyconservative
by WilliamMcFeelyas Woodward's
mid-1960sand 1974, a periodcharacterized
"ToryPeriod,"and byWoodwardas his "timesof trouble."Anotherscholar,who
Thatperiod
is probablynotalone,has discerneda "hostiletone"in thatchapter.34
wasa depressing
one forWoodward,bothin hispersonallifeand in thelifeofthe
country,
but it wouldbe wrongto see thechapteras partofsomepsychologically
towardor deviationfromthe
inducedmoveto therightor an exampleofhostility
forequal rights.If anything
had changed,it wasthetimes,nottheman.
struggle
32 See, for
Friedman,The WhiteSavage:RacialFantasiesin thePostbellumSouth(Engleexample,LawrenceJ.
wood Cliffs,1970); ForrestG. Wood, Black Scare: The RacistResponseto Emancipationand Reconstruction
1863-1877(New York,1975). Woodwardwas
G. Wood, TheEra ofReconstruction,
(Berkeley,
1970); and Forrest
in an articlethatalso marked
to theaims,legacy,and problemsoftheFirstReconstruction
evenmoresympathetic
"The PoliticalLegacyoftheFirst
See C. VannWoodward,
hisfullcommitment
to thetermSecondReconstruction.
Reconstruction,"
JournalofNegroEducation,26 (Summer1957), 231-40.
33Woodward, StrangeCareer(1974), 195.
34 Roper,C. VannWoodward,
of anonymousreaderof a previousversion
198,232-67, esp. 246-47; remarks
thathe agrees
viewsofsocietyand history
ofthisessay(in Rabinowitz's
possession).RopertendstotreatWoodward's
Much
withtheassessments,
Woodwardiswrongand "conservative."
withas "liberal"or"radical";whenhe disagrees
of Roper'sevidence,includingWoodward'svote for George McGovernin 1972, undercutsclaimsfora Tory
Woodward.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
854
TheJournal
ofAmerican
History
some overreaction
on his part and evensome patronizing.
Therewas, however,
Thoughhe attemptedto be fairminded,hislanguageoftengavehimaway "the
separatist
impulseinfected"civilrightsorganizations;
StokelyCarmichaelmoved
moreand more"towarda licenseto hate,to violenceand to rage."Yet at times
Woodwardseemeddisturbedbyhisownpessimism
-the 1974chapterremindsus
thatdespiteall theattention
received
in
they
(and thefaceofhisownoveremphasis),
theseparatists
capturedonlya smallsegmentofblackAmerica.His heroesremained
theNationalAssociation
fortheAdvancement
ofColoredPeople(NAACP),Bayard
Rustin,and otherscommitedto integration,
and he wasequallyharshtowardblack
and towardtheguilt-ridden
separatists
whiteliberalswhogaveintotheirdemands.
Aboutthelatter,
he said "attimesitwasa questionwhether
itwasguiltorcowardice
thatprevailed."
he providedthoughtful,
Nevertheless,
iflargelynegative,
portraits
ofthenewblackleaderslikeMalcolmX (hisfavorite),
Carmichael,
HueyNewton,
EldridgeCleaver,and the restand the groupstheyled. Throughoutthe chapter,
Woodwardkeptin mindthe difference
betweenraceand classinterests,
as when
notingthatthebenefits
of"BlackPower"accruedto theblackbourgeoisie,
a process
hiddenbythe "mythof blackunity."He presentsan equallycompellinganalysis
of thewhitebacklash.35
In short,thisis perceptive
and strongstuff.
No one is spared.In additionto the
divisionsamongblacks,thereweremanyreasonsfortheend oftheSecondReconstruction,
includingsheerexhaustion,
thepoliticalandjudicialundercutting
offederalagencies'integration
efforts,
and the defection
ofwhiteallies,especially
Jews
whobecameconcernedaboutrisingblackanti-Semitism
and liberalsand students
whobecamepreoccupiedwiththeVietnamWar.Woodwardconcludeswithan essentially
positiveassessment
oftheSecondReconstruction,
buthe raisesa number
ofpenetrating
questionsabouttheprospects
forintegration
in a societywhere"the
brutefactsofdemography,"
amongotherforces,
weremovingin theoppositedirection.One couldtherefore
expect,he concludedsadlyratherthanbitterly,
both"demandforintegration
and a demandforseparation.Bothdemandswouldlikelybe
heardfora long time,forthe meansof satisfying
neitherseemedyetat hand."36
It has been fourteenyearssince the appearanceof that chapter.Like many
Americans
whohad hoped thattheend oflegalizedJimCrowwouldlead to even
greaterprogress,
Woodwardhad been soberedby the experienceof the previous
twenty
years.it is notsurprising
thattherehas beenno fifth
editionofStrangeCareer.Fortunately,
Woodwardhas leftus witha chapterthatis the bestsingleplace
to go in orderto understand
whathappenedto MartinLutherKing,Jr.'sdream.
Yetitis also a chapterironically
out ofplacein thebookas itwasconceivedin 1954
and nominally
existedin 1974.AlthoughWoodward
had continuedtoadd material
on theNorthto theearliereditions,becauseofdevelopments
at thetimethenew
1974chapterdevotedunprecedented
spaceto northern
racerelations.Similarly,
for
35
36
Woodward,StrangeCareer(1974), 196, 197-98,205, 206-7.
Ibid., 219, 220.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
Assessing
The StrangeCareerofJimCrow
855
a bookdevotedto theoriginsand demiseof legalsegregation,
the chaptergavea
to matters
surprising
degreeofattention
unrelatedto segregation
and to theeffects
ofde facto,rather
thande jure,discrimination.
The mostimportant
reasonforthose
changeswas a newemphasisin a book thathad admittedly
been concernedwith
whiteattitudesand behaviortowardblacks.Now blacksmovedto centerstage,and
the focuswas on blackattitudesand behavior.
shifttoviewingblacksas subjects,ratherthanobjects,ofhistory
Woodward's
was
partofa generaltrendin blackand ethnichistory
thenunderway,
buthe wasamong
thepacesetters,
as had beenindicatedbyhis 1969presidential
addressto theOrganizationofAmericanHistorians.37
In moresubtlewayshe had movedin thatdirectionin thepreviouseditionoftheStrange Career.In the 1955and 1957editions,
forexample,in discussing
theoriginsoftheSecondReconstruction,
he had saidthat
"thechiefagentfortheadvanceagainstSouthernpeculiarities
ofracialdiscriminationand segregation
has been thefederalgovernment
in itsseveralbranchesand
In 1966,in a changekeptin 1974,he subbothciviland military."
departments,
at leastincreasing
the imporstituted,"Amongthe chiefagents,"thusimplicitly
There
tanceofotherelements,
includingblacks,whoweresubsequently
discussed.38
is nothing,however,
to comparewiththe emphasisin 1974'snewchapter.
It is worthnotingthe greaterattentionto blacksin 1974,not onlybecauseit
wouldbe impossibleto understandtheprecedingyearsand Woodward'sreaction
to themwithoutdoingso, but also becausebylargelyignoringblackattitudesand
behaviorfortheearlieryears,Woodwardmissedan opportunity
to providea more
oftheoriginsand development
ofsegregation.
compellingtreatment
Earlygenerationsofblacksareviewedas "notaggressive
in pressing
theirrights "confused
and
is describedas favoring
politically
apathetic";BookerT. Washington
a "submissive
philosophy."39
Onlyin theprefaceto thefinaleditiondid Woodwardseek"torecall
a certainambivalencethatblackpeople havefeltall along towardintegration
in
whiteAmerica,"but he stillincorrectly
assertedthatit had "been buriedand put
aside duringthe long struggleagainstsegregation
and discrimination."
Unfortuin Ordinary
People
37Howard N. Rabinowitz,
"Race,Ethnicity,
and CulturalPluralismin AmericanHistory,"
and Everyday
Life:Perspectives
on theNew SocialHistory,
ed.JamesB. Gardnerand GeorgeRollieAdams(Nashville,1983),23-49; C. VannWoodward,"Clio withSoul,"JournalofAmericanHistory,46 (June 1969), 5-20.
38 Woodward,
StrangeCareer(1955), 123;ibid. (1957), 123;ibid. (1966), 134;ibid. (1974), 134. At timesthe
in Selmain the 1966edition
newemphasisproducedpuzzlingresults.In his discussionofthe 1965disturbances
Woodwardmentionedthe murdersof "Jimmie
LeeJackson,a Negro,'"one of the clergymen,
JamesReeb,"and
toJackson,
"a womanon thehighway
to Selma."Ibid. (1966), 187. In the 1974edition,he repeatsthereference
wasmurderedon thehighway.
but nownotes"one oftheclergymen
died" and "a womandemonstrator"
Neither
theracenornameofthetwowhitesis given.The womanwas,ofcourse,Viola Liuzzo whosedeathreceivedmore
nationalattention
ibid. (1974), 184-85.The newapproachalso gavelessemphasisto thecontributhanJackson's;
tionsofwhitesoutherners.
Forthe omissionofJudgeJ. WaitesWaringof SouthCarolina,who presidedovera
keywhiteprimary
case,seeibid. (1955), 125-127;ibid. (1957), 125-127;ibid. (1966), 140-42;ibid. (1974), 140-42.
a Southernmanplayedone
Note especiallythedeletionof"Asso frequently
happensin thisNewReconstruction,
ofthekeyroles,"indicating
thatby1966Woodwardwaslessconcerned
aboutproviding
theSouthwithwhiterole
models.Compareibid. (1955), 125; ibid. (1957), 125; ibid. (1966), 141;and ibid. (1974), 141.
39
Ibid. (1966), 28, 59, 82; ibid. (1974), 28, 59, 82. Forthe lattertwoquotations,see ibid. (1955), 41, 65;
in
ibid. (1957),41, 65; ibid. (1966), 59, 82; ibid. (1974), 59, 82. Despitethe claimthatblackswere"confused,"
thesameparagraph
to thinkin economicterms
Woodward
showstheywerenot,bysayingthattheywerebeginning
and had seen throughDemocraticappealsfortheirvotes.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
856
History
TheJournal
ofAmerican
the
the earlysectionsof the book to incorporate
nately,it was too late to rewrite
forexample,about the
newapproachfoundin thefinalchapter.Had he written,
call of Atlantablacksin 1875forthe hiringof blackteachersin theirsegregated
schools,readerswouldhaveappreciatedevenmoretheironyoftheAtlantaNAACP
chapterdoingthe same thinga hundredyearslater.And, in general,Woodward
to findthat"blackchamor thinkit quite as "strange"
wouldnot be so surprised
The 1960s
joinedhandswithwhitechampionsofsegregation."40
pionsofseparatism
timethatsomeblackshad optedfor"separate
and 1970swerenot,afterall,thefirst
but equal treatment."
by1988,TheStrangeCareerofJimCrowno longer
By1974,then,and certainly
had reinreflection
andfurther
as wellas it had in 1955.Newresearch
heldtogether
alreadypresentin the initialedition,
and modifications
forcedthe qualifications
thusfurther
lesseningthe purityof the Woodwardthesis.Segregationitselfno
an issue,whetherin itsde factoor de jureform.The
longerseemedso important
The inattention
guardedoptimismof 1955had givenwayto a guardedpessimism.
ofsegregation
aftertheCivil
to theactionsand attitudesofblacksin theinitiation
notonlybytheworkofothers,
Warhad been revealedas a cripplingshortcoming,
commitment
to inbut bya powerful
newconcludingchapter.An unquestioning
aspectsof ethniccohesionhad obscured
tegration
and blindnessto thevoluntary
the realitiesof the nation'sculturalpluralism.As Woodwardhimselfhad feared,
ofnewresearch
had exposedtherisks
but expected,thepassageoftimeand fruits
of writingpresentist
history."
and "committed
But does thismean thatThe StrangeCareerofJimCrowmustsimplybe conAn Ecosignedto theranksofmisguidedclassicsthatincludeTheAge ofJackson,
in AmericanHistory,
and The Frontier
ofthe Constitution,
nomicInterpretation
controversy?
of a historiographical
to be read as a periodpiece or the progenitor
as doeshisbiographer.41
Woodwardhimselfseemsto takethisviewin hismemoirs,
Had TheStrangeCareerofJimCrowremainedtheseriesoflecturesitwasintended
to be, thatprobablywouldhavebeen the case. But in the processof turningthe
as
lecturesintoa textbook,
Woodwardso broadenedand modifiedhisinitialeffort
to makeit the bestavailablebriefaccountof Americanracerelations.Historians
segregation,
willcontinueto explorethe well-trod
groundof nineteenth-century
butWoodwardhas alreadyanticipatedand undercutmuchofwhattheywillfind,
twentieth-century
and no one has yetfoundfaultwiththe essenceofWoodward's
accountofthesubject.As typified
byitsnewconcludingchapter,TheStrangeCahighlyreadable,judicious,
perceptive,
reerofJimCrowremainsa pathbreaking,
and surprisingly
fact-filled
to understand
farmorethantherootsand nature
effort
of segregation,
moreeventhanthe strangecareerofJimCrow.
40 Ibid. (1974),vi, 218. HowardN. Rabinowitz,
"Halfa Loaf:The ShiftfromWhiteto BlackTeachersin the
NegroSchoolsof the UrbanSouth, 1865-1890,"
Journalof SouthernHistory,40 (Nov. 1974), 565-94.
41 Woodward,
Thinking
Back, 98-99; Roper,C. VannWboodwoard,
198-200.
This content downloaded from 159.178.22.27 on Mon, 17 Aug 2015 10:35:49 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions