Home > People > Hilliard Caldwell - On the African American freedom struggle and Civil Rights Movement in Chapel Hill (Interview One) > Hilliard Caldwell - Watching the news on television in the 1950s (clip)

Oral History

Hilliard Caldwell - Watching the news on television in the 1950s (clip)

Interviewed by John Kenyon "Yonni" Chapman on March 26, 1991

John Kenyon “Yonni” Chapman (YC): Did your family have a television?

Hilliard Caldwell (HC): Mmm, later on in life, I think we bought—there was one about fifty-two, fifty-three I can’t remember ( )-

YC: Do you remember hearing about or seeing on television the situation in Little Rock [Arkansas] when they integrated the schools there?

HC: I remember that very well.

YC: You remember that? What kind of memory do you have of that?

HC: I remember that those kids were brave, were damn brave, and I remember telling myself [that] I don’t think I could have done what they did—but let’s see, who was president? Was it Eisenhower?

YC: Yeah, I think so.

HC: Yeah, I remember when he sent—you know—he took over the command of the National Guard. And I remember the news time on tv back when I was at home was an important time.

YC: It was in your family?

HC: Yup.

YC: You would all watch the news together?

HC: Exactly.

YC: Talk about it, probably?

HC: Yeah, probably I remember that.

YC: [Chuckles]

HC: Feeling sorry for what was going in in that particular time.

YC: Uh-huh.

HC: I know the Ed Sullivan show was a big thing on Sunday nights.

YC: Right. How about the Montgomery bus boycott, do you remember that?

HC: Mhm, I remember, yeah—

YC: I’m trying to get a—

HC: I remember Ms. Rosa Parks, I remember that she was told to get up and she said she was tired, she worked all day, and by God she wasn’t going to move. And um, I think she was subsequently arrested, and then word got out that this had happened, and then it just snowballed from that effect, and today people were very grateful that she was tired that day.

YC: [Chuckles]

Oral history interview of Caldwell, Hilliard conducted by Chapman, John Kenyon "Yonni" on March 26, 1991 at Chapel Hill, NC.

Citation: The Southern Historical Collection at the Louis Round Wilson Special Collections Library, “Hilliard Caldwell - Watching the news on television in the 1950s (clip),” From the Rock Wall, accessed April 19, 2025, https://fromtherockwall.org/oral-histories/hilliard-caldwell-watching-the-news-on-television-in-the-1950s-clip.

Rights: Open for research. The Southern Historical Collection (SHC) welcomes non-commercial use and access that qualifies as fair use to all unrestricted interview materials in the collection. The researcher must cite and give proper credit to the SHC. The SHC requests that the researcher informs the SHC as to how and where they are using the material.

"We’re writing our own history, thank you!"

Ms. Esphur Foster

Want to add in? Have a different view? What do you think? Want to upload your own photos or documents?

History is not the past. It’s the sense we make of the past now. Click below to RESPOND—and be part of making history today.

Respond

In this Oral History

Back to Hilliard Caldwell - On the African American freedom struggle and Civil Rights Movement in Chapel Hill (Interview One)

Hilliard Caldwell - Watching the news on television in the 1950s (clip)

In this Oral History

Hilliard Caldwell - On the African American freedom struggle and Civil Rights Movement in Chapel Hill (Interview One)

More to explore

Hilliard Caldwell - Role of adults in leading in the movement, conclusion (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Not allowing the white structure to control the Civil Rights Movement in Chapel Hill (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Greensboro Sit-Ins and first sit-ins in Chapel Hill (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Late 1950s activism as PTA president to advocate for a safe crossing over a creek on the way to the school (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Learning Black history, Brown v. Board of Education (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Grandma Flacks on the way to Northside School (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Violent August 1937 incident (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Mary Mason and Harold Foster (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Harold Foster and his leadership ability (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Liberal white citizens in Chapel Hill (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Campus Y meeting between Lincoln and Chapel Hill High School students (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Students who were involved with the Campus Y meeting (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Interaction between white and Black students in 1955-1956 at the Campus Y (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - The extent to which ministers addressed segregation (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Shifting from First Baptist to St. Joseph CME to United Church of Christ (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Church as food for thought (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Mother’s second marriage (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Class size in schools and economic class divisions in the community (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - R.D. Smith and other influential teachers (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - How teachers talked about segregation (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Contradictions between civics education and segregation (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Dedication of teachers and his grades (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Teachers in the community, integration (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Churches, Schools, PTA (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Living in rented homes (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Punishment and role of school (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Childcare while mother worked (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Mother’s domestic work (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Janitor’s association (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Fraternity work (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - His parents (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Career in public administration (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Brothers in law enforcement (clip)

Hilliard Caldwell - Introductions (clip)