Skip to main content

Mamie Lee Phillips Civil Rights Memoir

 Collection
Identifier: M383

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of a two-page typed memoir of Mrs. Phillip's experiences as an African American in a segregated society, and the consequences associated with being a civil rights activist. She mentions a visit to Hattiesburg by civil rights activist Aaron Henry, and the fire-bombing of Vernon Dahmer's home.

Dates

  • Other: A recollection of the 1960s, written in 1998

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Noncirculating; available for research.

Conditions Governing Use

This collection may be protected from unauthorized copying by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code).

Biographical / Historical

Mamie Lee Phillips was born in Pinola , Mississippi (Simpson County) on September 13, 1914, to Steve and Phenie Banks. Her siblings were Barnie, Naomi, Emry, Maggie, Charlie, Mary and Steve, Jr. She attended Alcorn Central Elementary School and Priest Creek High School, followed by one semester of college.

In 1940 she moved to Hattiesburg, Mississippi and joined the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). On April 23, 1947, she married Charles H. Phillips, who was also active in the NAACP. Together, they spent the next twenty years participating in community projects, demonstrations and teaching government courses struggling to bridge the divide between disconnected communities in Hattiesburg .

Mrs. Phillips' civil rights activism spanned a period of almost 30 years, beginning in 1940 and culminating in the 1960s. She and her husband generously fed and housed more than 30 civil rights workers during the height of the civil rights movement in Hattiesburg in the 1960s. The couple owned and operated the In and Out Lunch Bar, a restaurant located at 600 S. Tipton Street in Hattiesburg. In addition, Mrs. Phillips served as manager of the Francis Street Apartments in Hattiesburg for more than eighteen years. Other career activities included work as a beautician and a musician. Fishing and gardening were among her hobbies.

Extent

1 Item (2 pages)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

Her memories of housing Civil Rights workers in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, in the 1960s.

Provenance

Material in this collection was created and donated by Mrs. Mamie L. Phillips.

Related Materials

Fairley, J. C., and Phillips, Mamie and Charles. An Oral History with J. C. Fairley, Mamie Phillips, and Charles Phillips. Vol. 711, Hattiesburg: University of Southern Mississippi, 1998.

M328, Jill Wakeman Goodman (Jill Wakeman) Civil Rights Collection ("Journey to Mississippi", Summer 1966)

Title
Mamie Lee Phillips Civil Rights Memoir
Status
Completed
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Historical Manuscripts and Photographs Repository

Contact:
118 College Drive - 5148
Hattiesburg MS 39406-0001
601.266.4345