The collection has been arranged in several large series which reflect Barbee's legal,
legislative, and civil rights work in Milwaukee and in Wisconsin. The series include
Personal Papers and Correspondence, Campaigns, Organizations, Legislative and Subject Files,
Amos Case, and Remand Trial.
The PERSONAL PAPERS AND CORRESPONDENCE include letters to and from Barbee and his family
and friends, beginning when he was a young man in Memphis. There is also some personal
legislative and constituent correspondence in these files. Family members represented are
Barbee's daughter, Daphne (whose writings and drawings are also included); his father,
Earnest, whose file also includes letters from his other children and relatives; Barbee's
sons, Finn and Rustam; his brother, Quinten; and his former wife, Roudaba. There are also
files on Barbee's law practice.
The CAMPAIGNS series documents Barbee's legislative races from 1964 to 1974. Included in
the records are correspondence, campaign brochures and leaflets, financial records,
nomination papers clippings, election results, and voter registration papers.
Records of Barbee's involvement with Milwaukee and statewide groups are found in the
ORGANIZATIONS series. Noteworthy among the records are those of several Milwaukee civil
rights groups, such as Milwaukee United School Integration Committee (MUSIC), with
correspondence, the publication “Count down,” financial records,
membership lists, minutes, notes, petitions of Riverside High School parents, school
desegregation clippings, statements and press releases, legal papers pertaining to Taylor vs. MUSIC , and other papers. Also included are records of
Freedom Through Equality, Inc., for which there are agenda and minutes, applications and job
descriptions, correspondence, financial and legal records, lists of officers and directors,
notes, proposals, reports, and resolutions. There are also files concerning Milwaukee Legal
Services, Inc., including articles of incorporation and by-laws, agenda and minutes,
correspondence, financial records, and reports.
For the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People there are files
regarding its leadership training conferences, 1959-1965; national leadership conference;
and conference records, correspondence, minutes and reports of board and executive board
meetings, and records on Milwaukee school desegregation of the Wisconsin Conference of
Branches. The NAACP records also include small files from the Benton Harbor, Michigan;
LeMoyne College, Memphis; Madison; and Milwaukee branches. Other Milwaukee groups
represented in this series include the Afro-Urban Institute, Committee of Concern, Milwaukee
Afro-American Council, Milwaukee Commission on Human Rights, and Organization of
Organizations. There are files regarding anti-discrimination in housing and landlord-tenant
laws, the Committee on the State Bar of Wisconsin, the Governor's Commission on Human
Rights, the Governor's Committee on the United Nations, the Governor's Conference on Civil
Rights, the Madison Mayor's Commission on Human Rights, and Wisconsin Citizens for Fair
Housing.
This series' microfilmed papers, 1946-1965, relate to Barbee's civil rights activities,
including participation in Madison and state NAACP organizations, support of state fair
housing and fair employment legislation, cooperation with the Governor's Commission on Human
Rights, and service on the Madison Mayor's Commission on Human Rights, and on MUSIC.
Included are correspondence, minutes, reports, ephemera, and other material. Other
microfilmed papers, 1951-1962, pertain to Barbee's activities as a member of the Madison
Mayor's Commission on Human Rights, and include correspondence, minutes, case reports, and
other materials, with a folder of fair housing documents at the end of the film.
Barbee's LEGISLATIVE AND SUBJECT FILES are arranged in alphabetical order by topic, and
contain correspondence sent and received by Barbee and others, clippings, committee files
reflecting his active participation, legislative bills and joint resolutions, suggestions
for drafting legislation; reports, reference materials, and some speeches. There are lengthy
files illustrating Barbee's committee work, in particular as chairman of the Assembly
Judiciary Committee. The files also show Barbee's association with a wide range of legal,
professional, and human rights organizations. In Box 22 are several folders of
“Comment,” Barbee's newsletter, with mailing addresses and articles.
There is also a folder of Barbee's FBI files.
Much of this series deals with the various issues of national, state and local concern
during Barbee's tenure in the Assembly, such as abortion, the state budget, the children's
code, the Equal Rights Amendment, the legislative ethics code, gun control, health care,
highway aid, housing, police, prisons, sex laws, Social Security, taxes, and the University
of Wisconsin. Barbee's personal interests and those of his constituents are best illustrated
in the files on black organizations, the Democratic Party, desegregation, discrimination,
education, the Judicial Council, judicial reorganization, and the Judiciary Committee.
Over half the collection is comprised of the Amos Case series and the Remand Trial series
concerning the Milwaukee school desegregation case. The greatest amount of material consists
of documentation collected and used by Barbee's staff and volunteers to prove the contention
that Milwaukee school officials discriminated against black children. All of the research
and much of the fund-raising was handled by MUSIC members, rather than the local NAACP.
Marilyn Morheuser of MUSIC devised the research system to provide the statistical proof of
intentional segregation of black students and teachers and discriminatory treatment of black
students necessary for trial. The research also was to show that there were unequal
educational opportunities for black students, and to show what were the effects of these
actions by school officials.
Two basic studies were undertaken beginning in 1965, one of student, teacher, and
administrative assignment patterns and changes and one of pupil transfer policies. After
preliminary work in public records, the researchers began data gathering in 1966.
Researchers also made a systematic study of the black community in Milwaukee. From June 1967
through December 1969, a New York chapter of the NAACP provided funds for staff, equipment,
and supplies. Included in the collection are data gathered by researchers, and summary
reports, charts, tables, and graphs in various stages of completion. In 1970, a computer
study was undertaken using the data already gathered. This study covered assignment patterns
and changes, building utilization, and black enrollment percentages from 1950 through
1968-1969. Data was gathered from such primary sources as blueprints, busing contracts,
records of state building code violations, boundary descriptions, principals' reports, and
other sources. Much of this data, as well as the summary computer output, is also in the
collection. Further information on the research design can also be found in these files.
Part I of the Amos Case files and Part I of the Remand Trial files were organized in the
Archives in 1982. Part II of each of these series consists of additions organized in the
Archives in 1990. Records within the Amos Case and Remand Trial series in the 1982 part are
primarily research files and documentation collected to build the case against the Milwaukee
School Board. Most of the 1990 Additions consist of material actually used in the trial. The
collection as a whole now offers thorough documentation of the legal battle to desegregate
the Milwaukee Public School system and the many changes that took place in the Milwaukee
Public school system during the period 1965 to 1980.
The 1990 additions consist of records from Lloyd Barbee and the legal firm of Charne and
Associates which served as co-counsel for the plaintiffs. Overlap exists between several
files in the 1982 part and the 1990 additions. Like the original collection, the files are
arranged alphabetically by subject. Some legal court records were present in the 1982
collection; these have now been incorporated into the 1990 Additions. However, the
transcripts of testimony remain in the original collection.
Subdivisions within Part II of the Amos Case files which need further explanation are the
Legal Case, Research Design and Implementation, and the School Board Administration
records.
Legal Case records constitute the largest portion of the additions and include files on
Background, Correspondence, Exhibits, Fees, Legal records (pleadings), Research, and the
Special Master.
The Background material provides a concise means to understand the case. Included in these
files are the chronological file catalog, a daily account of events of the case from 1962 to
1979, and the court docket of the United States District Court in which the case was heard.
This document provides dated entries for all motions, briefs, arguments, decisions, and
orders of the court. In addition, there is a capsule summary prepared by Barbee which
chronicles events of the action from 1962 to 1978.
Correspondence is both incoming and outgoing and primarily consists of two files: indexed
correspondence with the court and public, and unindexed general correspondence. The indexed
correspondence begins in 1976 with the court-ordered involvement of the Charne law firm as
co-counsel for the plaintiffs. Correspondents here include all involved parties, the court,
the Special Master, parents, community action groups, and the media. Unindexed
correspondence begins in 1962 with Barbee's correspondence with the NAACP and the Milwaukee
School Board and reflects his efforts to clarify issues and generate support for
desegregation in Milwaukee. This file continues through 1980, and contains correspondence
with the court, all involved parties, and the public.
The Exhibits consist of the evidence submitted to the court by both defendants and
plaintiffs. Gaps exist in these files for both parties; however, the defendants' submissions
are significantly more fragmentary. Lists in these files describe each exhibit in detail.
Because many of the plaintiffs' exhibits were drawn from their research, some duplication
occurs between these files and the research files of Part I. This occurs in exhibits
containing maps, photographs, and several other files. For example, there are a considerable
number of photographs taken to show contrasts between black and white schools. Although many
of these were ultimately used as exhibits in the trial, the photographs and corresponding
descriptions will also be found under the file “Buildings and
Facilities” in Part I. No attempt was made to fill gaps in the exhibits by pulling
material from the research files. In addition, these files contain Marilyn Morheuser's notes
about gathering exhibits from the Milwaukee School Board Administration files.
The material regarding Fees is somewhat fragmentary for both plaintiffs and defendants.
Defendants' statements of account describe on a daily basis services rendered and the
charges incurred. Included in these files are Barbee's answers to inquiries, legislative
hours, and work-fee ledgers. These ledgers were used as proof to counter the defendant's
claim that excessive and inappropriate fees were being charged.
Legal records provide thorough documentation of the case from the original complaint filed
in 1965 through the negotiated settlement and subsequent appeals in 1980. Contained here are
the legal documents filed with the court by plaintiffs and defendants, including motions,
briefs, findings, and orders of the court. This file is further divided by court (U.S.
District Court, U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court of the United
States). Records of the individual courts are further divided into indexed and unindexed
files. The unindexed pleadings fill gaps within the indexed pleadings and also contain
drafts and revisions of the plaintiffs' legal records. Rather than divide the indexed
pleadings into Amos Case and Remand Trial, it was decided to include all legal records in
the Amos Case series.
Research is further divided into files of Case Law cited in Briefs, Related Cases, and
Notes. The files of case law citations are alphabetically arranged and contain citations
from the Federal Supplement, Federal Register, and the Supreme Court Register. The indexed file of Related Cases, which
contains several gaps, includes notes, memoranda, articles, and pleadings from related
desegregation cases which were used as background and source material. Notes, which are
fragmentary as well, are arranged chronologically and include rough notes and memos on a
variety of subjects. There are also rough drafts for court statements. Several files are
undated.
Special Master files are subdivided alphabetically and include Court and Meeting notes,
Hearings, Materials and Plans submitted to the Special Master, and Public Hearing notes.
Court and Meeting notes and Public Hearing notes are both indexed and chronologically
arranged files of notes of the Charne law firm. They contain notes of conferences,
monitoring, settlement, and meeting with parent groups and the school board. The files of
1976 and 1977 Hearings consist of fragmentary exhibits, materials submitted to the Special
Master, and Plans submitted to the Special Master. The Milwaukee School Board on several
occasions was asked to submit material for review by the Special Master. This file reflects
compliance with those requests. The Plans submitted to the Special Master are alphabetically
arranged and indexed and consist of proposals by the public, community groups, and school
administrators to desegregate the school system.
Research Design and Implementation is a file parallel to that found in the original
collection. It contains material on the process of collecting data and implementation of the
research. Some overlap occurs between material in this file and the categories of research
which were investigated. The file consists of two parts; an early chart-analysis of school
board policy which illustrates factors associated with causing segregation, and the results
of the computer study, designed to show intentional segregation. This consists of printouts
as well as information which interprets the codes. Further material on the computer study
may be found in the Research Design file in the original collection.
The School Board and Administration file is an alphabetical arrangement similar to the file
in the original collection. Material includes committee work, programs, and several
integration plans from 1976 to 1978. Some additional plans will be found in the material
submitted to the Special Master and in the section on Legal Records. Many School Board
publications were separated from the collection, including the voluminous files of Board
minutes. These are accessible through the Milwaukee Public Schools.
Part II of the Remand Trial series, like the Amos Case series, contains material primarily
related to the trial. The Legal Case is subdivided alphabetically into several files
including Depositions, Exhibits, Research Settlement, and Trial notes.
Depositions include statements and exhibits of witnesses during both the intent and present
effects portion of the trial. This file is quite complete, although some exhibits are
missing. Depositions of witnesses are divided into the two parts of the retrial and are
arranged chronologically thereunder. Further information relating to witnesses is contained
in the section on segregation studies and in the section on exhibits.
Exhibits are somewhat fragmentary as in the Amos Case series. Lists are included which
describe each exhibit. Some maps not marked as exhibits which may be relevant to this
material may be found in the research/subject files portion of the collection.
The Research section includes a file on intact busing as well as memoranda and notes
concerning intent and present effects. Included are notes about exhibits, witnesses, and
general research. “Related Cases” is a file similar to that found in the
Amos Case series.
The files under “Settlement” contain correspondence and memoranda but
primarily consist of the monitoring reports submitted by the school board to the U.S.
District Court Magistrate. These reports show racial percentages to certify compliance with
the negotiated settlement. The section of indexed Legal Records also contain some material
on the settlement. The only file contained in Settlement which concerns the North Division
matter are Exhibits and Miscellany. Missing from the collection are any official court notes
or testimony.
Plaintiffs Trial notes for the Remand trial are very complete for both the Intent and
Present Effects hearing. These notes, like the official transcripts found in the original
collection, give detailed daily accounts of the proceedings at trial.
