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More Than One Struggle:
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Acknowledgements
This book would not have been possible
without the many individuals who collectively created this history of
Milwaukee
and shared their stories with me through decades of newsprint, archives,
journals, books, videos, and interviews. Some of them kindly invited me into
their homes and workplaces and allowed me to record their stories on tape, or to
dig through documents stored away in attics and basements. Several also listened
to my first impressions and flatly told me how I had "got it all wrong," then
generously took the time to redirect my thinking. While it was not possible for
me to fit all of their stories into one book, I hope that people make use of the
transcripts that I sent them, or the ones deposited at the University of
Wisconsin-Milwaukee archives and the Wisconsin Black Historical Society/Museum,
to write their own histories of Milwaukee.
The research also was generously funded by several sources. Clayborn Benson of
the Wisconsin Black Historical Society/Museum first offered me financial
assistance to conduct the oral histories. To show my deep appreciation, the
author's share of the proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to
continue his organization's work. The Spencer Foundation also provided crucial
support at three stages: as the beneficiary of a mentor grant to Mary Haywood
Metz in 1995, as a dissertation fellowship in 1996-1997, and as a small research
grant in 1998. The Colgate University Research Council paid for transcribing
interviews, and the Trinity College Faculty Research Committee provided a
one-year expense grant and summer stipend. Barbara Henriques in Trinity's
Educational Studies Program kindly contributed funds to cover most of the
photograph expenses. Finally, Mary Jo Gessler and Gail Geib hatched creative
schemes to prevent the University of Wisconsin-Madison from plunging my
checkbook balance deep into large negative numbers at a crucial time in this
project.
Deep within the pages of this book is
the profound influence of many teachers who made time to help me learn to read,
listen, think, and write. At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, I thank the
faculty who taught me how to ask the right questions (including my advisor
Michael Fultz, Linda Gordon, Carl Kaestle, Mary Haywood Metz, and Michael Olneck),
who pushed me to tell the stories (Jurgen Herbst and Tim Tyson), and who
generously gave helpful feedback on my work (Jane Collins, Bill Reese, and John
Witte). I also extend my deep appreciation to teachers who worked with me much
earlier, including Clement Price at Rutgers University-Newark; Hugh Lacey, Lisa
Smulyan, and Eva Travers at Swarthmore College; Pat Allen at Union College; and
Tony Gerakopoulos, Bruce Bonney, and Jay Dunn at Morrisville-Eaton High School
in central New York State.
In academic conference sessions,
graduate school seminars, and friendly discussions, I also had the opportunity
to meet several colleagues who generously shared their comments on my research
and encouraged me to rethink several assumptions: Derrick Alridge, James
Anderson, Adina Back, Michael Barndt, Crystal Byndloss, Jim Carl, Donald
Collins, Bill Dahlk, Michele Foster, V. P. Franklin, Eric Fure-Slocum, David
Gamson, Paul Geib, Nicholas Glass, Michael Gordon, Darryl Graham, Michael
Grover, Donna Harris, Ian Harris, Michael Homel, Katherine Kuntz, Catherine
Lacey, David Levine, Earl Lewis, Jerome Morris, Maggie Nash, Kathy Neckerman,
Adam Nelson, Bruce Nelson, Maike and Dirk Philipsen, Jerry Podair, Sonya Ramsey,
John Rury, Amy Schutt, Kevin David Smith, Stephen Smith, Quintard Taylor,
Margaret Tennesson, Laura Docter Thornburg, Vanessa Siddle Walker, and Polly
Weiss. Special thanks goes to my two outside readers, Dave Douglas and Jim
Leloudis, whose comments on the final draft were especially helpful.
Several other colleagues carefully read
portions of the manuscript in its later stages and offered excellent suggestions
for revisions: Abigail Adams, Stefanie Chambers, Pamela Grundy, Bob Lowe, John
Spencer, and Todd Vogel. Occasionally I look over the text and realize that some
of my best friends wrote some of the best parts of my book.
Many outstanding archivists and
librarians went beyond the call of duty to assist me with the research: Nancy Godleski at Vanderbilt and Yale Universities; James Danky and Maureen Hady at
the Wisconsin Historical Society; Sarah Johnson at the Milwaukee Journal
Sentinel; Eileen Lipinski at the Milwaukee Legislative Reference Bureau;
Rose Arnold at the Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau; Sue Mobley and
Virginia Schwartz at the Milwaukee Public Library; and Tim Ericson, Mark Vargas,
and Leslie Heindrichs at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Library Archives.
Several undergraduate students also served as research assistants and/or
commented on drafts, beginning with Jody Roy at Colgate University, and Eric
Lawrence, Lesley Loventhal, Jessica Martin, and Educational Studies fall 2001
senior seminar at Trinity College.
At the University of North Carolina
Press, it has been a pleasure to work with David Perry, Mark Simpson-Vos, Paula
Wald, Julie Bush, and the other members of the staff. I thank Tim Tyson for
sending me in their direction.
My parents, John and Linda Dougherty,
and my sisters--Jill, Kris, and Ellen--have been wonderfully supportive during
this long project. It's been so long, in fact, that my three children were born
at various points along the way. Eli arrived just after I completed the master's
paper in 1993, then Eva came to help me finish the dissertation in 1997, and
Maya appeared in 2001 as a pleasant reminder to get the book done.
Finally, to my partner Beth Rose, the
real historian in the family, it still amazes me how you found the time, energy,
and patience to read and edit countless drafts, provide encouragement when a
boost was needed, support our family when I was unemployed, give birth to our
wonderful children, and care for them during my research trips, and so much
more. Thank you, with love.
Jack Dougherty
Hartford, Connecticut
April 2003
