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| 318 Elmer L.
Andersen Library, University of Minnesota, 222 21st Avenue South, Minneapolis,
MN 55455 |
CHANNING H. TOBIAS:
An Inventory of His Papers
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Creator: |
Tobias, Channing H.,
1882-1961.
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Title: |
Channing Tobias
papers.
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Date: |
1911-1961. |
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Collection Number: |
Y.USA.7 |
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Abstract: |
Papers of Channing H. Tobias, who served as
senior secretary of the YMCA's Colored Work Department from 1924 to 1946,
documenting his work in the area of race relations.
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Quantity: |
2 cu. ft. (5
boxes).
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Location: |
See Detailed Description section for box
listing.
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Channing Heggie Tobias was born 1 February 1882 in Augusta, Georgia,
the second child and only son of Fair and Belle (Robinson) Tobias. He was
educated in the public schools of Augusta, and went on to earn a B.A. from
Paine College in 1902, a B.D. from Drew Theological Seminary in 1905, and did
special work at the University of Pennsylvania. Gammon Theological Seminary
(Atlanta, Geo.) conferred on him the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity in
1924.
Most of Tobias's career was devoted to the YMCA. He joined that
organization in 1911, after a six year stint as professor of bible literature
at his alma mater, Paine College, serving for twelve years as student secretary
of the International Committee of the YMCA. He was appointed as senior
secretary of the YMCA's Colored Work Department in September 1923, a position
he held until 1946, when the YMCA abolished separate programs for black men.
During these twenty three years, he also held a number of other YMCA positions
relating to race relations, including member of the Executive Committee of the
National Interracial Conference and associate director of the Commission on
Interracial Cooperation. He was a delegate and a speaker at the 1926 World
Conference in Finland, and traveled to YMCAs throughout the world during his
career. After leaving the YMCA in 1946, he became the first black director of
the Phelps-Stokes Fund, a foundation devoted to the improvement of educational
opportunities for African Americans. He retired in 1953.
In addition to his extensive work through the YMCA movement, Tobias
held numerous civic and volunteer positions in the area of race relations.
During World War II, he was a member of the National Advisory Committee on
Selective Service and the Joint Army and Navy Committee on Welfare and
Recreation. President Truman appointed him to the Committee on Civil Rights in
1946. He was also a member of the Board of Trustees of the NAACP and elected
its chairman in 1953. In 1953, he was alternate representative to the United
Nations for the United States. He served on the boards of the Marshall Filed
and Jessie Smith Noyes Foundations, the National Council of Churches of Christ
in the USA, the American Bible Society, Hampton Institute, and Palmer Memorial
Institute. He received numerous awards in recognition of his work, including
the 1948 Spingarn Medal, awarded annually to an African American for
distinguished achievement.
Tobias married Mary Pritchard in 1908. The couple had two daughters.
After the death of his first wife in 1949, Tobias married Eva Arnold in 1951.
He died on 5 November 1961 after a long illness.
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The papers include news clippings, articles, speeches, correspondence,
reports, and other records documenting Tobias's work with the YMCA, the Federal
Council of Churches of Christ in America, and other organizations, primarily in
the area of race relations. Records of the YMCA's Colored Work Department, of
which Tobias was senior secretary from 1923 to 1946, include minutes,
correspondence, surveys, reports, and material from several conferences,
including the 1923 YMCA Constitutional Convention. Federal Council of Churches
material dates from the World War II era and includes minutes, reports, and
correspondence relating to that organization's response to racism and other
post-war social problems.
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Preferred Citation: |
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[Indicate the cited item and/or series
here]. Channing H. Tobias Papers. Kautz Family YMCA Archives. University
of Minnesota.
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See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional
examples. |
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Processing Information: |
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This material was formerly cataloged as part of the YMCA Archives
Biographical Files. Re-processed by: Lara Friedman~Shedlov, November 2003.
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Catalog Record ID number: 4304756 |
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The following section contains a detailed list of the materials in the
collection. To request materials, please note the corresponding box number.
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| 1 |
Provenance information. |
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Newspaper clippings, 1937-1960. |
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Articles, 1937, 1942-1944. 2 folders. |
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Speeches, 1932-1959. 2 folders. |
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Testimonials and awards, 1937-1954. |
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Biographical information on various black leaders,
1935-1939.
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Correspondence, 1934-1961. 4 folders. |
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Correspondence: Buffington, Willie L. and Faith Cabin,
1932-1942.
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Correspondence: Craver, William C., 1917-1928. 2 folders. |
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Correspondence: Holmes, Dr. Fred G., 1944. |
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Correspondence: Howell, David, 1950-1960. |
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Correspondence: References requested, 1942-1943. 2 folders. |
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Correspondence: Speaking engagements, January - October 1945. 7 folders. |
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Correspondence: Speaking engagements, November - December 1945. |
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YMCA Colored Work Department: |
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Correspondence, 1944-1946. |
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Minutes, 1919-1943. |
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Student work, 1920-1929. |
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Twentieth National Conference on Colored Work,
Cincinnati, OH, 1921-1922.
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Conference on Colored Men's Department and Interracial
Commission work, Asheville, NC, 1924.
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Constitutional convention, 1923-1924. |
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Reports, 1930-1945. |
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Surveys, undated and 1911-1928. 2 folders. |
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Resignation from YMCA, 1945-1946. |
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Division of Cooperation in Education and Race Relations
conference, 1935-1936.
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General Education Board (New York, NY), 1944. |
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International Harvester Company, 1939-1940. |
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National Committee to Abolish the Poll Tax, 1943-1944. |
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New York City Hall, 1945-1946. |
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Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America,
1941-1945. 10 folders.
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Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America,
1945-1946. 3 folders.
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United Nations, 1951-1952. |
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World Youth Fund, 1946-1947. |
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Phelps-Stokes Fund, 1945. |
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People's Institute of Applied Religion, 1943-1945. |
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Public Affairs Committee: Negro and
the War manuscript, 1942.
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Southern Regional Council, 1944. |
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Political activities, 1944. |
Return to the Table of Contents
Return to the Organization of the Collection Section
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The following related materials are separately cataloged in the Kautz
Family YMCA Archives:
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Colored Work Department records, 1871-1946: Includes additional
material documenting Tobias's work as senior secretary (1923-1946) of the
YMCA's Colored Work Department which was, until 1946, the avenue through which
services were provided by and for African Americans at the national level.
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Biographical Files: Additional material on Channing Tobias may be
found in the YMCA Archives' series of biographical files, including
biographical sketches published in YMCA and other publications, newspaper
articles, obituaries (including a eulogy by Benjamin Mays) and correspondence
relating to a biographical project on Tobias during the 1950s and 1960s.
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Return to the Table of Contents
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This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog
of the University of Minnesota Libraries. Researchers desiring materials about
related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these
headings.
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Topics: |
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African Americans -- Social conditions.
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Race relations -- Religious aspects.
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World War, 1939-1945 -- African
Americans.
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Young Men's Christian Associations --
Administration.
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Young Men's Christian Associations --
Employees.
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Places: |
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Harlem (New York, N.Y.) |
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Organizations: |
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Federal Council of the Churches of
Christ in America.
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General Education Board (New York, N.Y.)
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International Harvester Company.
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National Association for the Advancement
of Colored People.
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National Committee to Abolish the Poll
Tax.
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National Council of the Young Men's
Christian Associations of the United States of America. Colored Work Dept.
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Phelps-Stokes Fund. |
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Southern Regional Council. |
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