Myrtis Minor Papers
Scope and Contents
As a high school student in Jackson, Mississippi, Minor was one of the leaders of a 1948/1949 bus boycott for civil rights. Her papers document the Lanier High School bus boycott and her career as a nurse at various Chicago hospitals and private practices.
Dates
- 1946-2007, undated
Creator
- Minor, Myrtis, 1929- (donor., Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open without restrictions
Conditions Governing Use
Please consult staff to determine ability to reuse materials from collection
Biographical / Historical
Myrtis Boler Minor was born in Mississippi in 1929. She graduated from Lanier High School in Jackson, Mississippi in 1949. As a high school junior (1948) or senior (1949), Minor and additional Lanier students led a bus boycott in Jackson following an incident involving a fellow classmate. The student, Elport Chess, was beaten and arrested for refusing to give up his seat on a bus to a white woman.
Minor moved to Chicago to train at Provident Hospital School of Nursing in 1952. She lived with her paternal uncle in Chicago. She continued her education at DePaul University, studying speech and English. Minor’s professional experience began at Provident Hospital where she began work as an operating room staff nurse in 1955.
Myrtis Minor’s career as a nurse practitioner in Chicago spanned thirty years. She worked at Cook County Hospital, the University of Chicago, West Side Veterans Administration Hospital, and at several private practices. Minor specialized in operating room nursing and diabetes education/outreach.
Extent
2.5 Linear Feet (in 2 boxes, includes 2 audio cassette tapes, 1 CD, and 5 photographs)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
As a high school student in Jackson, Mississippi, Minor was one of the leaders of a 1949 bus boycott for civil rights. Her papers document the boycott, her career as a nurse at Provident Hospital and her activities in community organizations. They consist of oral history audio recordings, programs, yearbooks, clippings and memorabilia.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged into two series by material type; Series 1: Manuscripts, 1947-2007, undated and Series 2: Audiovisual Materials, 1946-1955, and 2007, undated.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Myrtis Minor in April 2004
- Interviews. Subject Source: Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms
- Jackson, Mississippi Bus Boycott, Jackson, Miss., 1948-1949. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Minor, Myrtis, 1929- -- : Archives.
- Minor, Myrtis, 1929- -- : Interviews.
- Newsletters. Subject Source: Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms
- Photographs. Subject Source: Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms
- Programs (Publications) Subject Source: Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms
- Provident Hospital (Chicago, Ill.)
- Sound recordings. Subject Source: Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms
Creator
- Minor, Myrtis, 1929- (donor., Person)
- Title
- Guide to the Myrtis Minor Papers
- Author
- Elizabeth Loch, Archival Specialist
- Date
- June 2021
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English
Repository Details
Part of the Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection Repository
Woodson Regional Library
Chicago Public Library
9525 S. Halsted Street
Chicago IL 60628 United States
(312) 745-2080
harshcollection@chipublib.org