Mineola in Wood County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
Rufus Cornelius Hickman
While stationed in Saipan, Japan, Hickman learned photography and became an army photographer. After World War II, Hickman enrolled in the Southwest School of Photography and Mortuary Science under the G.I. Bill.
After graduating, Hickman began his professional career as a photographer with the Dallas Star-Post. Hickman worked for several newspapers, including the Dallas Express and the Kansas City Call. He photographed African American's everyday life and significant moments in the Civil Rights Movement in the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) area between 1945 and 1970. He photographed the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Youth Council's protest of the Texas State Fair in 1955.
After Brown v. the Board of Education of Topeka, the 1954 Supreme Court decision that declared segregated schools unconstitutional, the NAACP enlisted Hickman to document the inequalities between white and Black schools in Texas. In 1956, Hickman captured the failed desegregation of the Mansfield schools. While white Texans attempted to harm Hickman, he managed to photograph the mock-lynching of effigies of African American students in Mansfield. Through his work, Hickman captured several decades of African Americans' struggles, successes and everyday life, highlighting their humanity and documenting their history.
Erected 2017 by Texas Historical Commission. (Marker Number 20161.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights. A significant historical year for this entry is 1918.
Location. 32° 39.527′ N, 95° 29.579′ W. Marker is in Mineola, Texas, in Wood County. Marker is at the intersection of Padgett Street and Belcher Street on Padgett Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 620 Padgett Street, Mineola TX 75773, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Addie E. McFarland (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); John Creighton Buchanan (approx. 0.2 miles away); Richard Malcolm Smith (approx. 0.2 miles away); Robert N. Stafford (approx. 0.2 miles away); George C. Reeves (approx. 0.2 miles away); Dr. Adolphus Leander Patten (approx. 0.2 miles away); Mineola Black Spiders (approx. 0.2 miles away); a different marker also named Mineola Black Spiders (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Mineola.
Additional keywords. Jim Crow
Credits. This page was last revised on December 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 29, 2023, by Jeff Leichsenring of Garland, Texas. This page has been viewed 55 times since then and 17 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on November 29, 2023, by Jeff Leichsenring of Garland, Texas. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.