Original Documents and Transcripts

These selected documents (PDF) are copies of original papers from a variety of sources about the life and times of Hugo Black of Alabama. They provide a random glimpse into Hugo Black’s years. The documents are arranged by eras in Black’s life.

Growing Up in Clay County:

Black’s father, W.L. Black’s JP Bond with Uncle Merit Street as surety (1877)

Black Uncle Merit Street’s Last Will and Testament Providing for a Never-Built Free School in Clay County (1887; 1891)

The Deserter, a short book by Robert Lee Black under the Name of Herbert Shelton (1900)

Alabama Practicing Lawyer:

Hugo Black’s Draft Motion Enabling Massive Girard Liquor Destruction (1916)

Klan Proclamation on Arrival of President Harding in Birmingham (1921)

Black’s Representation of Henry Lewis and Poor African American Convict Miners at US Supreme Court (1923)

Black’s Handwritten Letter Resigning from the Ku Klux Klan (1925)

US Senator:

Black’s Handwritten Biographical Statement after Winning Election to US Senate (1925)

US Supreme Court Justice

Threatening Letter to Justice Black About Returning to Alabama (undated, 1960s)