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Title
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[Petitions (Colored schools) 1944 - Middleburg Grant - letters from attorney James H. Raby to School Superintendent O.L. Emerick requesting school bus transportation for Black children]
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Description
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Two letters from attorney hired by Middleburg's Grant Colored School, James H. Raby, to Loudoun County Public School Superintendent, O.L. Emerick. The letter dated 16 Nov 1944 is responding to Emerick's 20 Oct 1944 letter and the one dated 5 Dec 1944 responds to Emerick's 21 Nov 1944 letter. Neither of Emerick's letters are included in this set. Raby says that Emerick's story of a white bus driver refusing to pick up Black students he passes on his route is why Black students need their own dedicated transportation. Raby relates that area families do not have transportation themselves to meet the need and also references a letter from parents asking for additional space and teachers since there were only two teachers for ninety-six students.
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Tag
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1944, petition, attorney James Raby, School Superintendent O.L. Emerick, school bus transportation, Black children
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Date
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1944-11-16
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Identifier
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1040996
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Is Version Of
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1040996_2.5.A_Yr 1944 Nov 16_Petition 32 Raby to Emerick on Buses and need to expand Middleburg.pdf
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Is Part Of
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Black Petitions
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Source
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These letters are in the Middleburg folders in the 2.5.A Colored Petitions box in the Loudoun County Public Schools Record Office
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Language
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English
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Replaces
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/Volumes/T7 Shield/EWP/Elements/EWP_Files/source/Ingest Two/EWS Special Projects/Lost_Letters Project/Ed Washington Folder/2.5A Colored Petitions/2.5.A St. Louis/2.5.A Yr 1944 Nov 16 Petition 32 Raby to Emerick on Buses and need to expand Middleburg.pdf
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Transcription
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[page 1] OFFICE TELEPHONE
ALEXANDRIA 6241
RESIDENCE TELEPHONE
LINCOLN 7295
LAW OFFICES
OF
JAMES H. RABY
526 NORTH PATRICK STREET
ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA
November 16, 1944.
RESIDENCE TELEPHONE
LINCOLN 7295
Mr. 0. L. Emerick
Division Superintendant
of Loudoun County,
Loudoun County, Virginia.
Dear Sir:
Replying to your letter dated October 20, 1944. Since receiving your letter I have had an investigation of the children named in my previous letter with reference to not having transpotation. I have been advised that out of the twenty four children that do not have the transpotation, many of them do not attend school and their excuse is that they get tired of walking. Now with all fairness to the school board I do not think this hardship should be placed upon the children.
I am mindful of your last letter in which you stated that the bus carring white children and passed these children going to school, you had requested the driver to pick up these children but he had refused to do so. The only way see to remedy this condition is to supply these children with a bus just the same as the white childred, who have a bus.
I have discussed with a number of the parents about pro-viding transpotation for the children and I have been in- formed that there were no parents in that area that had sufficient transpotation facilities. Since that does not seem to be any solution to the problem, my only concern is that the school board make suffidient provisions for these children in as much as we do have the dual system of the school. It is the duty of the school board to provide equal facilities for the school children and it is the school board's duty to provide equal transpotation. I hope these conditions can be remedied without any unnecessary actions on the part of the parents to force their equal educational facilities.
[page 2] No. 2 Mr. O. L. Emerick
You have received a letter from a number of the parents in Middleburg complaining of the crowded condition at Grant School. As they stated to you, there were two rooms of which ninty-six children had to be cared for by two teachers. Under these conditions, there is no
way that these children can get adquate training. This condition should not exist and there is not any reason for such condition because there is ample space to en- large the school building.
As attorney for these parents, I am requesting that this condition be remedied. It is not our intention to request anything that is not reasonable for the benefit of these children. We are only asking that you would do your duty and that you will provide an adquate building and sufficient teachers to teach the pupils that are enrolled in the school so that they will not become so discouraged that they will leave school at an early age.
Very truly yours,
James H Raby
JAMES H. RABY.
JHR: mbs.
[page 3]
OFFICE TELEPHONE
ALEXANDRIA 6241
RESIDENCE TELEPHONE
LINCOLN 7295
LAW OFFICES
OF
JAMES H. RABY
526 NORTH PATRICK STREET
ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA
December 5, 1944.
RESIDENCE TELEPHONE
LINCOLN 7295
Mr. 0. L. Emerick
Division Superintendant
of Loudoun County,
Loudoun County, Virginia.
Dear Mr. Emerick;
Replying to your letter dated November 21, 1944, with re-ference to the school situation in Loudoun County among the colored children, especially in St. Louis.
Replying to the rirst paragraph of your letter, I do not quite understand the statement that if my clients at Middlesburg are disposed to make a disposition of the matter of an addition to the resent building, it wil1 probably postpond for many years the erection of the new building. If you have something definitely in mind as to the erection of a school building--that is in the very near future--that will meet the approval of the parents in that area, but if you have in mind some build- ing to be erected after the war is over, then I think the solution to that is to erect some temporary build- ing so as to give adequate accommodation for those children, who do not have such school building.
It is not my desire nor the desire of the parents in the community to resort to court actions in order to have, the necessary school facilities. It is always more agreeable to us to do our duty without having to be forced through court. If we have to resort to court actions it would mean a more expensive undertaking. Your statement that my threating to have court actions in order to get the necessary facilities was not my intention. However, if you feel that that is the only way by which we can get equal school facilities in the county, then that is the only avenue opened to me.
I noticed that on December 12 the school board would meet. I hope that at this meeting you will make certain provisions for the Colored inasmuch as at your last regular
[page 4 is a duplicate of page 3]
[page 5] No. 2, Mr. Emerick--- 12/5/44.
meeting held at Aldie, the school board adopted an alternate proposal which comes up December 12 in this meeting for cer- tain disposition of a certain school and transpotation. In
view of the fact that this meeting will be held the 12th, I will wait until after your meeting and see whether or not you will put forth effort to remedy conditions as stated. As stated above, I do not desire to force the issue to court if we can avoid such actions.
Very truly yours,
James H Raby
JAMES H. RABY.
JHR:mbs.