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JOHN BRUEN, Snr : ARCHIVE OF TWELVE [12] ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT LETTERS TO AND FROM JOHN BRUEN, GRANDSON OF AN ESCAPED SLAVE, AND HONORED CHRONICLER OF THE STRUGGLE FOR BLACK CIVIL RIGHTS IN 1960s AMERICA

On offer are the powerful and significant letters of John Bruen Senior, the grandson of an escaped slave and an exceptional chronicler of African American life and struggle in 1960s America. In these 12 letters (all but one written to Bruen and with their original envelopes) Bruen writes about and responds to the tremendous changes occurring in 1960s America and the struggle for civil rights for African Americans. All but two letters are complete. Most telling of the letters is the one in which Bruen writes. He writes it in response to someone asking for advice on how to inspire a young person. Bruen writes, "…Make him know that you are proud of him even though his skin is colored. So many times a worthy champion's deeds are recognized too late, like bringing flowers to the dead when they cannot smell them. I hope this isn't too long to print in your and our (We who love the Ring) magazine. I want to show this to so many of the…boosters…I can't say all this to them because they won't give me the chance but they'll read it and I'll see that they do. Ever a Ring Reader John Bruen Sr." This is the last page of a 3-page letter. The first two pages are missing. The rest of the 12 letters in this archive were written to Bruen. Ethel Agnew of Beacon, NY, makes up a number of these letters to to Bruen. She sent along copies of her poems decrying the hatred of racism, some of which were published in newspapers. One such poem, published on Nov. 18, 1960, was in reference to Mrs. Hattie Hallowell, 83, who was detained in jail for more than three years for mishandling $2,000. "Daily we read of those involved in the mishandling of far greater sums, who never see the inside of a jail." In the other letter she sent to Bruen she writes, "…I like best the term 'colored' not solely because the NAACP sanctions it but in this modern day, it is more correct. You, for instance, have a trace of Indian blood. I have also in my case and it shows only in facial structure, high cheek bones and sometimes in my disposition...I note in 'Ebony' that Jallulah…refers to the Negroes in the South and there is an article 'The Negro in Russia. You sure get around-quite a feather in your cap, too, to be chosen to cover such greats as Ingo and Rocky." (This is in reference to boxers Ingemar Johansson and Rocky Marciano.) In yet another letter, she comments about a man of prejudice "…I was thinking of writing him to say that most of the colored folks of my acquaintance are so busy with church work and with trying to make a living that they have not time to be vituperative-they leave that to such as he…It was as well, perhaps, that I didn't write." Bruen received received two letters from Ernestine Manuel at Hampton Institute, who was helped by the Du-Rite Club, in the fall of 1941. Hampton Institute was a college for African Americans. "…Words cannot be found to show you how thankful I am for all that you have done. Hampton Institute is a beautiful place…" A 2 page letter,, from the Royal Jewel Club, an organization apparently for African Americans at the time, solicits funds for a "Bethany Chapel". The Du Rite Club, with which Bruen was affiliated, contributed $5. In a one-page partial letter written to Bruen about his column, the writer takes issue with Bruen and his beliefs: "…What is a white skin when underneath a person is rotten to the core. I have many friends among your people, have worked with them for years, and can understand their feelings toward us whites, but acting with hate, destroying property and looting doesn't make it any easier. I'm sure that the Colored people want the whites to fear them…I'd like to have my people and yours being one and live together in peace. The preaching of Stokely Carmichael and Hubert Brown is just filling your people with deathly poison. Any intelligence and normal thinking persons would shy away from such teachings. Of course, there are whites also who do the destroying and looting so the blacks get the blame…And with the dope, LSD and others, no one knows what will happen next. And the leaders with their hate preaching doesn't help your people any." Despite being from a number of different people, all the letters are easily readable and in excellent condition, complete with their original envelopes. All of them are folded in some sort. (Background: Bruen was born April 30, 1906 and died on May 14, 1998. He was a self-educated man who attended a school for African Americans in Goshen, NY (where he would live his whole life) through the fourth grade, then moved to an integrated public school. Bruen fed and groomed horses at the race track before school. He left school at 16 with an eighth-grade education and began working for the Erie Railroad, working his whole life for them and finally retiring in 1971. In 1925 he married Gertrude Van Dyke and they had six children. Bruen's grandfather was a runaway slave, who had shown John the scars on his back from the whippings he had received as a slave, and which remained on him until the day he died. Bruen rose to prominence as a chronicler of African-American life and received many honors during his life. He became the first black columnist to write for the Independent Republican, starting in 1959 and continuing until shortly before his death. Through his column, "Bruen's Hash" he sought to eliminate discrimination and educate all people on the experiences and struggles of African Americans. He was an exceptional athlete in boxing and baseball, playing on and coaching local teams. For several years, he was president of the semi-pro Orange Ulster Baseball League. He was a sportswriter for the Middletown Daily Record and The Times Herald-Record for 20 years. By the time of his death Bruen had built a personal collection of over 2,000 volumes of black history.). Manuscript. Book Condition: Good

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