Found 3 collections related to Caribbean Americans

The Beach-Thomas family originated in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad. Beatrice Beach, born in 1889 to James and Caroline Nurse, immigrated to New York City in 1924. She had one sister, Catherine, and a brother Randolph Thomas through her mother. Beatrice's husband, Edward, was a former Corporal in the Trinidad Police Force who became a seafarer in the years immediately before his family emigrated to New York. Eric Thomas, Beatrice's nephew, also immigrated to New York in 1924 and was raised by his aunt and uncle. Later, he served in the United States military during World War II. Except for a trip to Trinidad in the 1950s, Beatrice Beach remained in New York where she died in October 1982. The Beach-Thomas Family Papers span the years 1888-1973. The papers contain letters and property records that reveal various aspects of the Beach and Thomas's lives as homeowners in Trinidad and immigrants in the United States. The letters cover a wide-range of subjects such as immigration, employment, financial hardships, family relationships and support, social customs in Trinidad and the lives of black servicemen in the United States military. The property records consist largely of property assessments and tax receipts for the house on 11 Irving Lane in Port-of-Spain but also include some related correspondence. less

Cecil Anderson, also known as the "Duke of Iron," was an internationally known Calypso performer and composer. A native of Trinidad, Anderson moved with his family to New York in 1923. During his active years (1930s-1960s), he was influential in promoting the spread of this Afro-Caribbean music genre throughout the United States. Among his most popular songs are "Matilda", "Out De Fire", "Last Train to San Fernando", "Ugly Woman", "Big Bamboo", and "Don't Stop the Carnival.". The Cecil "Duke of Iron" Anderson collection contains newspaper clippings, a scrapbook, performance flyers and programs, invoices, booking requests, and copyright certificates. Some materials pertain to his daughter, Velma M. Anderson. less

Born in Barbados, Errold Collymore immigrated to the United States in 1912 and graduated from Howard University's dental school eleven years later. His subsequent struggle to rent an office in White Plains, New York, compelled him into a life of civil rights activism which saw him organize a local NAACP chapter and become chairman of Westchester County's United Colored Republican Clubs. He was also involved with the YMCA and served on a number of committees concerned with housing equality and standards for Westchester County's black residents. Focusing on equality in the religious realm as well, Collymore and his family integrated the American Unitarian Association's White Plains Community Church when they joined its congregation in 1927. Correspondence, reports, speeches, minutes, notes, clippings, and other material document Collymore's activities at the vanguard of civil rights in Westchester County, New York. There are files for all of the major organizations with which Collymore was associated and held office, including the NAACP (White Plains Branch) and the nation-wide anti-lynching campaign; the Colored Republicans Committee with information on Black Republican activities and politics in Westchester County; the YMCA-White Plains; and American Unitarian Association (which he and his family integrated in 1927 when they joined the White Plains congregation). Correspondence and miscellaneous documents provide a glimpse into his personal and professional lives. less