Dillard Family collection

Collection — Box: 1, Folder: 1-4

Collection number: MSS-071

Scope and Contents

The collection consists entirely of the following items: an oral history (on its second page, a handwritten title is given: “Memories of Frederick Charles Dilard”) conducted by Michelle Commeyras and Al Hester, on November 21, 2014, both an audio recording of the interview and a transcript. The recording is more than two hours long, whereas the typewritten document is about 25 pages, suggesting that the interview was not completely transcribed. Second, an article that developed out of this oral history, written by Commeyras and entitled “Back Street (Athens) as Remembered by Mr. Frederick Dillard.” A third document, entitled “Memories—From Fred Dillard,” and dated August 1, 2014, as its title indicates was written by Dillard himself. Fourth, printed and digital versions of a self-published book, The Way We Were at 1498 East Broad Street, written by Ellestine Dillard Beatty, one of Frederick Dillard’s sisters. And finally, a digital-only copy of the interview of Bennie Dillard, a former slave, from the Federal Writers’ Project’s Slave Narratives project. Bennie Dillard was William Dillard’s father and lived with the family in his later years.

The digital files are not available online. Please ask Heritage Room staff for assistance.

Dates

2014-2015

Conditions Governing Access

This collection has no restrictions. This collection is open to the public. Library policy on photography and photocopying will apply. Advance notice may be required. Apply in the Heritage Room for access.

Biographical / Historical

Michelle Commeyras moved to a home on East Broad Street in 2011 and met a longtime resident Frederick Charles Dillard, who told her about the history of the neighborhood, what he calls Back Street, and his family’s history there. Dillard’s father, William Henry Dillard, moved the area in 1924, settling at 1498 East Broad. The house was built by William working with others under his supervision. In later years, the family also came to own a house next door on Derby Street. As Frederick Dillard relates in the documents collected here, his father was a master craftsman who built furnishings for his own home and the local community, including churches and the local Boy Scouts troop. William Dillard, a veteran of the First World War, worked as a freight porter for the Georgia Railroad. His position enabled the family to travel extensively, visiting family members, attending national Baptist conventions, and, in 1948, going to the Chicago Railroad Fair. The Dillard family were involved in the Friendship Baptist Church, still extant at the intersection of Arch Street and Old Winterville Road in East Athens.

Frederick Dillard was the youngest of eight children born to William and his wife, Margie. He attended the school for African American children located at the intersection of Water Oak and Griffith in the East Athens neighborhood. Documentation of this school is scant; Dillard’s oral history provides valuable information about it, identifying the names of several teachers. After several years away from Athens, Dillard returned to his hometown, having been accepted into the National Teachers Corps in 1972. He graduated from the University of Georgia in 1974 with an education degree, hoping to work as an elementary-school teacher. Though he attained a position in Oglethorpe County for one year, in Clarke County he was only able to work as a substitute teacher. Frustrated by this experience, he went to work for Athens Transit. The homes at East Broad and Derby streets are still owned by the Dillard Family.

Extent

0.21 Linear Feet (One half letter document box)

Language

English

Additional Description

Overview

A self-published book on the history of the Dillard Family of Athens, Georgia; in addition to audio and text copies of an interview with Frederick Dillard and documentation related to that oral history.

Arrangement

The collection is organized in a single series.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Michelle Commeyras

Related Materials

The Al Hester papers (MSS 069) include interviews done by Hester regarding the Gospel Pilgrim Cemetery.

Eason, Maxine Pinson, and Patsy Hawkins Arnold. Across the River: The People, Places, and Culture of East Athens. 2019. GR 975.8 EASOM.