Wiley Griffon (1867–1913) was the first African American employee at the University of Oregon. In the late 1890s he worked as a janitor at the men’s dormitory, Friendly Hall. Although, he was niether the first nor the only African American in Eugene, he was the first one mentioned by name as being a resident. Despite…

In the fall of 1926, the same year that Oregon finally repealed its exclusion law that forbade blacks from entering or owning property in Oregon, 19-year-old Bobby Robinson and 22-year-old Charles Williams, two young high school football stars from Portland (at Jefferson High School and Washington High School, respectively), became the first black student-athletes at…

After graduating from Washington High School in Portland in 1914, Mabel Byrd made history as the first African American enrolled at the University of Oregon. Byrd matriculated at the UO in 1917 as a student majoring in economics and spent two years on the campus prior to transferring to the University of Washington in 1919….

Similar to the first African American student at the University of Oregon, Mabel Byrd, Nellie Louise Franklin lived in Portland, Oregon, attended Washington High School, and would eventually attend the University of Oregon. However, what sets these two historic women apart is that Franklin would eventually become the first documented African American woman to graduate…

After graduating with a bachelor of arts degree from Howard University in Washington, DC in 1917, William Sherman Savage came to Eugene in 1924 to continue graduate work in history. Two years later, he was the first African American to graduate with a master of arts from the University of Oregon. During his time in…

Clifford F. Johnson was raised in Illinois and decided to join the U.S. Army after graduating from high school. While in the army, Johnson served at Fort Lewis, Washington during World War II. During his time there, he faced racial segregation. Recreational facilities and the chapel were segregated and he, along with a large number…

In 1966, students created the Black Student Union (BSU) to bring awareness to racial discrimination and to serve as a coalescing group for activism regarding these issues. Indeed, in April 1968, the BSU submitted a list of grievances and demands to then President Arthur Flemming. One outcome of these requests included a report proposing funding…

African-American Professor at the University of Oregon “I’ve had urine thrown on me, I’ve been through the fire… I grew up living Jim Crow—I didn’t think about it then, it was just part of life, I know life shouldn’t be that way, but I don’t look back in anger.” —Dr. Coleman, Register-Guard interview, June 2016 Dr. Edwin…

First Protest Against Discriminatory Housing Regulations at the University of Oregon “My family has always had to fight, and we have maintained a creditable position in Salem, where I have lived all of my life. I do not feel that I am a “foreigner” and that I should be segregated from other students, although I…

Activism by Japanese American Students During World War II at the University of Oregon “I just can’t find sufficient words to describe my gratitude for all that your office has done for me and other Niseis. In our darkest hour you brought forth your loving hands and gave us new hopes and inspiration. Surely Democracy…