William Sturkey’s talk “The Jewel of the Delta” will highlight the history of Mound Bayou, Mississippi in the national black media during the era of Jim Crow. Controlled and inhabited exclusively by African Americans, Mound Bayou played a distinct role in the African American imagination for over six decades as an example of black 
educational and economic achievement. This talk will unfold the history of Mound Bayou in black public life across three distinct stages, exploring why the town mattered so much and examining Mound Bayou’s crucial role in facilitating coverage of the most explosive lynching story in American history and the early Civil Rights Movement.
This talk is free and open to the public, and light refreshments will be served. RSVPs to pathorn@unc.edu are appreciated but not required.