Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2020/Summer II/Section 12/Walter Corbett

Overview

Walter Corbett (1876-unknown) was interviewed for the Federal Writers’ Project on December 2, 1938. He was a black tobacco farmer from Alamance County, North Carolina who upheld a prominent reputation, yet lived an impoverished lifestyle similar to most during the Great Depression. When interviewed, Corbett had remarried, had fifteen children, and was debt free with eighty-five acres of farmland.

Biography

Walter Corbett was born into a low-income family in Alamance County, North Carolina, in 1876. Growing up as an African American during the late 1800s, Corbett faced economic and social disadvantages. Corbett was never given the opportunity to attend a school or receive any formal education. At a young age, Corbett was taken as Charles Maynard’s appearance, who taught Corbett the art of tobacco agriculture. Corbett worked for Maynard for a good number of years, completing tasks on the farm and within his home, while receiving a monthly payment of only six dollars.

Following Maynard’s mentorship, Corbett married his first wife, Maggie Sellars, in 1896. After marriage, Corbett and his wife began sharecropping on F.P. Roger’s land, in Burlington, North Carolina, where they share-cropped for Rogers, while simultaneously renting land from Maynard for nine years. While sharecropping, Corbett and his wife gave birth to their six children. However, in 1909, Corbett lost his wife due to illness. During the 1900’s, the fatality rate due to illness was high due to the lack of available health care, especially for women and minorities. Having to raise six children alone created more challenges for Corbett, as his children were still very young and could not provide for themselves. In 1913, Corbett remarried and met his second wife, Annie Liza Lee. With the extra support, Corbett was able to buy more fields for growing tobacco and eventually make more of a profit. In 1915, Corbett was able to pay off all his debts at the end of the harvest season. When Corbett’s children were old enough to provide for themselves, Corbett had become one of the few prominent African American farmers in Alamance County. By 1938, Corbett owned 85 acres of farmland for tobacco and nine more children. Corbett’s death date is unknown.

Social Issues

Colorism During the 1930s

The social atmosphere of the 1930s contributed a great deal to the concept of colorism or discrimination against individuals with a dark skin tone or ethnic group. Aside from the blatant discrimination the black community faced, there was a rise in job inequity based on racial prejudice. According to William Sundstrom, “African Americans suffered from an unemployment rate two to three times that of whites.” Dona Hamilton states, “the failure to enact legislation with the policies advocated by the NAACP has forced a disproportionate number of African Americans to rely on stigmatized public assistance when unable to work,” depicting the systemic over-reliance of African Americans on government assistance. This further progressed the bias of racial inferiority by making African Americans seemingly lazy and unable to provide for themselves.

Healthcare Inequity in the Early 20th Century

Individuals who endured the Great Depression experienced numerous economic setbacks concerning their income and how they spent their finances. Due to the stock market crash on Black Tuesday, a significant portion of Americans was left unemployed, specifically minority populations. As mentioned by Dona Hamilton, “areas with a low rate base and high unemployment levels tended towards low health spending,” depicting the economic inequity that impacted numerous communities. In addition, Susan Schulten states “a clear theme is the precarious financial balancing act faced by many Americans; one writer described how her medical bills had pushed the family’s straitened finances to breaking point.” An individual’s geographical location posed challenges when attempting to find adequate healthcare because of the relationship between poverty and ill-health. Due to the lack of available healthcare in rural areas in America, there was an abundance of health inequities in most deprived areas, ultimately leading to these areas experiencing the highest rates of overall mortality.

References

Bibliography

• Bennett, Evan P. “When Tobacco Was King: Families, Farm Labor, and Federal Policy in the Piedmont”. Gainesville, Tallahassee, Tampa, Boca Raton, Pensacola, Orlando, Miami, Jacksonville, Ft. Myers, Sarasota: University Press of Florida, 2014. Accessed July 6, 2020. doi:10.2307/j.ctvx0741q.
• Hamilton, Dona Cooper. “The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and New Deal Reform Legislation: A Dual Agenda.” Social Service Review 68, no. 4 (December 1994): 488–502. doi:10.1086/604080.
• Interviewer, Abner, John H on Walter Corbett. “Up and Down.” December 2, 1938, Folder 282, Federal Writers’ Project Papers, 1936-1940. Southern Historical Collection, UNC Chapel Hill.
• Raynor, Vivien. “ART; A Black Perspective on the 1930’s” The New York Times. The New York Times. (1857-1922) https://www.nytimes.com/1989/03/12/nyregion/art-a-black-perspective-on-the-1930-s.html
• Sayej, Nadja. “'Families Were Devastated': Looking Back on the Great Depression via Art.” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, September 18, 2019. https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2019/sep/18/great-depression-photography-art-exhibition-chicago.
• Schulten, Susan, Helen Laville, Keith Mason, D. Alan Orr, J.R. Oldfield, Michael A. McDonnell, Philip Ranlet, et al. “The Americas.” History 89, no. 296 (October 2004): 581–625. doi:10.1111/1468-229X.00253_2-i1.
• Sundstrom, William A. "Last Hired, First Fired? Unemployment and Urban Black Workers During the Great Depression." The Journal of Economic History 52, no. 2 (1992): 415-29. Accessed July 13, 2020. www.jstor.org/stable/2123118.
• Yancy Jr, Cecil H. 2004. “Looking Back at the Tobacco Program.” Southeast Farm Press 31 (28): 7–8. http://search.ebscohost.com.libproxy.lib.unc.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=15375534&site=ehost-live&scope=site.