Bass (center) receives a trophy for her 1950 Congressional campaign. From the Charlotta Bass/California Eagle Collection.
The Scout Report, a weekly publication of the Internet Scout Project at the University of Wisconsin, recently highlighted the USC Digital Library's Charlotta Bass/California Eagle Collection. The publicly-accessible collection includes photographs from the personal papers of Charlotta Bass and from the archives of her newspaper, the California Eagle.
"The staff members at the USC Digital Library project have created this fantastic digital collection of over 780 photos from the archives of the California Eagle. As the paper documented African American life in Los Angeles for many years, it is a fine way to learn about urban history and the African American community in the area," writes Scout Report editor Max Grinnell.
Founded in 1879, the Eagle was one of the American West's oldest African American newspapers when Bass purchased it in 1912. As publisher, Bass fought for greater racial equality and led several successful campaigns against employment discrimination, including in the massive Boulder Dam project. In 1952 she made history as the first African American nominated for vice president, serving as Vincent Hallinan's running-mate on the 1952 Progressive Party ticket.
The Scout Report has previously featured the USC Digital Library's WPA Maps Collection and Chinese Historical Society Collection.