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Guide to the Men of Tomorrow, Inc. Oakland Chapter Records
MS 3
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Table of contents
Title: Men of Tomorrow, Inc. Oakland Chapter records
Dates: 1959-1985
Collection number: MS 3
Collection Size:
1.25 linear feet
(3 boxes)
Repository:
African American Museum and Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)
Oakland, CA 94612
Abstract: The Men of Tomorrow, Inc. was a male African American civic and professional organization started in Oakland, California in
1954. Founded by Jefferson Beaver, Richard A.G. Foster, Aramis Fouche, Theodore R. Hardeman, H. Solomon Hill, L. Sylvester
Odom, Kenneth F. Smith, and George R. Vaughns, the group eventually grew to include over 300 members including many notable
judges and politicians, including Evelio Grillo, Lionel Wilson, and Allen Broussard, and would eventually establish additional
chapters in San Francisco, Richmond, Sacramento, and Los Angeles. The Men of Tomorrow, Inc Oakland Chapter records document
meetings, conferences, and the administration of the organization between 1959-1985.
Languages:
Languages represented in the collection:
English
No access restrictions. Collection is open to the public.
Materials are for use in-library only, non-circulating.
Permission to publish from the Men of Tomorrow, Inc. Oakland Chapter Records must be obtained from the African American Museum
and Library at Oakland.
Men of Tomorrow, Inc. Oakland Chapter records , MS 3, African American Museum and Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library.
Oakland, California.
Biography / Administrative History
The Men of Tomorrow, Inc. was a male African American civic and professional organization started in Oakland, California in
1954. Founded by Jefferson Beaver, Richard A.G. Foster, Aramis Fouche, Theodore R. Hardeman, H. Solomon Hill, L. Sylvester
Odom, Kenneth F. Smith, and George R. Vaughns, the group eventually grew to include over 300 members including many notable
judges and politicians, including Evelio Grillo, Lionel Wilson, and Allen Broussard, and would eventually establish additional
chapters in San Francisco, Richmond, Sacramento, and Los Angeles. The organization’s membership consisted chiefly of lawyers,
judges, politicians, doctors, pastors, educators, and businessmen from Oakland and was dedicated to “foster the recognition
of the worthiness of all useful occupations and the dignifying by each member of his occupation or profession as an opportunity
to serve society through fellowship.” The Men of Tomorrow, Inc. was governed by a moderator, Board of Directors, and a Chairman
of the Board and was organized into seven standing committees: membership, program, finance and budget, charter and extension,
community relations, youth services, and publicity. The group held weekly business meetings at Jack London Inn, where they
would often invite notable speakers to give lectures on politics, education, civil rights, religion, sports, international
relations, labor relations, and economics. Beginning in 1959, the group also held a biennial conference on social and economic
issues related to the African American community.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Men of Tomorrow, Inc Oakland Chapter records document meetings, conferences, and the administration of the organization
between 1959-1985. The bulk of the collection consists of the Men of Tomorrow, Inc. Oakland Chapter’s constitution and by-laws,
meeting minutes, agendas, newsletters, membership directories, and four scrapbooks assembled by the organization’s publicity
chairman, Edward Douglas Jr. The scrapbooks include photographs of weekly meetings, newspaper clippings, conference programs,
and luncheon invitations. The records are organized into three series: administrative files (.25 ft), scrapbooks (1 ft.),
and artifacts (4 items).
Series I. Administrative files, 1959-1985
Series II. Scrapbooks, 1959-1973
Series III. Artifact, undated
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in
the library's online public access catalog.
Men of Tomorrow, Inc. Oakland Chapter
African Americans--California--East Bay--History.
African Americans--California--Oakland--Societies, etc.
Oakland (Calif.)--Clubs.
Oakland (Calif.)--Social life and customs.
African Americans Societies, etc.
Sources:
Civic service club backs blighted housing program,
Oakland Tribune 3 April 1955: 7.
Allen E. Broussard, A California Supreme Court Justice Looks at Law and Society, 1964-1996, an interview conducted in 1991,
1992, 1995, and 1996 by Gabrielle Morris, Regional Oral History Office, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley,
1997.