Descriptive Summary
Access
Access Restrictions
Publication Rights
Preferred Citation
Acquisition Information
Processing Information
Biography / Administrative History
Scope and Content of Collection
Arrangement
Indexing Terms
Bibliography
Descriptive Summary
Title: Goldie Byrd Ruffin collection
Collection number: MS 146
Dates: circa 1940s-1980s
Bulk Dates: 1956-1958
Collector:
Ruffin, Goldie Byrd
Creator:
Vaughns, William E.
Collection Size:
1.25 linear feet
1 box + 1 oversized box
Repository:
African American Museum & Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)
Abstract: The Goldie Byrd Ruffin Collection includes photographs, ephemera, and newspaper clippings collected by her about her uncle,
George R. Vaughns, and correspondence, photographs, and clippings of his brother, William E. Vaughns. This collection shows
an era of political activity of African Americans in Alameda County in the 1950s-60s and highlights the achievements of two
prominent African American professionals, and their endeavors to further civil rights legislation and litigation.
Languages:
Languages represented in the collection:
English
Access
No access restrictions. Collection is open to the public.
Access Restrictions
Materials are for use in-library only, non-circulating.
Publication Rights
Permission to publish from the Goldie Byrd Ruffin Collection must be obtained from the African American Museum & Library at
Oakland.
Preferred Citation
Goldie Byrd Ruffin collection, African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California.
Acquisition Information
The collection was donated to the African American Museum & Library at Oakland by Goldie Byrd Ruffin on May 16, 2003.
Processing Information
Processed by Jennifer Pickens, March 11, 2015.
Biography / Administrative History
Goldie Byrd Ruffin was a long-time resident of Oakland California with connections to African American political organizations
and relatives that were active in civil rights and politics, including her uncles, George R. Vaughns and William E. Vaughns.
George R. Vaughns was a renowned attorney in northern California who ran for Superior Court Judge of Alameda County in 1962.
He was a founding member of the Charles Houston Law Club, later to become the Charles Houston Bar Association, an organization
dedicated to supporting African American lawyers and civil rights litigation. William E. Vaughns was president of the Alameda
County Republican League, active in the 1956 presidential election, and worked with the Republican National Committee Director
of Minorities Val J. Washington and his Assistant Thalia D. Thomas toward the election of Republican congressmen in the 17th
Assembly District precinct. He was also active in local elections of city council members. He retired from his job at the
Pacific Fire Rating Bureau in 1966 after 48 years of service.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Goldie Byrd Ruffin Collection includes photographs, ephemera, and newspaper clippings about her uncle, George R. Vaughns,
and correspondence, photographs, and clippings of his brother, William E. Vaughns. She collected photographs and newspaper
clippings about George R. Vaughns and his wife, and ephemera from his 1962 campaign for Superior Court Judge of Alameda County.
She also collected correspondence and papers of his brother William E. Vaughns from his time as President of the Alameda County
Republican League in the 1950s, as well as newspaper clippings about him and his political colleagues. The collection is arranged
into three series: George R Vaughns; William E. Vaughns; and the scrapbook that held the correspondence, photographs, and
clippings. This collection shows an era of political activity of African Americans in Alameda County in the 1950s-60s and
highlights the achievements of two prominent African American professionals, and their endeavors to further civil rights legislation
and litigation.
Arrangement
Series I. George R. Vaughns
Series II. William E. Vaughns
Series III. Scrapbook
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in
the library's online public access catalog.
African American politicians--Alameda County (Calif.)
African American lawyers--Alameda County (Calif.)
Alameda County (Calif.)--History.
African Americans--California--Alameda County--History.
Alameda County (Calif.)
Photographs
Correspondence
Clippings
Goldie Byrd Ruffin, Nadine Wilmot, Rosie the Riveter World War II American Homefront Oral History Project, Bancroft Library.
Regional Oral History Office.
Smiley, C. (n.d.). History of the Charles Houston Bar Association.