Siggers High School Oral History Collection | Oral History Projects | University of Mississippi
 

This oral history collection includes interviews with 25 former students of Siggers High School, a historically Black secondary school that operated in Shannon, Mississippi, from around 1940 to 1970. In its early years, the school was known as Shannon Colored School. Siggers High was more than just a school—it was a place where young people were educated and taught to take pride in themselves and their community.

Narrators include: Alexander Anderson, John Anderson, Gloria Cox, Gloria Dabbs, Bonnie Dilworth, A.B. Dilworth, Dexter Foster, Mary Gardner, Gloria Hodges, Archie Lee Ivy, Tommie Lee Ivy, Tennie King, Danny Lyles, Paul Lyles, Tom Henry Lyles, Bobbie Randle, Robert Smith, Rickey Thompson, Wilma Trice, and Jacqueline Woods.

Interviews include memories of growing up in Shannon in the mid-1900s, including farming, family life, and important community values like self-respect, responsibility, and respect for elders. Narrators share stories about Siggers High School—school dances, clubs and sports, and the care (and discipline) they received from teachers. They also reflect on what was gained and lost during integration, including the shift to white teachers and the disappearance of important school records, memorabilia, photographs, and trophies.

The project was directed and curated by Dr. B. Brian Foster, associate professor of sociology at the University of Virginia and founder of The Black Volumes, a multimedia archive committed to preserving the history, culture, and placemaking traditions of Black communities in the U.S. Dr. Foster conducted and transcribed all of the interviews and wrote and directed a short film (with filmmaker Ethan Payne) called We Make, which tells the story of Siggers High School. The oral history project was funded by the Mississippi Humanities Council and the University of Virginia, and sponsored by the Center for the Study of Southern Culture.

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2023

Anderson, Alexander, Alexander Anderson, B. Brian Foster, and Ethan Payne

Anderson, John, John Anderson, B. Brian Foster, and Ethan Payne

Dabbs, Gloria, Gloria Dabbs, B. Brian Foster, and De'Alvinoe "DJ" Toliver

Dilworth, A.B., A. B. Dilworth, B. Brian Foster, Ethan Payne, and Bonnie Dilworth

Dilworth, Bonnie, Bonnie Dilworth, B. Brian Foster, and Ethan Payne

Foster, Dexter, Dexter Foster, B. Brian Foster, and Ethan Payne

Gardner, Mary, Mary Gardner and B. Brian Foster

Hodges, Gloria, Gloria Hodges, B. Brian Foster, and De'Alvinoe "DJ" Toliver

Ivy, Archie Lee, Archie Lee Ivy and B. Brian Foster

Ivy, Tommie Lee, Tommie Lee Ivy, B. Brian Foster, and Ethan Payne

King, Tennie, Tennie King and B. Brian Foster

Lyles, Paul, Paul Lyles, B. Brian Foster, and Ethan Payne

Lyles, Tom Henry, Tom Henry Lyles, B. Brian Foster, and Ethan Payne

Randle, Bobbie, Bobbie Randle, B. Brian Foster, and De'Alvinoe "DJ" Toliver

Smith, Robert, Robert Smith, B. Brian Foster, and Ethan Payne

Thompson, Rickey, Rickey Thompson and B. Brian Foster

2021

Cox, Gloria, Gloria Cox and B. Brian Foster

Lyles, Danny, Danny Lyles and B. Brian Foster

Trice, Wilma, Wilma Trice and Bethany Fitts

Woods, Jacqueline, Jacqueline Woods and Ashley McDaniel