This volume fills a long-empty niche on the Fort Worth bookshelf: a scholarly history of the city's black community that starts at the beginning with Ripley Arnold and the early settlers, and comes down to today with our current battles over education, housing, and representation in city affairs. Profiles on some noted and some not-so-noted African Americans will appeal to both schools and general readers. Using a wealth of primary sources, Richard Selcer dispels several enduring myths, for instance the mistaken belief that Camp Bowie trained only white soldiers, and the spurious claim that Fort Worth managed to avoid the racial violence that plagued other American cities in the twentieth century. Selcer arrives at some surprisingly frank conclusions that will challenge current politically correct notions. "Selcer does a great job of exploring little-known history about the military, education, sports, and even some social life and organizations."-Bob Ray Sanders, author of Calvin Littlejohn: Portrait of a Community in Black and White
Richard Selcer is a native Fort Worther who has taught in his hometown for more than forty years. He holds a PhD from TCU, and has authored ten books on Western, military, and cultural history. He has taught at Tarrant County College, Texas, USA, Dallas County College, USA, and Weatherford College, USA.
"Selcer conducted oral interviews and carefully mined newspapers and archival sources to illustrate the richness of the black experience in Fort Worth and black citizens' complex relationship with white leaders. . . . This book should find a wide readership among a general audience."--New Mexico Historical Review "Extensively researched and thoughtful, A History of Fort Worth in Black & White lives up to its title in its balanced portrayal of Fort Worth's African-American communities. . . . [It] is an edifying and welcome contribution to public library American and Texas History shelves."--Midwest Book Review "Part biography, part historical narrative, and part social commentary, the result, published by the University of North Texas Press, is a tasty blend of informative and engaging. . . . Selcer's latest book is an invaluable account of a local topic that, until recently, was woefully underrepresented in print."--Fort Worth Weekly "Selcer does a great job of exploring little-known history about the military, education, sports and even some social life and organizations."--Bob Ray Sanders, author of Calvin Littlejohn: Portrait of a Community in Black and White
