Walter E.D. Robinson papers
Call Number
Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
The collection contains two World War I diaries, photographs, a scrapbook, genealogical papers, and other items relating to Walter E.D. Robinson, dating from 1913 to 2016. Robinson was raised in Brooklyn, attended Erasmus Hall High School, served in the U.S. Army during World War I, and was a longtime employee of the U.S. Postal Service.
Biographical note
Walter E.D. Robinson born in 1893. He resided in the Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn as a youth and attended Erasmus Hall High School, where he was a member of the school's track and field team. He was also active in several local African American athletic clubs, such as the Smart Set Athletic Club. He was drafted in 1917 and then served in World War I in the all-Black 367th Infantry Regiment. In 1918, he was deployed to France, where he saw action in several battles before returning to the United States in 1919. After the war he married Katherine Hall in 1922, and had two children (Muriel and Walter). He was active in the many civic and religious organizations, serving as Trustee for the Nazarene Congregational Church (Bedford Stuyvesant) and as a life member of the Boys of Yester-Year (Harlem-based community group). He was employed by the U.S. Postal Service from 1921 to 1961, working from 1933 onward as part of the Railway Mail Service as a Registered Mail Clerk. He left Brooklyn with his family and eventually settled in Greenwich, Connecticut. He died in 1988.
Arrangement
This collection has not been arranged by an archivist.
Scope and Contents
The collection contains two World War I diaries, photographs, a scrapbook, genealogical papers, and other items relating to Walter E.D. Robinson, dating from 1913 to 2016. The diaries relate to Robinson's time serving in the U.S. Army in France in 1918. Transcriptions of the diaries are available for research purposes. The collection includes photographs of other African American soldiers in Robinson's regiment. The scrapbook, which dates from circa 1910s to 1980s, was assembled by Robinson and primarily documents the history of Brooklyn. It includes ephemera relating to African American athletic clubs from the early 20th century (specifically the Smart Set Athletic Club, of which Robinson was a member). An additional folder of loose ephemera relating to the clubs is also included in the collection. In addition to the material created or collected by Robinson, the collection contains a genealogy of his wife's family (the Halls of Wilmington, North Carolina), which were assembled by his son, Walter E. Robinson. Finally, the collection contains a card from historian Arnold J. Sparr to Muriel King and a reprint of an article authored by Sparr on women workers in the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
Subjects
Genres
People
Donors
Conditions Governing Access
Open to users without restriction.
Conditions Governing Use
The copyright status of this collection has not been assessed. Please consult library staff for more details.
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date (if known); Walter E.D. Robinson papers, 2016.038, Box and Folder number; Brooklyn Historical Society.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Walter E. Robinson, 2016.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Minimally processed to the collection level.
Repository
Container
This finding aid does not include an online listing of contents.
To learn about viewing this collection in person, please contact cbhreference@bklynlibrary.org.
