A Scholar Discovers the Negro World: Some Observations on Richard Bardolph's "The Negro Vanguard"

Abstract

IN HIS ABSORBING AND WELL-WRITTEN BOOK, THE NEGRO VANGUARD (Rinehart, 1959), Richard Bardolph has made attempt to identify most celebrated Negro Americans in country's past. Telling story generation by generation since 1770, Bardolph demonstrates how number of American Negroes has grown by geometric proportion from mere handful in thirty years between Boston Massacre and Gabriel Prosser's Revolt in 1800-he lists twenty-six for this period-until it has reached hundreds in generation that spans mid-twentieth century. Bardolph has also effectively shown that as opportunities have improved standards for eminence have risen also, while for same reason areas of endeavor in which Negroes have achieved distinction have greatly broadened. Most significent of all perhaps is fact that while originally Negro celebrities were distinguished trend now is increasingly for them to be Americans in their particular fields of achievement. Fortunately Bardolph's discussion does not leave reader complacent, but makes it clear that despite progress that has been made, much remains to be done if Negroes are to make achievements that fully accord with their capacity. Bardolph has done real service in presenting this dramatic and swiftly moving account of Negro Vanguard to American public. Bardolph's purpose is not to present a compilation of success stories, but to ascertain who have been most Negroes and to search the available biographical data . . . for generalizations in hope that some light may be shed on social origins of group as whole . . .; role of accident, sources of motivation, importance of contacts with sympathetic whites and prominent Negroes upon their development; local and regional advantages and, so far as data permit, some tentative conclusions about development of selective mechanisms and social climate that favored their rise. These being questions to which Bardolph has sought answers, it is aim of this reviewer to examine chiefly two things: (1) nature of his methodology and quality of his data; and (2) validity and significance of his conclusions. Since Bardolph seeks to arrive at valid generalizations, it is important that he actually identify individuals who are significant for his purpose, and for this reason question of his methodology is an important one. One difficulty here is that Bardolph is not clear as to exactly what sort of person he intends to include. He variously talks of Negro celebrities, Negro's heroes, Negroes, Negroes of high achievement, the Negro movers and shakers of American social history, and Negro Vanguard as if they were synonymous terms. But one may be or celebrity without being mover and shaker of history. And if Bardolph was concerned simply with Negro's heroes there would have been no reason to consult white sources he uses. Bardolph's method of identifying Negro Vanguard was to consult chiefly general histories of Negro and of special areas of Negro achievement; various lists of outstanding Negroes; Dictionary of American Biography and Who's Who in 4merica; Negro