Horace R. Cayton, Jr.
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Horace Roscoe Cayton Jr. (April 12, 1903 – January 21, 1970) was a prominent American sociologist, newspaper columnist, and writer who specialized in studies of
working-class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...
black Americans, particularly in mid-20th-century Chicago. Cayton is best remembered as the co-author of a seminal 1945 study of
South Side, Chicago The South Side is an area of Chicago, Illinois, U.S. It lies south of the city's Loop area in the downtown. Geographically, it is the largest of the three sides of the city that radiate from downtown, with the other two being the north and we ...
, '' Black Metropolis: A Study of Negro Life in a Northern City''.


Biography


Early years

Horace R. Cayton Jr. was born April 12, 1903 in Seattle, Washington, to newspaper publisher Horace R. Cayton, Sr. and Susie Revels. His mother was the daughter of Hiram Rhodes Revels, the first black American elected to the United States Senate. The Caytons maintained an upper-middle-class standard of living, including a home in a wealthy, predominantly white neighborhood and employing a full-time Japanese servant.Robert Washington, "Horace Cayton: Reflections on an Unfulfilled Sociological Career", ''The American Sociologist,'' vol. 28, no. 1 (Spring 1997), p. 57. His father was active in Republican politics and had acquaintances throughout the black American intelligentsia, with the iconic
Booker T. Washington Booker Taliaferro Washington (April 5, 1856November 14, 1915) was an American educator, author, orator, and adviser to several presidents of the United States. Between 1890 and 1915, Washington was the dominant leader in the African-American c ...
one memorable house guest. Cayton grew up in Seattle, where he graduated from Franklin High School and later the University of Washington.Ed Diaz
"Cayton, Horace Roscoe Jr. (1903-1970)"
www.blackpast.org.
In 1929 he moved to Chicago to attend graduate school in sociology at the University of Chicago.


Career

In 1934, Cayton went to work as a researcher for the United States Department of the Interior, co-authoring ''Report on the Negro's Share in Industrial Rehabilitation'' with George Sinclair Mitchell in 1935."Negro Writer Horace R. Cayton Dies"
''Santa Cruz ASentinel,'' vol. 115, no. 22 (January 27, 1970), p. 18.
Following his stint with the Interior Department, Cayton moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where he taught economics at
Fisk University Fisk University is a private historically black liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1930, Fisk was the first Africa ...
for a time. Cayton subsequently returned to government employment heading a Chicago-based research project for the Works Progress Administration (WPA) for three years, ultimately producing a book from research in this period, ''Black Workers and the New Unions'' (1939). In 1940, Cayton became the director of the
Parkway Community House A parkway is a landscaped thoroughfare.''"parkway."''Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged. Merriam-Webster, 2002. http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com (14 Apr. 2007). The term is particularly used for a roadway in a park or ...
in Chicago. He would remain working in that capacity until 1949."Horace Cayton, Former Courier Columnist, Sociologist, Is Buried"
''Pittsburgh Courier,'' vol. 62, no. 6 (February 7, 1970), p. 2.
Cayton was the coauthor, with
St. Clair Drake John Gibbs St. Clair Drake (January 2, 1911 – June 15, 1990)Calloway, Earl (June 28, 1990). "Memorial services held for Dr. Drake, noted author and Roosevelt professor." ''Chicago Defender'', p. 10. was an African-American sociologist and anthr ...
, of the 1945 '' Black Metropolis: A Study of Negro Life in a Northern City,'' a history of Chicago's South Side and its black residents from the 1840s, when the area was a major transport hub for the Underground Railroad, to the 1930s. The book was considered pioneering in its exploration of the role race relations played in creating the economic situation of lower and middle-class blacks in urban America. During the 1950s, Cayton worked as a researcher for the
American Jewish Committee The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is a Jewish advocacy group established on November 11, 1906. It is one of the oldest Jewish advocacy organizations and, according to ''The New York Times'', is "widely regarded as the dean of American Jewish org ...
and the National Council of Churches and worked for two years as a news correspondent at the United Nations for the '' Pittsburgh Courier.'' He also wrote a weekly column for the ''Courier'' for 27 years.


Personal life and legacy

While living in New York during the 1950s, Cayton had an affair with
Lore Segal Lore Segal (born March 9, 1928), née Lore Groszmann, is an American novelist, translator, teacher, short story writer, and author of children's books. Her novel ''Shakespeare's Kitchen'' was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2008. Early lif ...
, an author and Holocaust survivor. Segal wrote about their relationship in her novel, ''My First American''. In 1961 Cayton moved to the Monterey Bay area of California, making his residence in the towns of Capitola and
Aptos Aptos (Ohlone for "The People") is an unincorporated town in Santa Cruz County, California. The town is made up of several small villages, which together form Aptos: Aptos Hills-Larkin Valley, Aptos Village, Cabrillo, Seacliff, Rio del Mar, and S ...
. He later settled in Santa Cruz. He continued to participate periodically in academic and political pursuits, including a seminar on "The Black Experience" at
Cowell College The first of the ten residential colleges of the University of California, Santa Cruz, established in 1965, Cowell College (Samuel Henry Cowell College) sits on the edge of a redwood forest with a remarkable view of Monterey Bay. The college is n ...
, and serving as a speaker at the opening of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Center in Atlanta. Cayton died of
influenza Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptoms ...
in Paris, France, on January 21, 1970, while on a National Endowment for the Humanities-sponsored research trip to gather material for a biography of his friend, author Richard Wright. He was 66 years old at the time of his death.


Works

* ''Report on the Negro's Share in Industrial Rehabilitation: Sections on the Birmingham District, Car and Railroad Repair Shops, Conclusions and Recommendations by George Sinclair Mitchell, with Whom was Associated Horace Cayton; Submitted to
Clark Foreman Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin with historical links to England, Scotland, and Ireland ''clericus'' meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educated ...
, Counsel on the Economic Status of Negroes, Office of the Secretary of the Interior, May, 1935.'' With George Sinclair Mitchell. n.c.: n.p, 935 * ''Black Workers and the New Unions.'' With George Sinclair Mitchell. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1939. * ''Negro Housing in Chicago.'' New York: Council for Social Action of the Congregational and Christian Churches, 1940. * '' Black Metropolis: A Study of Negro Life in a Northern City''. With
St. Clair Drake John Gibbs St. Clair Drake (January 2, 1911 – June 15, 1990)Calloway, Earl (June 28, 1990). "Memorial services held for Dr. Drake, noted author and Roosevelt professor." ''Chicago Defender'', p. 10. was an African-American sociologist and anthr ...
, introduction by Richard Wright. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1945. —Revised edition in 1962. * ''The Psychological Approach to Race Relations.'' Portland, OR: Reed College, 1946. * "Bronzeville," with St. Clair Drake, ''Holiday,'' May 1947. —Reprinted as a pamphlet. * ''The Chinese in the United States and the Chinese Christian Churches: A Statement Condensed for the National Conference on the Chinese Christian Churches from a Study by Horace R. Cayton and Anne O. Lively Incorporating Field Work and Consultation by Peter Y.F. Shih.'' With Anne O. Lively and Marjorie M. Carter. New York: Bureau of Research and Survey, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America, 1955. * ''Long Old Road: An Autobiography.'' New York: Trident Press, 1965. * ''Personal Experiences in Race Relations.'' n.c.: Horace R. Cayton, 1967. * ''Horace Roscoe Cayton: Selected Writings.'' In two volumes. Ed Diaz, ed. Seattle, WA: Bridgewater-Collins, 2002.


Footnotes


Additional resources


Books

* Stanley D. Stevens (ed.), ''Carry On!: The Carli & Stanley Stevens' Collection of Correspondence and Memorabilia from and about Horace Roscoe Cayton Jr.'' Santa Cruz, CA: S.D. Stevens, 2003. * Robert Washington, "Horace Cayton: Reflections on an Unfulfilled Sociological Career", ''The American Sociologist,'' vol. 28, no. 1 (Spring 1997), pp. 55–74.
In JSTOR


Archival materials


Horace R. Clayton Papers
at the Chicago Public Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Cayton, Horace R., Jr. 1903 births 1970 deaths African-American social scientists Writers from Seattle People from Santa Cruz, California University of Washington alumni University of Chicago alumni American sociologists People from Aptos, California People from Capitola, California Franklin High School (Seattle) alumni 20th-century African-American people