Z 1820.000 Wallace (Jesse Thomas) Diary

Jesse Thomas Wallace was born near Coila, Carroll County, Mississippi, on September 8, 1872. He completed a scientific course at Lexington Normal College in 1894, and shortly there after attended the University of Mississippi. In 1907, Wallace went to Mississippi College as an assistant to Professor Bronson. The next year he became head of the history department at Mississippi College and served in that capacity for many years. He later received a master's degree from the University of Chicago. His thesis was entitled How and Why the Negro was Eliminated from State Politics in Mississippi in 1890. Wallace received a doctorate in political science from Columbia University in 1927. His dissertation was entitled A History of Negroes of Mississippi from 1865 to 1890. He also served as president of the Bank of Clinton. Wallace continued his scholarly writing until shortly before his death on April 30, 1940.

The diary of Jesse Thomas Wallace provides an interesting, albeit sporadic, account of his experiences during his early career as an itinerant teacher in Carroll, Covington, Holmes, and Simpson counties from February 19, 1893, to August 2, 1895. It contains detailed descriptions and candid and rather humorous commentary about persons he met; places he visited; and events he witnessed during this period. The diary also reveals some of the joys and frustrations Wallace felt as an educator in rural Mississippi.

Series 1: Jesse Thomas Wallace Diary. February 19, 1893August 2, 1895. 1 item.