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Herman Talmadge oral history interview, August 1, 1994

 Item — othertype: Oral History
Identifier: Talmadge, H_19940801_(P2003-07)

Scope and Contents

Interviewed by Stephen Tuck. Among topics discussed: Herman Talmadge describes the Georgia of his youth and his father, Eugene Talmadge, who died before finishing his term as governor of Georgia. Talmadge recounts the circumstances under which he was elected by the General Assembly of Georgia to complete his father’s term. As governor (1947-1955), Talmadge maintains that his greatest achievements were the modernizing of the state government and its education system, and discusses the difference between being a governor and a U.S. Senator (1957-1981). During his tenure as governor, Talmadge claims that the attack on Jim Crow became the most serious issue in the South since the Civil War. A supporter of segregation, Talmadge wanted to maintain the county unit system, which caused racial tensions at elections in rural areas. Talmadge claims that he never heard of fights between blacks and whites at polling precincts, nor of a black man found dead after voting with a note “Don’t Vote” on his body. Talmadge then speaks of his political strength in the state for 27 years, and the 50-year domination of Georgia politics by the Talmadge father and son team, wherein he claims that the Ku Klux Klan had no power after the 1920s. In 1955 Talmadge wrote You and Segregation, which suggests that the NAACP was a threat to segregation. Talmadge admits that although he has changed his views on segregation, he nevertheless was sad when it ended, because it changed the traditions and mores of the South that had lasted over 200 years. Recounting his experience as the first white politician to speak at the Hungry Club, and the YMCA, Talmadge told his black audience that he would welcome black officials in the government. Blacks had been voting for about ten years at that time, and Talmadge attracted their votes due to his educational, and other, reforms. Talmadge discusses the difference in the political atmosphere between cosmopolitan Atlanta and rural Georgia. The dominant political factors in Atlanta were Bill Hartsfield, Ralph McGill, and the blacks, who were pushing for integration, and although there were demonstrations throughout the South about this issue, it never came to bloodshed in Georgia. Talmadge claims that he never heard of problems with blacks registering to vote, and points out that blacks voted heavily in the white primaries long before the passage of the Voting Rights Act. He maintains that the NAACP had great influence in the black community during the 1950s, working with the black churches to guide blacks to leadership in the community. Talmadge speaks of Johnny Cook, an anti-Communist, who began as an anti-Talmadge man, and who switched to being a Talmadge man, and surmises that the switch was made because Cook realized that Talmadge was good for the state. Talmadge claims that he was able to make friends of both his and his father’s enemies. Of changes in the South, Talmadge says that integration at the time the slaves were freed would have averted the tradition of opposition to the Constitution, and the breakdown of the customs and mores [of the South]. He admits that he would not have been elected to office if his views on race were different, and tells Dr. Tuck that while he once believed that the Bible laid down that there should be segregation, he had since changed his mind, by virtue of having grown older and wiser.

Dates

  • Creation: August 1, 1994

Creator

Restrictions on Access

Oral history available for research.

Biographical Note

Herman Talmadge (1913-2002), son of Governor Eugene Talmadge, was his campaign manager in 1940 and 1946. He served as governor of Georgia from 1949-1955, and was U.S. senator from 1957-1981. Talmadge died in 2002.

Extent

1 item(s) (transcript (44 pages))

Language of Materials

From the Collection: English

Repository Details

Part of the Special Collections Repository

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