Lola Bell (Graham) Graham Du Bois (1896 - 1977)

Born 11 Nov 1896 in Indianapolis, Marion County, Indiana, United States

Ancestors

Wife of Shadrach Thamas McCants — married 16 Jul 1918 (to 1927) in Seattle, King County, Washington, United States

Died 27 Mar 1977 at age 80 in Beijing, China

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Biography

Shirley (Graham) Graham Du Bois is Notable.

Shirley Graham, notable African-American author, playwright, composer, and political activist, was the first African-American woman to write and produce an opera with an all-black cast. Later she became the second wife of W. E. B. Du Bois.^[1][2]

Early Life

She was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on 11 November 1896, the daughter of David A. Graham, a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church, and Elizabeth Etta (Bell) Graham.^[1][3] Her mother is said to have been half-Cheyenne.^[4] Some biographies give Shirley's birth name as Lola Shirley Graham or Shirley Lola Graham, but census records from her early life and the record of her first marriage call her Lola Bell Graham or Lola B. Graham. There has been some uncertainty about her actual year of birth as well, because in later life she often represented herself as several years younger than she really was.^[5]

The family moved often during her childhood, as Rev. David Graham moved from one pastorate to another.^[1] Census and other public records identify residence locations of Indianapolis; Xenia, Ohio; New Orleans; Chicago (where her brother Kenneth was born in 1908),^[6] and Nashville, Tennessee (where Kenneth died a year and a half later).^[6] Biographers additionally list Colorado Springs, Colorado and Spokane, Washington.^[7][2] The 1900 U.S. Census recorded her as Lola B. Graham, living in the Xenia, Ohio, household of her parents.^[8] The 1910 U.S. Census recorded Lola B. Graham, age 13, in Nashville, Tennessee.^[9] Lola Graham graduated from Lewis and Clark High School in Spokane, Washington, in 1914; after high school she worked in a naval yard and in a movie house, where she played the organ and sang.^[2][4]

First Marriage

Lola Bell Graham married Shadrach T. McCants in Seattle, Washington, on 16 July 1918.^[10][11] Various biographies give the date of this marriage as 1921 and state that Lola's father officiated at the wedding, but that is inconsistent with the marriage record and other records.^[2][12] When Shadrach Thomas McCants registered for the World War I draft in Seattle, Washington, in September 1918, he named Mrs. Lola B. McCants as his nearest relative, and reported that he and Lola both lived in the Alki Hotel at 5th and Washington in Seattle.^[13] By the time of the 1920 U.S. Census, they were living in their own home on 23rd Avenue in Seattle,^[14] although the Seattle city directory for 1920 listed their address as 203 24th Avenue.^[15]

In 1919, Lola and Shadrach McCants had a son who was born prematurely and died at nine days old.^[16] The following year another son, recorded as Baby McCants, was born prematurely in May 1920 and died two days after his birth.^[17] They had two sons who survived, Robert and David, born in 1922 (although published biographies of Shirley Graham say 1923) and 1925, respectively. In 1926, she moved to Paris, France, to study music composition at the Sorbonne.^[18]

The marriage ended in divorce in 1927;^[7] she had filed for divorce in Portland, Oregon, in 1925.^[4] In the accounts that she gave of her life in later years and that were repeated in various biographies, she claimed that her marriage ended when her husband died.^[12][19]

After the dissolution of her marriage to Shadrach McCants, she changed her last name to McCanns.^[7] This also may be when she started calling herself Shirley.

Further Education and Career

Even before her first marriage ended, Shirley's parents had become the primary caregivers for her sons, while she began to seriously pursue her education and career. Sources differ regarding the chronology and other details of her early career, but they are consistent regarding the overall outline and the salient events.

In April 1930 the U.S. Census recorded Shirley McCanns, age 27 and "a widow," described as Negro, teaching [music^[12] ] at Morgan College (now Morgan State University) in Baltimore, Maryland.^[20] Later that year she again visited France; her return to the United States is documented in a ship's passenger record showing her U.S. address as Morgan College, Baltimore, Maryland.^[21] She continued post-graduate music studies at Oberlin College, giving recitals and lectures to support herself.^[12]

In 1932 she composed the opera Tom-Tom: An Epic of Music and the Negro, which premiered in Cleveland, Ohio, commissioned by the Stadium Opera Company. Tom Tom featured an all Black cast and orchestra, structured in three acts; act one taking place in an Indigenous African tribe, act two portraying an American slave plantation, and the final act taking place in 1920s Harlem. The music features elements of blues and spirituals, as well as jazz with elements of opera. The score of this opera was considered lost and has not been performed since its premiere until it was rediscovered in 2001 at Harvard University.

She obtained her masters in 1935. During the late 1930s and through the '40s she established theater programs in the Federal Theater Project, the YWCA and the YMCA-USO, attracting the attention of anti-Communist and white supremacist groups who ultimately were able to shut down programs and have her works blacklisted -- censored and removed from libraries.^[18][4]

Marriage to W. E. B. Du Bois

In 1951, she married W. E. B. Du Bois, thirty years her senior, with whom she had become acquainted in the 1930s. It was the second marriage for both, and there were no children. Together they continued their activism, speaking out for liberation and equality for people of color across the globe, until his death in 1963, when she carried on alone.

Death and Legacy

Shirley Graham Du Bois died in 1977 in Beijing, China, where she had gone to be treated for breast cancer. Her ashes are interred beside her husband's remains at the Du Bois Memorial Centre in Accra, Ghana.^[5]

Shirley Graham Du Bois's papers are housed at the Schlesinger Library of the Radcliffe Institute of Harvard University.^[22]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Shirley Graham Du Bois (webpage), Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3} Errin Jackson, "Shirley Graham Du Bois (1996-1977)," BlackPast.org website, March 19, 2007, https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/dubois-shirley-graham-1896-1977/
3. ↑ "United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6KM1-6NMD : 10 February 2023), Shirley Graham.
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3} Carol A. Stabile, "Graham, Shirley," The Broadcast 41: Women and the Anti-Communist Blacklist, (website). Accessed at https://broadcast41.com/biography/graham-shirley on 13 August 2019. Content of the website apparently is derived from Stabile's book of the same name (London: Goldsmiths Press, 2018).
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} Find A Grave, database and images (accessed 13 August 2019), memorial page for Dr Shirley Graham Du Bois (11 Nov 1896–27 Mar 1977), Find A Grave: Memorial #12311743, citing Du Bois Memorial Centre, Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana; Maintained by Find A Grave. [No grave marker].
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1} "Tennessee Deaths and Burials, 1874-1955," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F65J-VHT : 10 February 2018), D. A. Graham in entry for Kenneth Bell Graham, 01 Jun 1909; citing Nashville, Davidson, Tennessee, reference v 4 rn 847; FHL microfilm 1,276,594. Image at https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89K4-Z9WS-C?i=1147
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2} Bettina Aptheker, "Graham Du Bois, Shirley," Notable American Women: A Biographical Dictionary Completing the Twentieth Century, Susan Ware, ed., (Harvard University Press, 2004) pp. 248-249. Note: Aptheker's notes indicate that the biography is based on several cited published sources, assistance from David G. Du Bois, and her own personal acquaintance with Shirley Graham Du Bois through her father's relationship with W.E.B. Du Bois and Shirley Graham Du Bois.
8. ↑ "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-63YQ-H2C?cc=1325221&wc=9B7M-CX6%3A1030551701%2C1031293301%2C1034699901 : 5 August 2014), Ohio > Greene > ED 95 Xenia Township (part between Columbus pike & Springfield & Fairfield pike incl. Wilberforce Un > image 8 of 23; citing NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

   Lola was 3 years old, born in Indiana in November 1896 to a father born in Indiana and a mother born in Missouri. Her parents had been married four years, and her mother, Lizzie Etta Graham, had two children, both living. Also in the household were Roy M. Graham, "son," age 13, born in Michigan to a father born in Indiana and a mother born in Kentucky; and 4-month-old "son" David A. Graham, Jr., born in Ohio in January 1900 to a father born in Indiana and a mother born in Missouri. All household members were recorded as Black.

9. ↑ "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9TXN-94VH?cc=1727033&wc=QZZH-NSM%3A133640301%2C135520401%2C135744701%2C1589089025 : 24 June 2017), Tennessee > Davidson > Nashville Ward 1 > ED 15 > image 23 of 32; citing NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

   The household of 49-year-old Methodist clergyman David A. Graham and his 35-year-old wife Elizabeth E. Graham: David and Elizabeth had been married 14 years; it was his second marriage and her first. Elizabeth had had five children, of whom four were living. The four children in the household were Lola B. Graham, 13, born in Indiana; David A. Graham, Jr., 10, born in Ohio; Lorenzo B. Graham, 8, born in Louisiana; and Aurelius B. Graham, 3, born in Indiana. All family members were recorded as mulatto.

10. ↑ Washington State Archives; Olympia, Washington; Reference Number: kingcoarchmc64240. Accessed in Ancestry.com database Washington, Marriage Records, 1854-2013 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012, at https://www.ancestry.com/interactive/2378/85298923_7ffe5b8a-cd5d-4f3c-826e-9269a18705f1;

    M. C. Knight officiated; witnesses were Chas. G. Adams and Mlle. Irene Robinson.

11. ↑ "Washington, County Marriages, 1855-2008", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKNY-BWYL : 29 April 2021), Shadrach T McCants and Lola Bell Graham, 1918. Image included.
12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3} Gerald Horne, Race Woman: The Lives of Shirley Graham Du Bois, pp. 47-49.
13. ↑ "United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-81WN-9M74?cc=1968530&wc=9FC7-PTG%3A928443301%2C928687201 : 14 May 2014), Washington > Seattle City no 10; J-N > image 2956 of 5828; citing NARA microfilm publication M1509 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
14. ↑ "United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9RN8-JF9?cc=1488411&wc=QZJT-GV5%3A1036474601%2C1037581801%2C1037581802%2C1589335212 : 14 December 2015), Washington > King > Seattle > ED 260 > image 10 of 24; citing NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.);

    Both Shardrach and Lola were described as mulatto. Lola was born in Indiana to a father born in Indiana and a mother born in Missouri. Lola had no occupation; Shardrach was a proprietor in the men's furnishings business. He owned their home.

15. ↑ Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. The 1925 directory listed them (with the same names) at 929 23rd Avenue; Shadrach was a cleaner and dyer doing business at 106 4th Ave S. The 1926 city directory listed Shadrach T. McCants and wife Lola B. McCants at 105 22nd Ave. N; Shadrach was a cleaner in business at 515-1/2 2nd Ave.
16. ↑ "Washington Death Certificates, 1907-1960," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N3G4-YRL : 10 March 2018), entry for Infant Mccants, 14 Jul 1919; citing Seattle, King, Washington, reference cn 1997, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Olympia; FHL microfilm 1,992,657.
17. ↑ "Washington Death Certificates, 1907-1960," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N3GZ-VFV : 10 March 2018), Shedrick T. Mccants in entry for Baby Mccants, 25 May 1920; citing Seattle, King, Washington, reference 1788, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Olympia; FHL microfilm 1,992,758. Record image at https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-6SQQ-WPC?i=1763.
18. ↑ ^{18.0 18.1} Wikipedia contributors, "Shirley Graham Du Bois," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shirley_Graham_Du_Bois&oldid=1177699646 (accessed October 9, 2023).
19. ↑ The extensive Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) file for Shirley Graham Du Bois cites (at https://archive.org/details/ShirleyGrahamDuBoisFBIFile/page/n27) the 1946 edition of Current Biography as indicating that she married shortly after graduation from Lewis and Clarke in Spokane, and that her husband died three years after the marriage, leaving her with two young sons. This is inaccurate.
20. ↑ "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9RHS-K7L?cc=1810731&wc=QZF3-7YW%3A648803201%2C649359801%2C649315601%2C1589284215 : 8 December 2015), Maryland > Baltimore (Independent City) > Baltimore (Districts 501-673) > ED 659 > image 21 of 36; citing NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002);

    She was born in Indiana to a father born in Indiana and a mother born in Missouri, and she worked as a college teacher.

21. ↑ "New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1957," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-G54S-N29?cc=1923888&wc=MFV1-63D%3A1029940701 : 21 May 2014), 4838 - vol 10487-10488, Sep 29, 1930 > image 749 of 896; citing NARA microfilm publication T715 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

    Lola McCanns, age 28, born in Indianapolis on 11 November 1902, sailing from Le Havre, France, to New York on 24 September 1930 and arriving in New York on 29 September 1930. Her U.S. address was Morgan College, Baltimore, Maryland.

22. ↑ The Civil Rights History Project: Survey of Collections and Repositories: Du Bois, Shirley Graham. Papers. The American Folklife Center, The Library of Congress.

See also:

• Shirley Graham Du Bois in Wikipedia.
• Shirley Graham Du Bois FBI file at the Internet Archive.
• Wikidata: Item Q3482354