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O'Labrice Beckum: Perhaps even if I could refer you to the sister that is
still living, just happened to be a Black Pittsburgher that did great
things in music, you know. Although she is gone now, we are still--so
perhaps this would be something you could look into if you're interested. I
can give you some background material.
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Sheila Presbery: And this is Madam--what's her name? Beckum: Mary Cardwell
Dawson.
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Beckum: And this particular person, her sister is still living and we have
more or less like a friends guild that works in the Pittsburgh area that's
just been gotten back together. That would be nice if you could look
up--let me give you this. And you just keep it It's all in there.
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Presbery: Is it okay to keep it for good? Beckum: Oh yes, you can keep
that. Presbery: Okay. Thank you. Beckum: That would be a worthwhile
Pittsburgher to really write about. And if you got it from her sister, it
would be from the source.
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Presbery: Is she--are you saying that she's still alive?
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Beckum: No, she's dead.
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Presbery: Her sister's still alive? Beckum: Her sister is living and a
brother. Presbery: Okay, then at the interview, maybe you could give me
their names, then I could contact them. Beckum: Oh, yes. That would be so
good. Because they can give you material on a real Pittsburgh part--it's in
the archvives.
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Beckum: After all, she did live here and started the beginning of music.
Studied and came back and had a studio. Worked with Black children--
Presbery: That would be really good.
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Presbery: Maybe you should give me their names now, if you have them
available. If not, we can wait until the end.
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Beckum: I can give it to you now, alright? [sound of tape pausing]
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Beckum: Alright now, Catherine. Her name is Catherine Gardner.
G-a-r-d-n-e-r. Presbery: Okay.
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Beckum: And her address is 126 20th Avenue. And that's Pittsburgh, 151--
15120.
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Beckum: And that's over in Munhall or Homestead across the Homestead
Bridge.
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Presbery: Okay. Do you have her phone number?
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Beckum: Her phone number is 462-7467.
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Presbery: And her brother. Do you have that too? Beckum: Yes, um, where is
Harold?
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Beckum: Harold lives at the Y in East Liberty and--
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Presbery: Would that be Harold Gardner?
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Beckum: No, he's Harold Dawson--I mean, Harold Cardwell. That was her
married name. It's Harold Cardwell. Now he's at the YMCA in East Liberty.
Baum and Whitfield Avenue. Baum and Whitfield.
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Beckum: And his phone number there is 661-7878. And you can just ask for
Harold in his room.
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Presbery: Okay. Thank you-- Beckum: The two of them. Presbery: --that'll
be really helpful, I think.
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Beckum: And if you call them, they'd probably come together in one spot
and meet with you. And you'd get a wealth of beautiful information.
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Presbery: Good. Good. This would be--this would be--
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Beckum: In the meantime, you have that folder. You can kind of read it
over and you know what she has contributed. And this is all of the offers
and things that she did all--
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Presbery: And this is something that you'd prefer to keep, though?
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Beckum: Yes, this is. And she'll give you probably this information. She
probably would have extra ones, you know. So there I am as a--no, that's
not the one. That's the Cardwell Choir that years ago that did beautiful
works and all that at Carnegie Library.
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Beckum: And these are the things that she would give you. And you could
look through this book and see everything that was done. Presbery: Oh, that
would be really great. Beckum: Grand Opera. Black people in costumes,
singing with orchestras. This was all Pittsburgh [??]. This was our dance
[????] and our kids had a chorus years ago.
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Presbery: [unintelligible]
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Beckum: No, this is me here. In the costuming of [??]. That's just a part
of what I did. He gets an understudy, I understand that [??] Harris, he
was a Pittsburgh [??]. And there I am standing up.
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Beckum: And this is the sister that you're going to see. And that's Peggy,
these are the three of us now that are continuing to try and work here in
Pittsburgh. Trying to take [??], been doing it for a while.
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Beckum: But all over the country where she has been, they try to keep
guilds going and raise scholarship money. But that's a Pittsburgher that
took us that far in grand opera in the years when it didn't happen.
Presbery: That's terrific. Beckum: And just--you just didn't see [??]
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Presbery: I'll be looking forward to an interview.
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Beckum: You'll have a good time. I think, worthwhile for you to get that
in its entirety, because that is really a Pittsburgher.
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Presbery: Thank you. Thank you very much.
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Beckum: Now, as far as the Casson family and--and my father's coming to
this area and marrying and having his children and us living here. There
was, um, uh, this was Alfred Casson had married Mary Cass-- Alfred Casson
married Mary Perry some 57 years ago now. And lived in the Pittsburgh area
at the time he was 17 until he died some 12 years ago. And what can I tell
you?
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Sheila Presbery: Okay. [laughter] Well, let's see. I'll have a look at
this sheet. I guess I should have started a long time ago asking you what
your name was.
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O'Labrice Beckum: All right. My name is O'Labrice Casson Beckum. Presbery:
And your age? Beckum: I'm 46. I have to think on that. [laughter]
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Presbery: Where were you born?
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Beckum: I was born in Rankin, Pennsylvania, A small little mill town
in--not too far from the Pittsburgh area.
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Presbery: And what is your mother's maiden name?
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Beckum: Perry. Mary Perry. P-e-r-r-y.
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Presbery: Okay. Um, have there been any changes in your family name that
you know of?
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Beckum: No. You mean-- Presbery: Other than marriage, I mean.
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Presbery: Formally changing family names.
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Beckum: No, no. Those are the names that we can remember. Nothing was
changed.
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Presbery: Um, could you give us a little background information on your
mother's family and or your father's family?
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Beckum: Well, I can give you quite a bit of information on my father's
family, because they were the type of people that were history orientated.
In other words, we have had a family reunion ever since my father got old
enough to bring the family together, and they even went as far as to trace
a family tree, which is something that most Blacks did not do and would not
even begin to do. We were only able to take our family tree back as far as
Frederick Douglass. But we do have proof that he is a member of our family,
that we are direct descendants. He being a Bailey. And my father's mother
was a Bailey. And it's that type of closeness in family history. And as you
can see, we went back that far and even though this is this one was, I
think, compiled about seven years ago and they're compiling again to bring
it up to date for the ones that have been added to the family tree in the
past seven, eight years
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Presbery: Do you know offhand the approximate year that it goes back to?
Your family tree?
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Beckum: All right. Now we can start here. As far back as. What is this?
They have 1874, but they should go back. I thought they went back in 17,
but I guess not.
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Beckum: Here's 1815. This is the Bailey history. And. You see, it states
here that in 1815, on a plantation of Colonel Lloyd, Stephen married
Caroline Wilson in 1841, while still a slave. They had 13 children. Three
of their sons became farmers and so forth and so on. And then it states
down here. Both Stephen and George fought in the Civil War. After the
emancipation, Stephen and his family settled in Denton, Maryland. This is
where my father came from. And in 1874, he purchased 80 acres and it came
on down here to the records holding in his will, where we traced it back to
there. Okay. Then his cousin was Frederick Douglass. Presented them with
the Bible. And we still have the Bible. Presbery: Oh, neat. Beckum: With
all all the background in it. Now the family comes together once every two
years. The history is--we hope to keep compiling a history as to things
that are happening now, but we go back to 1815 then.
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Presbery: Is this something that you want to hold on to also?
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Beckum: Well, I can give you this because I can always get another one,
you know. And to give you an idea of just what this Black family has done,
it might be worthwhile to give you the Bailey history. Presbery: Thank
you.
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Presbery: So, Bailey, then would be your father's family?
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Beckum: That was my father's mother. Presbery: Oh, I see. Beckum: And she
married a Casson. And that's where--his lineage was through the Cassons. He
became a Casson, but his mother was Catherine Bailey, and she married. She
married Stephen. See, Isaac?
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Beckum: That's in--it's--it's just beautiful.
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Beckum: But my father's mother was Catherine Bailey and a cousin--a direct
cousin of Stephen Bailey Douglass.
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Presbery: Okay. How do you classify yourself racially or ethnically? I've
only heard that [??] [laughter]
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Beckum: Definitely as a Black American.
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Presbery: When you were growing up, were you aware of any foreign language
that was being used by your family?
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Beckum: Now, this is something that we have no, you know, recollection of.
Even the older members that were in the family, they just spoke English. It
wasn't like the Creole, French or anything like that. Presbery: I see.
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Presbery: And what is your occupation?
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Beckum: I am a part time teacher. I teach voice and I have a home studio.
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Presbery: Oh, what is your religious affiliation?
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Beckum: Well, I--the family religion was Methodist. We grew up as an
African Methodist because that's the ministers and whatnot through the
church. Now I am working at a Baptist church and for the past five years, I
am Baptist. But historically, this is a Methodist family.
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Presbery: Okay. What are your views towards politics?
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Beckum: In what respect?
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Presbery: Oh, for example, is voting important to you? Beckum: Oh, yes.
Presbery: Um, why? Or how do you see it as being significant?
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Beckum: Well, we are very conscious, a very conscious family in far as
voting and living in the community as an active member in all respects. As
far as following even on the smallest details of the street sweeper,
because we realize that being Black, you're going to have to assert
yourself. That this would be the least area taken care of. So we try very
hard and we try to stay in the Black community. My husband is a vice
principal in the school system, has been an administrator for the past 12
years and just refuses to leave this area where we bought our home, um, 20
years ago.
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Beckum: But we stay right here within our Black community. And try to give
that community as much as we can politically and any other way.
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Presbery: Well, what do you feel about political corruption and Black
people's chances of advancing in the area of politics?
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Beckum: Well, it's happening. It's happening. Because more and more.
You'll find that in any--as in anything, it's what you put into it. And
more and more, if the Black will stay put and realize that going and
scattering isn't helping them.
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Beckum: So we stay here, try to give that example. The children seemingly
know that Mr. Beckum is here. Although he hasn't had them as students. He
he used to teach right in the area, taught right down the street in the
junior high school. And we never had a problem about harassing our children
or throwing the--breaking windows or tearing up the cars. We never had our
cars stolen or anything like that done in the area. And I really believe
it's because he has always been here as a spark. The same Mr. Beckum not
only teaches he lives here and cares about us. So the family has helped to
the community. The Black community is our life. We stay right here.
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Presbery: Um, well, how long have you lived in the Pittsburgh area?
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Beckum: We've lived here in Beltzhoover for 20 years. I grew up in
Pittsburgh. I've been here ever since I was 12 years old. Now he's from a
small mill town, too. He was born in Aliquippa, PA. And after we married
and came out of school and settled here, he started teaching in the
Pittsburgh area--well, he started substitute teaching first. He was as back
at the time when there weren't too many Blacks teaching in the school
system. But as I said he's been teaching for 21 years--well, working in the
public school system for 21 years.
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Presbery: Okay. Now, do you belong to any organizations for Black people?
Black fraternal organizations?
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Beckum: For Black people, NAACP. Yes, we are members of the NAACP and. My
husband, of course, has his affiliating with--affiliation with the Omega
fraternity, and they are quite conscious and work civilly in the area. We
hope that it will continue with the younger ones coming in. And of course,
I'm an Omega wife and we try to do work out there in Lemington Home.
Keeping Black elderly with their needs. They put an elevator in two years
ago so you can go up and down the staircases there. They're always doing
something in that respect, yearly for the home of the Black aged. And
that's about--
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Beckum: And of course, with the church work.
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Presbery: How long have you been members of these organizations? Beckum:
Oh, goodness, ever since college. Presbery: Do you have any [??] in years?
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Beckum: Well, 20 years. [laughter]
Presbery: Okay. Um, was there any particular reason that you joined these
organizations? What was it that--
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Beckum: Well, you know, of course, the NAACP and things like that that
came through, um, being that we felt that the Urban League and the NAACP
were active organizations that could actually do something. You know,
there's many of them that can kind of go. These had positive countrywide
reach-- your NAACP and your Urban League. It was a place where the Black
community could be helped. Are you the members of the Urban League too?
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Beckum: I am not sure now if, of course, he's always had to work with the
Urban League. You see, my husband has always worked in a Black area. So the
Urban League--he's always had to draw on that as far as--
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Beckum: And he always worked with the--what we would call retarded
children. He would stress the importance of it. When they left him that
they could be able to go out and get their jobs. So the Urban League has
always been very handy and the NAACP in getting those children on into
school systems.
00:16:05.000 --> 00:16:19.000
Beckum: And many of these children graduated from college and are now
working. But then the other, the Urban League has been able to find those
graduates that more or less came out into their jobs. And so he's close to
the Urban League, Mr. Beckum.
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Presbery: Okay, do you remember your grandparents at all?
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Beckum: Well, I don't remember my grandparents on my father's side because
they died when I was very young--an infant. But I remember my grandmother
and grandfather, only on my mother's side.
00:16:35.000 --> 00:16:37.000
Presbery: Well what do you remember about them?
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Beckum: Well, Mr. and Mrs. Perry. They lived in Presto, Pennsylvania on a
farm. And in fact almost owned a hilltop and quite a bit of land there and
they would farm. I remember when Grandpa would always harvest and bring his
food into downtown area where we have Market Street and sell his vegetables
and fruits. And he was an independent farmer and raised his family that way
for years. And then he left that and went into house lathing, you know. And
started building homes and when farming became--when horse and wagon was
taken over by the truck and whatnot. And it wasn't as lucrative for him to
try to, you know, take care of his family that way. He did lathing. They
stopped farming. They used to farm quite, quite a bit, a large acreage and
take care of the area there.
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Beckum: And his boys got married and went away. So he did lath work. He
did that type of contract work where he would build houses until he got too
old to do that. That's the type of work he did in the Pittsburgh area.
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Beckum: First he was a farmer and then he went into construction work. He
was the lather. He used to do lathing inside the finished homes. Presbery:
And what about your grandmother? Beckum: Grandmother just took care of the
children. She never did any active work as far as bringing in income. She
just cooked, cleaned and took care of the family. And then she died--um,
well, I was--well, Kevin wasn't born. I guess I was about 13 when my
grandmother died.
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Presbery: Were there any things that your grandparents used to talk to you
about, about their experiences? Things that they were kind of going through
in their lifetimes?
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Beckum: Well, Grandmother had a very interesting background in as much as
her father was married to a French Creole and had done missionary work in
Africa. So we used to enjoy hearing the stories about the fact that he had
taken the White bride to Africa to do missionary work and, you know, the
type of responses that they had there. This was my grandmother's father and
mother. So other than that, that was about the only thing that we would
more or less hold on to was the fact that, you know, that's where the
fairness of skin started coming through there as far as we could reach
back, that we know of.
00:19:06.000 --> 00:19:11.000
Presbery: Did they ever speak of the experiences here in America?
00:19:11.000 --> 00:19:50.000
Beckum: Well, grandpop was a very independent Black. As I said, he was
able to, uh, he was able to purchase land. And he made the land feed his
family and take care of him in those years when Blacks usually came in and
went into the mill and that type of work. And he was able to make the farm
feed Pittsburgh for a long time before, as I said, when modernization and
machinery more or less moved to--and of course his age, too. They couldn't
quite take on the acreage and turn out the productivity that a farmer had
to do.
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Presbery: Where were your parents born?
00:19:53.000 --> 00:20:21.000
Beckum: My mother was born in Virginia. Where in Virginia. My mother was
born in Virginia. But Daddy, as I said here, [??] state that he was a
Maryland fella. He came from Eastern Shore, Maryland. And most of his
background, of course, you'll be able to easily find in that beginning.
00:20:21.000 --> 00:20:24.000
Presbery: Where were your grandparents born? Or did you tell me that
already?
00:20:24.000 --> 00:20:42.000
Beckum: Good question. Um, now, grandmother and grandfather came up from
Virginia. They were all Virginia people on my mother's side. And of course,
I told you on my father's side, they were from Maryland. That's about it.
00:20:42.000 --> 00:20:49.000
Presbery: So they were all originally from the South? Beckum: Oh,
definitely. Presbery: And when did they move to Pittsburgh?
00:20:49.000 --> 00:21:10.000
Beckum: Oh, goodness. I guess about 80 years ago because my mother is 73
and she wasn't born here. They brought her here as a--as a girl. So let's
say over 75 years ago.
00:21:10.000 --> 00:21:13.000
Presbery: You mentioned that you were raised in Pittsburgh from age 12.
Where did you live before that?
00:21:13.000 --> 00:21:28.000
Beckum: In Rankin, PA, which is a little suburb, little mill town, not too
far from Pittsburgh. But then we moved into the Homewood area, when I was
12, and I grew up there.
00:21:28.000 --> 00:21:35.000
Presbery: Did--did your parents live any places other than where they were
born before moving to Pittsburgh?
00:21:35.000 --> 00:21:52.000
Beckum: No, I don't think so. I think it was like the parents were there
and they brought their children here. And then my mother met my father here
in the Pittsburgh area. So it was like that one initial move. And she
stayed here with my father when he came into the area, found a wife. He
stayed in Pittsburgh, raised his family.
00:21:52.000 --> 00:21:58.000
Presbery: And do you know what area they moved to when they moved here?
What area of Pittsburgh? What neighborhood?
00:21:58.000 --> 00:22:24.000
Beckum: Well, he moved to Rankin, PA when he came into the area. And
mother was living out there in Bridgeville when he married her--well, no, I
guess not. He moved to Homewood area with his brother. Mother was in
Bridgeville, and she was--he met her at a little dance or something in the
Hill area, probably. And then they moved to Rankin.
00:22:24.000 --> 00:22:40.000
Beckum: Where we grew up, in there as children. We left Rankin when I was
age 12, so he lived there, I guess approximately about 16 years with his
family before he moved out of the mill town area and and did a trucking
business of his own. He was more or less self-employed [??].
00:22:40.000 --> 00:22:46.000
Presbery: I'm going to take the tape because I don't want it to run out
right in the middle.
00:22:46.000 --> 00:22:57.000
Presbery: Okay. Were most of the neighborhoods--most of the neighbors in
the neighborhood where you lived and where you grew up were most of them
from the South, too? Or were they, like scattered around or from Pittsburgh
or whatever?
00:22:57.000 --> 00:23:11.000
Beckum: Well, now, when we lived in Rankin, it was odd because on the
street was quite a mixed neighborhood. Maybe three White families to every
two Black.
00:23:11.000 --> 00:23:24.000
Beckum: Oh and on the street. It's like we had 20 houses in a block, we
would have at least 3 to 2, you know. There would be two families that were
Black and three families that were White.
00:23:24.000 --> 00:23:29.000
Beckum: So we grew up in a very intermixed neighborhood. And when we lived
in Homewood, it was the same.
00:23:29.000 --> 00:23:55.000
Beckum: In fact, even more White. Because I grew up in a school, high
school area and junior high school area where there were never any more
than 2 or 3 Blacks per class. So it wasn't the--I didn't grow up in what
you would call a Black ghetto surround. We were like tolerated Blacks
because there just wasn't too many of us. Presbery: I see.
00:23:55.000 --> 00:23:59.000
Presbery: Okay then. It was your father who was the farmer, it wasn't your
grandfather? Beckum: My grandfather. Presbery: Oh, it was your grandfather?
Beckum: Yes.
00:23:59.000 --> 00:24:45.000
Beckum: My father was a trucker. When during the Depression, he used to
work in the mill because when the Depression came and things went down, he
went to the Welfare-- DPA, Department of Public Assistance and asked for
$25. And being that he was a very proud Black. And I think when you find
anyone that goes through the trouble of clinging together the family
history and whatnot, and he asked for $25 to buy a second hand truck, and
then he went from business to business. Gas stations. Drugstores. Grocery
stores. And he told me he would take their rubbish away for a menial sum, a
small amount of money. And this is the way he raised his family and he
never went on public assistance. Even during the Depression time.
00:24:45.000 --> 00:25:05.000
Beckum: And the moment that he could pull himself together, he returned
the $25, which they thought was quite admirable because no one did that.
And through the years, he educated six children. And kept clothes on their
backs and their tummies. And we were very proud of you. Presbery: He was
quite a man. Beckum: Yes, he was.
00:25:05.000 --> 00:25:08.000
Presbery: Did your mother do any work outside the home?
00:25:08.000 --> 00:25:34.000
Beckum: Yes. When my sister, uh--well, our boys were in the service and my
sister wanted to go on to college, and mother did, uh,day work. And I
remember I used to wait for her to get off the streetcar, and I would run
with that 2 or $3 to the post office to send it down to Wilberforce
University, where my sister was waiting for her allowance to come in. So
she did day work and it was a menial bit of money that came in. I don't
think they paid more than 4 or 5 dollars a day.
00:25:34.000 --> 00:25:41.000
Presbery: Was there any other extra income coming in? Beckum: That was it.
Presbery: That was it. How many brothers and sisters do you have?
00:25:41.000 --> 00:25:48.000
Beckum: Three brothers and two sisters. Six of us, three and three.
Presbery: That's quite an even number. Beckum: Uh huh.
00:25:48.000 --> 00:25:54.000
Presbery: Um, did anyone else share your home with the immediate family?
Any other relatives or any boarders?
00:25:54.000 --> 00:27:07.000
Beckum: Well, it would always be like you're saying. It would always be
like if when my cousin got out of the service, he couldn't find work in in
Philadelphia. And actually, the sister said, you go down to your office and
he'll keep you busy because Dad had a trucking business and had nothing we
could eat. So it was always a cousin or two that was coming in to live or
stay. And then dad was the type of fellow that if anybody came through and
said they were hungry, there would be many a hobo that came through. And
when you see how times have changed and they come up from the railway
station, his garage, from the railroad tracks, they jump off the train and
his garage was like at the top of the hill. And they'd come by and say,
hey, mister, you mind if I stay here? Or could I work for a while and get
some money? I'm trying to get back home. So we always had quite a few of
interesting young men that had hitchhiked or jumped on a freight and got
this far north and couldn't make it and were just trying to get back home.
And for Thanksgiving, it would be nothing for us to have a stranger person
at the table. And I think back that now we would dare take anybody the way
Daddy did. There was nothing for a strange guy to be tucked at the foot of
somebody's bed sleeping or working on the truck for dad until they could
get enough pennies together to head back home.
00:27:07.000 --> 00:27:10.000
Presbery: How many children do you have? Beckum: I have three.
00:27:10.000 --> 00:27:11.000
Presbery: And how old are they now?
00:27:11.000 --> 00:27:22.000
Beckum: I have a 22 year-old son, a 19 year-old son, and a 17 year-old
daughter.
00:27:22.000 --> 00:27:24.000
Presbery: What has your education been like?
00:27:24.000 --> 00:28:20.000
Beckum: Well. I, of course, went to a Methodist school. I went to
Wilberforce University after high school, where I met my husband. And I was
always interested in music, that's why I'm trying to encourage you to look
up Mary Cardwell Dawson. As a young girl, I always wanted to be a concert
singer. [????], I was going to do great things. But as it is, I did have an
opportunity to sing grand opera on the Black scale. And now I--as I said, I
teach there, voice for the Pittsburgh Public School system. The center for
the Musically Talented on Saturdays. And then I have voice students here in
my home and I still work in the Opera Guild trying to encourage young
Blacks to do better music and to know that there is other things to do in
music except the rock n roll and the beat that they are [??????]. So that's
what I do.
00:28:20.000 --> 00:28:26.000
Presbery: And, um, other than your college education, did you receive any
other kind of special training?
00:28:26.000 --> 00:29:06.000
Beckum: Oh, yes. Vocally, vocally. I think I've studied with about the
best of Pittsburgh had to offer. Ralph Lawanda was my vocal coach who was,
at that time, the Pittsburgh Press music critic. And thought that I'd had
great promise. And who else? Then I came back from school and worked under
Mary Cardwell Dawson to travel with her into the different areas and would
understudy and do little upserts. And now, as I said, we--that would be
about it as far as--now I'm teaching and trying to give the art to other
Blacks.
00:29:06.000 --> 00:29:44.000
Beckum: And I'm predominantly making Black contacts, although with
Pittsburgh Public School system, I don't have a control over what children
I teach. But the children that come into the home studio are Black. And
then, of course, I am the music director at Macedonia Baptist Church, and
I'm trying to keep fine music there and not going into the gospel beat,
which I'm finding is taking over in our music medium of Black music. But
what they don't seemingly realize that you worship God in all forms and you
don't have to just enjoy one thing. In fact, you should be able to execute
all things.
00:29:44.000 --> 00:30:04.000
Beckum: It's a balancing type thing. So I enjoy my gospel, I enjoy my
spirituals and I enjoy the fine anthems. In other words, there are two
groups that I work with predominantly. Now, every year we try to bring them
together and give it fine music production of some type. Whether it be an
oratorial or a cantata.
00:30:04.000 --> 00:31:04.000
Beckum: This year we're getting ready to do, "No Greater Love." It's a
modern work and it's too good. It's to be about 80 voices. We're going to
do the first presentation in Aliquippa, PA, on Sunday. Presbery: Oh, are
you?
