A Guide to the Jaybird Association Papers, 1887-1922

Biographical Note

The first Jaybird Association was a whites-only political organization formed in Fort Bend County in 1887 by Democrats desiring to both end Reconstruction and disenfranchise African Americans in the county. The Jaybird-Woodpecker War in Fort Bend resulted in the Jaybirds taking control of the local government after a battle with the black-supported Woodpeckers in 1889. The organization spread to other counties in the state and remained active until the Civil Rights Movement.

Source:

Yelderman, Pauline. "Jaybird-Woodpecker War." Handbook of Texas Online. Accessed June 28, 2011.

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Scope and Contents

Containing legal documents and correspondence, the Jaybird Association Papers, 1887-1922, document the history of the political organization. The legal records consist of the Constitution and By-Laws of the Jay Bird Democratic Association of Texas, 1889; the constitutions of the Tax Payers’ Union, 1906 and 1919; and the Constitution and By-Laws of the White Mans’ Union Association of Wharton County. Correspondence revolves around C. H. Chernosky, a lawyer and judge in Rosenberg who acquired the constitutions for Charles Ramsdell, a professor at the University of Texas.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research use.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Jaybird Association Papers, 1887-1922, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

Processing Information

Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s History Revealed: Bringing Collections to Light project, 2009-2011.

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Detailed Description of the Papers

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