Interview with Lyman T. Johnson, June 13, 1979

Project: Wade Hall Papers (2009ms131): Interviews with Lyman T. Johnson

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Interview Summary

Johnson discusses higher education options for African Americans and explains the Atlanta System. He shares stories of his uncle Will's time as a professor at Morehouse College and the cultural differences on Morehouse's campus as opposed to the rest of Atlanta. Johnson shares his family history and how his grandfather was able to buy his own freedom from slavery. Johnson describes the dire poverty that his family was in following the death of his grandfather, because his grandmother was an invalid. The responsibilities fell heavily on his Uncle Will, who provided for the family. Johnson then discusses tending to the grave sites of his family and how he wants to donate his body to the University of Louisville Medical School. He touches on religion and emphasizes how he sees Heaven as a delusion meant to comfort people. Rather than leave behind a physical memorial such as a gravestone, Johnson instead wants this project to pass along his knowledge to future generations.

Interview Accession

2019oh1564_whlj0021

Interviewee Name

Lyman T. Johnson

Interviewer Name

Wade Hall

Interview Date

1979-06-13

Interview Rights

All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.

Interview Usage

Interviews may only be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.

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Interviews may only be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.

All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.

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Johnson, Lyman T. Interview by Wade Hall. 13 Jun. 1979. Lexington, KY: Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.

Johnson, L.T. (1979, June 13). Interview by W. Hall. Wade Hall Papers (2009ms131): Interviews with Lyman T. Johnson. Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries, Lexington.

Johnson, Lyman T., interview by Wade Hall. June 13, 1979, Wade Hall Papers (2009ms131): Interviews with Lyman T. Johnson, Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.





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Persistent Link for this Record: https://kentuckyoralhistory.org/ark:/16417/xt71m058c463g