The Purple and White

Source catalog description

This description refers to material held by Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Visual details below describe the original material.

The 1948 high school yearbook of Lorraine Hansberry and Sam Greenlee, "The Purple and White," issued by Englewood High School in Chicago and signed by both. This yearbook has a heavily embossed brown leather front and back cover which, in gold, depicts a portion of architecture of former Englewood High School. The inner front and back cover pages feature a dark reddish drawing which depicts people of all nationalities and occupations, gathered outside the same structure embossed on the front cover. The book is inscribed by dozens of classmates and staff on their corresponding picture pages or rear flyleaves. Lorraine Hansberry is pictured on page thirty-six (36) among her high school's February midyear graduates, credited as "President, Forum; Gym secretary." She wrote that her ambition was "To be a journalist." She inscribed in the book "Good luck & success, '48" with an arrow pointing to her name.

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