local history
Historical Black leaders in education
One of the featured exhibits at Audie Murphie / American Cotton Museum in Greenville is its“ Journey Through History” outdoor installation, currently comprised of 15 6-foot by 10 1 / 2-foot stone slabs. Each of the displays features essays on its front and back about various aspects of Hunt County history.
One of the plaques contains biographies on three Black men who were leaders in education in Hunt County, starting in the 1960s after desegregation: Dr. David Talbot, Ivory Moore and Charles Faulkner.
David Arlington Talbot
David Talbot was born in Guyana( then British Guiana) on Jan. 25, 1916. He died on March 9, 2003. Talbot arrived at what was then East Texas State University( now East Texas A & M University) in 1968, just a short time after the school’ s desegregation in 1964, as the first Black faculty member.
Talbot came to the United States in the 1930s, where he received his undergraduate degree from Morris Brown College in 1939. Talbot also spoke seven languages and served as an interpreter under General George Patton in World War II. He later continued his studies at Columbia University and the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, where he received his master’ s degree in 1951 and doctorate in 1966.
Dr. Talbot served at East Texas State as professor of counseling and guidance. He also worked in the university’ s center for counseling and student development services. He organized and established a multicultural teacher training institute as well as an intercultural living experience on the university campus.
Many luminaries in the university community, as well as family and friends, spoke of Talbot’ s caring and understanding nature and how he strove to educate the youth of America. In 2017, the Hall of Languages at ET was rededicated as the David Talbot Hall of Languages in his honor.
24 GREENVILLE LIFE