Guide to the Homer H. Humphries, Jr. Papers
Collection Number: M07-4
Title: Homer H. Humphries, Jr. Papers
Dates: 1967-2008 (bulk 1967-1971)
Extent: 2.5 linear ft. (1 box)
Repository: Manuscripts and Personal Papers, Thomas
G. Carpenter Library, University of North Florida
ABSTRACT
The collection contains correspondence and subject files, and printed
materials relating primarily to the political activities of Homer
H. Humphries, Jr., and the Jacksonville-Duval County, Florida
government consolidation period of 1967-1971. On October
1, 1968, the governments of the city of Jacksonville and
Duval County merged into one unified and consolidated government.
Humphries served on the Jacksonville City Council during the transitional
consolidation years (1967 - 1971), and was a prime
participant in and witness to the many changes brought
about by Consolidation. The collection, when used in conjunction
with other sources such as the Jacksonville,
Florida, Government Consolidation Collection and the Richard
A. Martin Papers, provides insights and documentation on this pivotal
era of Jacksonville history.
LANGUAGE English.
ACQUISITION
The collection was donated to the Library by Homer H. Humphries,
Jr., in 2007.
ACCESS TO THE COLLECTION
The collection is open for research. For additional information and
to make an appointment to view the collection, contact E. Brady at
904-620-1533; email: ebrady@unf.edu
PREFERRED CITATION
Homer H. Humphries, Jr. Papers,
Thomas G. Carpenter Library, University of North Florida, Jacksonville,
Florida.
RELATED MATERIALS AT UNF LIBRARY
Crooks, James B. Jacksonville : the consolidation story, from civil rights
to the Jaguars. Gainesville : University Press of Florida, c2004.
Hancock, Robert. The history of area planning in Jacksonville, Duval
County, Florida : historical background, 1513-1810, 1811- 1899, 1900-1960
: area planning, 1961-66 : consolidation, 1967-69. [Jacksonville,
Fla.] : Jacksonville Area Planning Board, [1971]
Jacksonville, Florida, merges city and county governments. Washington,
D.C. : Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America, c1968.
Jacksonville, the inside story [videorecording] / [presented by]
Florida Community College at Jacksonville ; a Lifelong Learning production ; produced by Kathleen Clower. Jacksonville, Fla. : Florida Community
College at Jacksonville, c1988.
Martin, Richard A. A
quiet revolution : Jacksonville-Duval County consolidation and the
dynamics of urban political reform. [Jacksonville, Fla.] : White
Pub. Co., c1993.
Race relations [videorecording] / [produced by] UNF Humanities
Council ; producer, James Crooks; project director, Carolyn Williams.
Jacksonville, Fla. : University of North Florida, 1993. (Jacksonville
civic leaders discuss the racial situation in Jacksonville prior
to consolidation of the city and county government on October 1,
1968. They share their perceptions of how consolidation helped begin
the move toward racial equality in Jacksonville and discuss what
has yet to be accomplished if racial equality is to be achieved.)
Reflections & rededication [videorecording] : 25 years of consolidation
/ produced by Carolyn Broughton, Capt. Rob Sorensen [for the City
of Jacksonville]. [1993] (Marks the October 1, 1993, 25th anniversary
of consolidated city/county government in Jacksonville, Florida, by
reviewing the conditions which motivated the move to a consolidated
form of government and the numerous changes which can be attributed to consolidation.)
Towers, William Benjamin. The Duval County-Jacksonville experience
: a case study of the consolidation movement in local government.
[1947] Thesis.
Wright. L. M.
A summary of "Consolidation: Jacksonville-Duval
County, the dynamics of urban political reform" presented to
the Charlotte-Mecklenberg Charter Commission, September 9, 1969,
by L.M. Wright, Jr. [S.l. : s.n., 1969]
BIOGRAPHICAL / HISTORICAL NOTE
Homer Hudson Humphries, Jr., was born in Jacksonville, Florida on January
15, 1930, and attended local schools. After graduation from the Bolles
School, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1958 from the
University of Virginia, and a Bachelor of Laws degree from Stetson University
in 1961. His early legal work included
positions as the Assistant Duval County Solicitor (1963-1965), and Assistant
State Attorney for Duval County (1965-1967). In June 1967, he was elected
from Ward 8 to the Jacksonville City Council (prior to Consolidation),
and under the new consolidated government, won election to the City Council
from District 13. He became Council President on July 1, 1970, the third
and the last President of consolidated government's first City Council.
In 1971, he did not seek re-election to the Council, and returned to private
law practice in Jacksonville.
Humphries has been active in a number of civic, fraternal, professional,
and religious organizations. A month after
Humphries left the Council in 1971, Mayor Hans Tanzler appointed him
to the first Downtown Development Authority (DDA), and he served the next
eight years as DDA Chairman. In 1989, he was appointed to the Fourth Judicial
Nominating Commission by Florida Governor Bob Martinez, and served a four-year
term until 1992. Other civic activities included service affiliations with
the Florida League of Cities, Florida Community College, Jacksonville Chamber
of Commerce, Jacksonville Children's Museum, and St. Luke's Hospital.
His involvement with the University of North Florida deserves special
mention. In 1969, as a member of the Jacksonville City Council, he was
a strong supporter of the present suburban location for the University
versus an urban site as proposed by other Council members. He was appointed
to the first University of North Florida Foundation Board of Trustees,
and was elected Foundation Board President in 1976-77. For his extensive
service to the University, he was awarded a UNF Presidential medallion
in October 2008.
He had a long and distinguished service in the U.S. military.
In 1953, he enlisted in the United States Air Force, and entered the
Cadet Aviation Program. He served in the U.S. and overseas as a squadron
pilot until his release from active duty in 1958 to pursue his civilian
education. Subsequently, he joined the Florida Air National Guard, serving
in several capacities where he held leadership positions:
Air Operations Officer for State Headquarters (1972); Lieutenant Colonel
and Director of Operations (1976-77); Chief of Staff and promotion to
Colonel (1980); and promotion to Brigadier General in 1984. He retired
from the Guard in 1989, and was awarded the Legion of Merit medal for
his 36 years of outstanding military service.
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
The collection contains correspondence, subject files, and campaign
and printed materials relating to Humphries'
political activities, chiefly his tenure on the Jacksonville
City Council from 1967-1971. The core of the collection are newspaper
clippings pertaining to the Council's activities under the new consolidated
government.
Additional printed materials provide documentation on the site selection
of the University of North Florida in 1969.
The Humphries Papers are of interest to scholars researching
Jacksonville's consolidation period, as well as providing information
on Humphries as a key political figure during the same time period.
The collection, when used in conjunction with other sources such
as the Jacksonville,
Florida, Government Consolidation Collection and the Richard
A. Martin Papers, provides insights and documentation on a pivotal
era of Jacksonville history.
ARRANGEMENT
Chronological.
INDEX TERMS
The following terms have been used to index the description of
this collection in the Library's online catalog:
Humphries, Homer H., 1930-
Jacksonville (Fla.) -- City Council.
Metropolitan government -- Florida -- Jacksonville.
Jacksonville (Fla.) -- Politics and government.
Jacksonville (Fla.) -- History.
Duval County (Fla.) -- Politics and government.
Florida -- Politics and government -- 1951-
University of North Florida.
CONTAINER LIST
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Description |
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CAMPAIGN
MATERIALS, 1967-1970 |
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1-2 |
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Correspondence. Letters and telegrams
offering support and congratulations to Humphries on his elections
to the Jacksonville City Council and Council Presidency. May 2,
1967 - May 21, 1970.
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3 |
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Advertisements and publicity.
Jacksonville City Council Ward 8 election, May 1967.
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Campaign solicitation form letters. Jacksonville City Council Ward
8 election, May 1967. Letters dated May 1, 1967. |
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5 |
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Newsclippings. Jacksonville City Council elections, May 29, 1967
- November 8, 1967. |
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6 |
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Questionnaire. Jacksonville League of Women Voters. The
Candidates Reply, Jacksonville City Elections, 1967. |
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7 |
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Speech / radio commercial scripts (3). Jacksonville City
Council Ward 8 election, May 1967. |
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8 |
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Voting machine sample ballot (oversize). City of Jacksonville,
Florida. General Election, Tuesday, June 20, 1967. |
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SUBJECT FILES, 1967-1979 |
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9 |
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Jacksonville City Council / Jacksonville-Duval County consolidation.
Newsclippings, December 8, 1967 - February 24, 1971. |
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10 |
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Jacksonville-Duval County consolidation. Publication: A date with destiny ... Oct. 1, 1968. [Jacksonville, Fla. : City of
Jacksonville?], 1968. ([Jacksonville, Fla.] : Ambrose The Printer) |
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11 |
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University of North Florida site selection (1969). Copies of Jacksonville
City Council Resolutions 69-808-132; 69-976-231. Newsclippings, 1969. |
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12 |
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University of North Florida site selection (1969). Oral history
transcript, June 1, 1979. Humphries interviewed by Susan Whitesides. |
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PERSONAL
MATERIALS, 1967-2008 |
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13 |
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Awards and certificates.
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Certificate. "Certificate of
Nomination - County of Duval, State of Florida...Nominated Democratic
City Councilman, Ward no. 8...on June 6, 1967." |
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Certificate. "In Appreciation
to BG (Ret.) Homer H. Humphries for your outstanding support of the
1992 Jacksonville William Tell Team. October 23, 1992." |
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14 |
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Biographical materials.
Newspaper clippings, brochures, and press
releases. 1968-2008. |
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