Remembering Distinguished Jamaicans – Clinton Black

Clinton Vane De Brosse Black, 1918-1993, government archivist, historian and author is Jamaica-born and bred. He dedicated his life to serving Jamaica.

It has been said in recent times by a caller to radio talk programmes that Clinton Black was not Jamaican but was from Italy, and his book, History of Jamaica, sought to mislead Jamaicans about their history. This is a false claim.

Clinton Black was born in Kingston, Jamaica, on August 26, 1918, to Thomas Henry Black Jr and his wife, Violet Lucille Bogle, who were both Jamaicans. Their birth certificates testify to their Jamaican citizenship. Clinton Black attended Kingston College. He married Gloria Sullivan on November 23, 1940. He went to work at the Institute of Jamaica in 1945. In about 1947, he was awarded a government scholarship to study archive administration at the University of London’s School of Librarianship and Archives in the United Kingdom. On graduation, he returned to the Institute of Jamaica at the Colonial Archives section.

Black was appointed government archivist in February 1955, and it was his job to set up the National Archive. Due to his advocacy, a new building was erected in Spanish Town in 1961 to house the archives. Under his administration, Jamaica’s archive was ranked among the top 10 such institutions. He assisted in establishing archives in other Commonwealth Caribbean territories.

HISTORY OF JAMAICA

In 1952, a Kingston and St Andrew Corporation (KSAC) resolution called for the study and recording of an up-to-date and comprehensive history of Jamaica. They felt that a history from a Jamaican perspective was needed. This resolution was passed to the Ministry of Education. Clinton Black was commissioned to write this short history, which should be done in about 90, 000 words. The work was overseen by a government-appointed committee that included Elsa Goveia, historian, University College of the West Indies, and R.N. Murray, chief education officer. It targeted secondary school students. This is the History of Jamaica, which has been well used in the country, which was published in 1958. It was updated and a second edition was published in 1983. It remains a good foundation text.

Black is the author of several other books on Jamaica’s history. These include Living Names in Jamaican History, Historic Port Royal, Spanish Town – the Old Capital, and Tales of Old Jamaica. Black also wrote a column in The Gleaner “Take My Word” using a nom de plume “De B”. With all his work and writings, Clinton Black never considered himself a qualified historian.

He received several awards in his lifetime for his outstanding achievements. These included the Coronation Medal from Queen Elizabeth II in 1953; Jamaica’s Commander of the Order of Distinction in 1975; the Institute of Jamaica’s Centenary Medal in 1980; and the Royal Bank Foundation Award. He was the only West Indian, up to the 1980s, to be appointed to the International Council on Archives and as a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London.

Clinton Black demitted office as government archivist in 1987 and retired formally in 1989. He died in January 1993.

In tribute to Black on his passing, Barry Higman, professor and head of the Department of History at the UWI, Mona, spoke of his valuable work in preserving and conserving Jamaica’s history and noted that the UWI would long remember his vital work in ensuring the survival of Jamaica’s heritage for future generations. Prof Higman hoped the Jamaican public at large would recognise the importance of Black’s achievements.

We in Jamaica need to appreciate the importance of good record keeping and its value to the preservation of our past and present history for future generations. Jamaicans need to make better use of both the National Archives and the National Library for the study and analysis of the country’s history. My impression is that the resources of these intuitions are used mostly by foreign scholars. I imagine Clinton Black would have liked to see more Jamaicans using their services in telling the Jamaican story from our perspective.

Contributed by: Marcia Thomas