This section allows us to engage with election data from both the 1951 and 1953 elections, two important polling periods that significantly expanded which identities were represented on Durham's city council. First, you will be able to compare how each candidate faired against their opponent(s) in all of the precincts that existed during these years through our reconstructed table using data published the day after the elections from The Durham Herald Sun . We have made this information user-friendly by including the election votes of our featured candidates in green. This will allow us to see how each precinct viewed these candidates representing new identities in a progressing Durham.
Scrolling down to the bottom allows the user of this digital project to engage with a visual map relating this precinct data. While having raw data is important, we believe that contextualizing this data with understanding where these precincts are in relation to the city of Durham as a whole will add an extra layer of depth and interpretation to what we analyze about the data. Which demographics are normally voting for representatives who identify with marginalized characteristics? Which precincts ensured that new identities could be elected into political positions of power? You as the viewer will be able to find information on key voting precincts while clicking on each of the precincts in our map feature. We have incorporated both of these data visualization techniques to allow us to begin to answer these fundamental questions to understanding the shifting culture of Durham in the early 1950s.
Scrolling down to the bottom allows the user of this digital project to engage with a visual map relating this precinct data. While having raw data is important, we believe that contextualizing this data with understanding where these precincts are in relation to the city of Durham as a whole will add an extra layer of depth and interpretation to what we analyze about the data. Which demographics are normally voting for representatives who identify with marginalized characteristics? Which precincts ensured that new identities could be elected into political positions of power? You as the viewer will be able to find information on key voting precincts while clicking on each of the precincts in our map feature. We have incorporated both of these data visualization techniques to allow us to begin to answer these fundamental questions to understanding the shifting culture of Durham in the early 1950s.
1951 Election
Club Boulevard | Edgemont School | Cash's Store | Pearson School | Carr Junior High School | E.K. Powe School | Holloway Street School | Lakewood School | Morehead School | Durham High School | East Durham Southside | North Durham School | East Durham Northside | West Durham Southside | Watts Street School | Northgate | Fuller School | Forest Hills | Hillside High School | Totals | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mayor | ||||||||||||||||||||
Evans | 253 | 174 | 106 | 833 | 212 | 420 | 386 | 288 | 238 | 277 | 382 | 271 | 209 | 254 | 428 | 314 | 302 | 373 | 1241 | 6961 |
Patton | 490 | 280 | 307 | 29 | 265 | 323 | 237 | 200 | 167 | 591 | 288 | 513 | 318 | 175 | 397 | 432 | 396 | 444 | 64 | 5916 |
Second Ward | ||||||||||||||||||||
Everett | 276 | 186 | 126 | 479 | 283 | 360 | 250 | 230 | 147 | 334 | 295 | 282 | 161 | 232 | 398 | 303 | 305 | 263 | 897 | 5727 |
Harris | 440 | 245 | 272 | 55 | 243 | 302 | 254 | 210 | 160 | 524 | 286 | 482 | 351 | 149 | 375 | 404 | 345 | 472 | 89 | 5658 |
At Large | ||||||||||||||||||||
Barfield | 380 | 348 | 253 | 340 | 263 | 479 | 274 | 296 | 172 | 456 | 399 | 497 | 384 | 240 | 452 | 538 | 465 | 442 | 514 | 7192 |
Fowler | 613 | 222 | 320 | 33 | 287 | 334 | 236 | 226 | 175 | 743 | 337 | 597 | 370 | 167 | 502 | 534 | 380 | 515 | 53 | 6644 |
Strawbridge | 231 | 241 | 134 | 280 | 291 | 541 | 230 | 193 | 109 | 247 | 320 | 282 | 241 | 237 | 321 | 245 | 257 | 221 | 459 | 5080 |
Taylor | 80 | 47 | 34 | 921 | 102 | 87 | 268 | 146 | 189 | 92 | 220 | 87 | 30 | 145 | 248 | 83 | 184 | 234 | 1316 | 4507 |
Trent | 539 | 234 | 261 | 130 | 325 | 302 | 225 | 304 | 198 | 627 | 260 | 476 | 277 | 245 | 512 | 482 | 336 | 552 | 240 | 6525 |
Whitefield | 325 | 176 | 166 | 24 | 151 | 285 | 185 | 158 | 91 | 338 | 198 | 323 | 225 | 151 | 323 | 290 | 210 | 246 | 34 | 3899 |
1953 Election
Club Boulevard | Edgemont School | Cash's Store | Pearson School | Carr Junior High School | E.K. Powe School | Holloway Street School | Lakewood School | Morehead School | Durham High School | East Durham Southside | North Durham School | East Durham Northside | West Durham Southside | Watts Street School | Northgate | Fuller School | Forest Hills | Hillside High School | Totals | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mayor | ||||||||||||||||||||
Evans | 360 | 150 | 159 | 573 | 139 | 314 | 221 | 168 | 172 | 380 | 295 | 314 | 244 | 192 | 355 | 331 | 281 | 444 | 883 | 5902 |
Third Ward | ||||||||||||||||||||
Harris | 140 | 23 | 40 | 775 | 94 | 67 | 218 | 161 | 154 | 141 | 273 | 96 | 38 | 131 | 279 | 103 | 145 | 263 | 1062 | 4203 |
Mangum | 274 | 277 | 188 | 3 | 91 | 316 | 147 | 100 | 78 | 336 | 219 | 316 | 392 | 96 | 268 | 294 | 209 | 279 | 12 | 3701 |
The above map details voting data for the 1951 and 1953 Durham elections by precinct. Important precincts to consider when observing the demographic shift in minority representation in the Durham political scene include those with polling locations at Pearson School, West Durham Southside, Lakewood School, Hillside High School, and Watts Street School.
The most extreme example to consider is the Pearson School precinct. Evans, Everett, and Harris each won by a landslide in their respective elections. Trent, on the other hand, had the fourth most votes out of six candidates in the At Large category. The landslide victories for Evans, Everett, and Harris in the Pearson precinct can likely be attributed to the majority presence of black residents within the district. Trent, as a wealthier white woman, might not have appealed to this demographic.
Take a look at West Durham Southside, Lakewood School, Hillside High School, and Watts Street School to observe the precinct-wide victories of our selected individuals and interpret the data for yourself.
We were able to interpret such valuable and tangible data through the following primary sources:
Precinct Data 1951: The Durham Morning Herald (Durham, NC). "Vote for Candidates." May 9, 1951.
Precinct Data 1953: The Durham Morning Herald (Durham, NC). "Precinct Tabulations in Yesterday’s Election." May 6, 1953.
Precinct Map 1959: Meyer, Sigmund. Precinct Map - City of Durham. Map. Durham, NC: Durham County Board of Elections, 1959. Box 9, Folder 2: Maps, 1953-1963 and undated. Rencher Nicholas Harris Papers, 1851-1980 and undated, bulk 1926-1965. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Durham, NC.
* While we recognize that the precincts changed between the first election result in 1951 and the publication of the precinct map in 1959, we believe that the difference is negligible when looking at trends for how different communities voted in these diverse elections.
Precinct Data 1951: The Durham Morning Herald (Durham, NC). "Vote for Candidates." May 9, 1951.
Precinct Data 1953: The Durham Morning Herald (Durham, NC). "Precinct Tabulations in Yesterday’s Election." May 6, 1953.
Precinct Map 1959: Meyer, Sigmund. Precinct Map - City of Durham. Map. Durham, NC: Durham County Board of Elections, 1959. Box 9, Folder 2: Maps, 1953-1963 and undated. Rencher Nicholas Harris Papers, 1851-1980 and undated, bulk 1926-1965. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Durham, NC.
* While we recognize that the precincts changed between the first election result in 1951 and the publication of the precinct map in 1959, we believe that the difference is negligible when looking at trends for how different communities voted in these diverse elections.