Governor Declares Feb. 2 Silas Herbert Hunt Day

Governor Mike Beebe, a graduate of the University of Arkansas School of Law, declared Feb. 2, 2007 Silas Herbert Hunt Day.

Silas Hunt was born March 1, 1922, in Red Bluff, Ark., and became the first African American to attend a Southern land grant university in modern times. Hunt, whose story is told in the recent Silas Hunt Documentary, was a decorated World War II veteran from Texarkana. He enrolled in the University of Arkansas School of Law on February 2, 1948 and completed one semester of classes before becoming ill and withdrawing from school. He died the next year from tuberculosis, aggravated by injuries he received during the war. Hunt's admission to the university began the process of integration at the University of Arkansas and in colleges and universities across the southern United States.

The documentary is also available to purchase for $30 from the department of media services at 479-575-5710. The documentary was a contributing factor in acquainting Governor Mike Beebe with Hunt’s history and declaring February 2 to be “Silas Herbert Hunt Day.”  Two of the law school’s faculty were interviewed about the events of 1948 and appear in the film:  Professor Robert B. Leflar and Professor Judith Kilpatrick, both of the School of Law.

Governor Beebe’s proclamation is available by pdf at www.governor.arkansas.gov.