Archival Services

Thelma Furry Papers

Reference Code:

Repository: University of Akron Archival Services

Title: THE THELMA C. FURRY PAPERS

Dates: 1935- 1980

Extent: 4 cubic feet

Creator: Thelma C. Furry

Language: English

Access: Collection is open for research.

Finding Aid prepared by:

Processed by: Terry S.Latour and Hampton Smith

Date: June 26, 1981

Revised by: Richard Wisneski, July 25, 2007

Related Material:

Biographical Note:

Thelma C.Furry was born on January 22, 1910 in Louisville, Kentucky, the first child of Fred and Irene Seibert. In 1917 Mr.Seibert, an unemployed carpenter and contractor, moved to Akron to seek employment in the rubber industry. He began work at B.F.Goodrich Co. but disliked the working conditions there. Fred Seibert was a strong believer in Christian Science, and that denomination's emphasis on human equality and was also a confirmed Socialist and supporter of Eugene V.Debs. These convictions led him to become active in organizing a union among Akron's rubber workers. As a result of these activities, Fred Seibert was blacklisted and compelled to go into business for himself. He remained politically active however, being a charter member of the local Communist Party chapter in 1920 and continuously involved in the labor movement throughout the 1920's and 1930's.

Thelma Furry was strongly influenced by her father's beliefs and the struggles of Akron's labor movement in the 1930's. It was during these years that she began accompanying her father to meetings and to court. Thelma testified as a defense witness in a particular case defended by a woman lawyer from Cleveland, Yetta Land. The two women eventually became good friends and Ms. Land encouraged Thelma in her decision to become a lawyer.

Thelma's road to a law career was not a easy one, however. In 1927 at age 16, she dropped out of high school in order to marry Tom Osborn. At the end of that year her daughter, Jacqueline, was born. Unfortunately, the marriage was unsuccessful and Tom and Thelma were divorced in 1929. She began working in a local match factory to support herself and her child. In 1932 Thelma married James Furry, a machinist at the match factory, and soon afterwards she began going back to school. In 1934 she graduated from Kenmore High School and went on to the University of Akron eventually entering the Akron School of Law in 1936.

While in college, Thelma Furry remained politically active, joining the Communist Party in 1935 and working in support of the rubber workers strike the following year. This period was the "golden era" of the party in Akron and throughout the nation. The depression and its consequences, unemployment and disillusionment, drove many working people to seek the Communist Party as an alternative to the traditional political organization which had failed them. Among the more important party organizers during the 30's was Jim Keller. Keller came to Akron around 1934 and stayed on through the height of the rubber workers strike. During that time he and his wife, Evelyn, became close friends with Thelma Furry. Through the years Thelma sought Jim Keller's advice on political as well as personal problems. Their correspondence often reflected a deep mutual respect which allowed a frank and thorough exchange of ideas.

In 1938 she began to supplement her income by working as an instructor in a W.P.A. program. The following year her private life reached a turning point when Thelma divorced her second husband, Jim Furry. She was still a law student, on her own, with a child to care for, yet she managed to complete her degree in 1940.

During the 1940's and 1950's, Thelma Furry faced harassment on account of her beliefs. In 1941 she had a great deal of difficulty getting permission from the dean of the Law School to take the Bar exam. In 1942 she was dismissed from her W.P.A. job because of her membership in the Communist Party. Likewise, she lost a position on the night shift at Goodyear Aircraft for her efforts to organize her fellow employees.

Despite these difficulties, Mrs. Furry gained a reputation in her law practice as a defender of unpopular people and causes. She helped blacks with civil rights suits, defended communists against state prosecution and in the early 50's, stood against McCarthyism. In October of 1953 she and a number of other area activists were called before the Ohio Unamerican Activities Committee. Thelma Furry and the others refused to answer questions from the committee citing their constitutional rights against self-incrimination. A contempt case (Ohio vs Arnold, et al.) soon followed in which Mrs. Furry played a leading part, as both defendant and defense attorney. This case eventually came before the United States Supreme Court which ruled that the Ohio Un-American Activities Committee had no legal basis to conduct its hearings. This decision had important consequences for similar cases in Ohio and elsewhere.

These years also saw important changes in Mrs. Furry's political activities. Disenchanted with the leadership of the Communist Party, she resigned from the organization in 1950. Her basic ideals, however, remained unchanged and throughout the 60's and 70's she continued to represent the underdog. Among her more noteworthy cases are: Townend vs. Townend, a child custody case focusing on the suitability of Lesbian mothers; Ohio vs. Weissenberger, the defense of a student involved in the Kent State disturbances; and Waitzkin, et al. vs. Nixon, et al., the taxpayers' suit to stop the war in Vietnam.

Mrs. Furry remains an active attorney in the 1980's. She still relishes the chance to defend those who have been the target of discrimination or who have suffered as a result of a breach of their civil rights.

Scope and Content:

The Thelma C.Furry Papers were donated to the University of Akron in 1980 by Mrs. Furry. This collection consists of correspondence, legal documents, newspaper clippings, a scrapbook, publications and taped interviews relating to Mrs. Furry's career as an attorney as well as her private life. These papers provide a valuable insight into political attitudes in postwar Akron and the struggle for civil rights in Ohio.

Literary rights to unpublished material of Mrs. Furry's creation included in this collection have been dedicated to the public. Users of these papers may not publish information from this collection which might embarrass, damage, or harass living persons or ongoing institutions without their permission.

The Thelma C.Furry papers (1935-1972) consist primarily of material relating to her notable legal cases in support of civil liberties. The collection includes legal briefs, documents, statements, notes, correspondence and newspaper clippings from selected court cases, plus a variety of other materials which document important events in Mrs. Furry's life.

This collection would be of interest for those researching the patterns of change that have taken place in the Akron area in respect to civil liberties. It contains materials pertaining to discrimination against blacks, lower income whites, members of the Communist party and others who had beliefs or philosophies that differed from those of the accepted majority of the population. The correspondence and legal case files give insight into the practices and methods of discrimination that took place over a forty year period of recent history. In particular, these records document some of the abuses which occurred during the McCarthy era and are especially significant, since they represent the perspective of those who were victimized.

Arrangement:

The material is divided into seven groups or series. Series I is made up of correspondence, records, and publications relating to Mrs. Furry's private life and activities separate from particular cases she handled. Material within each folder is arranged chronologically. Of significant interest in this series are: the copy of the F.B.I. file on Mrs. Furry, obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, and correspondence with Jim Keller, which contains valuable insight into Mrs. Furry's personal views as well as the inner workings of the Communist Party of Ohio.

Series II deals with cases tried from 1941 to 1955, excluding only those cases concerning the Ohio Unamerican Activities Committee, which are in a separate group. Virtually all of these cases deal with civil liberties, and the following are of special interest: Ohio vs. Thomas, involves a young black man accused of robbery, this case illustrates vividly how the criminal justice system worked (or failed to work) for minorities in the 1940's; Nash et al vs. Katsias and Stansit, consists of a series of suits by Akron blacks against the owners of a diner in which blacks were refused service; and Ohio vs. Hashmall, a case which brought Mrs. Furry some recognition, the judge, Wannamaker, was a blatantly prejudice toward both Mrs. Furry and her client because of their political views. In the appeal of this case, the Ohio Supreme Court reduced Judge Wannamaker's sentence and reprimanded him for his conduct during the trial.

Series III comprises cases stemming from the Ohio Unamerican Activities Committee hearings. In Ohio vs. Arnold, Mrs Furry herself was among the defendants and in Ohio vs. Morgan, some of the correspondence relates to dissention within the Ohio Communist Party.

Series IV contains files of cases dating from 1968 to 1976. Among the more important of these are: Ohio vs. Weissenberger, in which the defendant was a student arrested during the Kent State University disturbances of May 1970; Townend vs. Townend and Lewis vs. Lewis, both child custody cases which focused on the fitness of Lesbians as mothers.

Series V deals with foreign estates, most of which involve a naturalized U.S. Citizen who died leaving as heirs relatives in Eastern Europe. Folders listed as "closed" or "open" estates with little or no complication, while larger more complex estates are dealt with individually, and are arranged alphabetically.

Series VI is made up of publications included with the collection and Series VII consists of the tapes and transcripts of interviews held with Mrs. Furry in 1980 and 81. The first interview deals primarily with Mrs. Furry's background and her years as a member of the Communist Party, while the second is concerned with the McCarthy era in Akron and the Ohio Unamerican Activities Committee cases, particularly Ohio vs. Morgan. In both tapes Mrs. Furry explains her personal beliefs and philosophy.

Container List: