In this silent WSB newsfilm clip from the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia from January 9, 1961, the first two African American students, Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes, arrive on campus to register for classes and are observed by reporters and white students. Crowds of white students and observers gather near the entrance to the University and watch as reporters follow Holmes and Hunter onto campus and into the Administration Building. Inside the building, a sign over a door reads "Director of Admissions," and later in the clip Hunter and Holmes enter the office. Cameramen and others crowd the hallways of the building, with some standing on ladders to see. Reporters follow Hamilton Holmes as he leaves the building and walks across campus. Charlayne Hunter, holding papers, also walks inside the building and is questioned by reporters when she leaves the building. Inside the journalism building, where Hunter met with faculty member George Abney to set up her schedule, cameras peak through a mail slot and over a door to observe the meeting. The clip shows white observers on campus and at the fast-food restaurant "The Varsity" in downtown Athens. White students are also seen in smaller groups reading or walking on campus. Vernon Jordan, part of the legal team that helped Holmes and Hunter get on campus, is also seen standing near the Arch at the University entrance. Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes first applied to the University of Georgia in July 1959. University officials claimed "lack of space" and put off admitting the two African American students for several quarters. In the fall of 1960, African American attorneys Donald Hollowell, Constance B. Motley, and Horace T. Ward filed a federal lawsuit seeking admission for the two students. Federal judge William A. Bootle on January 6, 1961 ordered the university to admit the two students, ending the university's segregation. Holmes and Hunter registered for classes January 9, and attended their first classes on campus January 11.

Title supplied by cataloger.

The Civil Rights Digital Library received support from a National Leadership Grant for Libraries awarded to the University of Georgia by the Institute of Museum and Library Services for digital conversion and description of the WSB-TV Newsfilm Collection.

1 clip (about 9 min.): black-and-white, silent ; 16 mm.

Original found in the WSB-TV newsfilm collection.

WSB-TV newsfilm clip of the arrival of Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes, the first African American students at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, 1961 January 9, WSB-TV newsfilm collection, reel 0962, 36:34/45:38, Walter J. Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection, The University of Georgia Libraries, Athens, Ga, as presented in the Digital Library of Georgia.

Forms part of: Civil Rights Digital Library.