Flossie Bailey Home

Katherine “Flossie” Bailey was born in Kokomo, Indiana in 1895 [1]. She graduated from Kokomo High School and married Dr. W. T. Bailey of Marion, [2] who was recognized as the city’s top African American physician [3]. She was also actively involved in the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Marion, and was a member of women’s organizations and the Eastern Star [4].

Flossie Bailey’s legacy was as a civil rights leader and activist in Indiana, in an era when most civic leaders were white men. She founded the Marion branch of the Indiana National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1918 [5] and served as its first president [6] Under her leadership, the Marion NAACP had 100 members by 1930 [7]. She was elected as the Indiana NAACP president in 1930 and worked to organize the Indiana NAACP’s second annual meeting [8]. Her home at 1907 South Adams Street in Marion, Indiana served as the headquarters for the Indiana NAACP [9]. African American leaders in Indiana met at her home, and visiting African Americans stayed with her while traveling because the Spencer Hotel in Marion refused to welcome African American guests [10].

Bailey was instrumental in fighting for African American civil rights in Indiana. She notably called out discriminatory practices at Indiana University’s Robert W. Long Hospital, which did not allow black patients to receive care or black medical students to train at the facility. With her husband, she sued a theater in Marion for denying her admittance based on the color of her skin. Bailey also spoke avidly against school segregation [11].

As the president of the local NAACP, Bailey was integrally involved in seeking justice for the August 7, 1930 lynching of Tom Shipp and Abe Smith in Marion [12]. Shipp, Smith and their friend James Cameron were being held in jail in Marion accused of murder and sexual assault. Before they could stand trial, a local white mob removed the men from jail. They beat, mutilated and hanged Shipp and Smith outside the courthouse. As the crowd gathered outside the Marion courthouse, Bailey called Sheriff Jacob Campbell to warn him about the mob’s intention to lynch the young prisoners. After the Sheriff failed to respond, she reached out to Governor Harry G. Leslie to ask for troops to be sent to Marion, but was again ignored. After the lynching, Bailey worked to hold the mob accountable, imploring the Indiana NAACP to investigate the lynching. Bailey presented a formal resolution to Governor Leslie on behalf of NAACP leaders from Marion and Indianapolis asking for Sheriff Campbell’s immediate resignation [13].

In working to bring the mob to justice, Bailey and her husband received multiple death threats [14]. Bailey and her husband continued to collect the names of witnesses despite threats of violence. She also testified in court about her warnings to Sheriff Campbell. The National NAACP honored Bailey’s efforts to bring the lynchers to justice with the Madam C.J. Walker Medal [15]. Within months, she spearheaded anti-lynching legislation in Indiana. In 1931, when Democrats introduced an anti-lynching bill, Bailey orchestrated meetings and encouraged African Americans to reach out to their legislators [16]. Governor Leslie, despite spreading rumors about African American militancy in the aftermath of the lynching, signed the legislation into law, allowing the families of lynching victims to sue. After her success in Indiana, Bailey worked diligently to encourage national anti-lynching legislation. She penned editorials, wrote President Franklin Roosevelt, and shared educational materials [17]. Although futile in establishing a federal anti-lynching bill, her work raised national attention about the horrific realities of lynchings in both the North and South [18].

In 1952, Flossie Bailey died at the age of 55 [19]. Indiana University history professor James Madison wrote that Bailey “was a person of immense ability and dedication, a black women who showed a determination to persuade her town, state, and nation to recognize their professed ideas of equality and justice" [20].

[1] “Mrs. Flossie K. Bailey.” The Kokomo Tribune, Kokomo, Indiana, February 11, 1952, pp. 27. Newspapers.com. Accessed on February 4, 2021. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2239512/mrs-flossie-k-bailey-the-kokomo/; James M. Madison. “’What a Woman!:’ Bailey,” Traces of Indiana and Midwestern History, Winter 2000, Volume 12, Number 1, pp. 24. Indiana Historical Society. Accessed on February 4, 2021. https://images.indianahistory.org/digital/collection/p16797coll39/id/5735.
[2] “Mrs. Flossie Bailey.”
[3] James M. Madison. “’What a Woman!:’ Bailey,” pp.24.
[4] Order of the Eastern Star, 2018. Accessed on February 4, 2021. https://www.easternstar.org.
[5] “Strange Fruit: The 1930 Marion Lynching and the Woman Who Tried to Prevent It.” Indiana History Blog: Indiana Historical Bureau of the Indiana State Library. Accessed on February 4, 2021. https://blog.history.in.gov/strange-fruit-the-1930-marion-lynching-and-the-woman-who-tried-to-prevent-it/
[6] “Mrs. Flossie Bailey.”
[7] “Mrs. Katherine Bailey.” America’s Black Holocaust Museum. Accessed on February 4, 2021. https://www.abhmuseum.org/freedoms-heros-during-jim-crow-flossie-bailey-and-the-deeters/.
[8] James M. Madison. “’What a Woman!:’ Bailey,” pp.25.
[9] Ibid.
[10] “Strange Fruit.”
[11] James M. Madison. “’What a Woman!:’ Bailey,” pp. 26.
[12] “Strange Fruit.”
[13] Ibid.
[14] Ibid.
[15] Roberta Heiman and Evansville Courier & Press. “Suffragists and activists are among 10 influential women in Indiana.” South Bend Tribune, 2020. Accessed on February 5, 2021.https://www.southbendtribune.com/news/indiana/suffragists-and-activists-are-among-10-influential-women-in-indiana/article_2dd6cce8-dd4a-11ea-a27a-832ed46a55c9.html
[16] “From Strange Fruit to Seeds of Change?: The Aftermath of the Marion Lynching.” Indiana History Blog: Indiana Historical Bureau of the Indiana State Library. Accessed on February 4, 2021. https://blog.history.in.gov/tag/flossie-bailey/
[17] “From Strange Fruit to Seeds of Change?”
[18] James M. Madison. “’What a Woman!:’ Bailey,” pp. 25.
[19] “Mrs. Flossie Bailey.”
[20] James M. Madison. “’What a Woman!:’ Bailey,” pp.23.

Student Author: Emma Cieslik
Faculty/Staff Editors: Dr. Ronald V. Morris, Dr. Kevin C. Nolan, and Christine Thompson
Graduate Assistant Researchers: Carrie Vachon and JB Bilbrey

PHOTO & VIDEO:
Courtesy Marion Public Library https://www.chronicle-tribune.com/news/womens-history-flossie-bailey-created-lasting-change-in-indiana/article_bba4818b-7a2f-5a18-acea-91452c97bb3e.html/?sdfkljwelkj23lkjgd