African Americans | Page 21

Patent application for Heated Dinner Transport Apparatus

Drawing to accompany application for United States Patent 3,129,317, awarded to Oscar Curtis Howard on April 14, 1964, for Heated Dinner Transport Apparatus. Oscar C. Howard papers, 1945–1990, Cafeteria and Industrial Catering Business, Manuscripts Collection, Minnesota Historical Society.

Catering menu for Oscar Howard’s Catering Service

Tri-folded catering menu used in the late 1950s by Oscar Howard’s Catering Service.

Oscar C. Howard and cafeteria employees

Twin Cities Arsenal cafeteria section head Oscar C. Howard and cafeteria employees, 1957. Industrial Relations Photographs, Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant files, box 143.E.17.2F., Manuscripts Collection, Minnesota Historical Society.

Oscar C. Howard with his first car

Oscar C. Howard with his first car, purchased in the 1940s while he was in college. It later served as the delivery vehicle for his catering business in Minneapolis. From the Oscar C. Howard papers (P1842), Manuscripts Collection, Minnesota Historical Society.

Oscar C. Howard with his first car

Oscar C. Howard with his first car, purchased in the 1940s while he was in college. It later served as the delivery vehicle for his catering business in Minneapolis. From the Oscar C. Howard papers (P1842), Manuscripts Collection, Minnesota Historical Society.

Whitesocks School

The abandoned Whitesocks School near Rochelle, Georgia, ca. 1970s. Black students were segregated from white ones in the 1920s, when Oscar Howard attended. From the Oscar C. Howard papers (P1842), Manuscripts Collection, Minnesota Historical Society.

Oscar C. Howard with pecan piesOscar C. Howard with pecan piesOscar C. Howard with pecan pies

Oscar C. Howard with pecan pies, ca. 1950s. From “Cafeteria and Industrial Catering Business” in the Oscar C. Howard papers (P1842), Manuscripts Collection, Minnesota Historical Society.

Howard, Oscar C. (1914–2003)

To sum up the broad scope of Oscar C. Howard’s life, one could say simply that he fed Minnesota— literally. The trained chef moved from managing large industrial cafeterias to owning successful catering businesses, which culminated in the development of the Meals on Wheels program. Many others were nourished in a more figurative sense through Howard’s teaching, mentorship, preaching, and philanthropy. Along the way, he broke through countless racial barriers, both official and unspoken.