Alone Atop the Hill : The Autobiography of Alice Dunnigan, Pioneer of the National Black Press

**The memoir of "the first African American female reporter to gain entry into the closed society of the White House and congressional news correspondents" (Hank Klibanoff, coauthor of the Pulitzer Prize-winning __The Race Beat__).** In 1942 Alice Allison Dunnigan, a sharecropper's daughter from Kentucky, made her way to the nation's capital and a career in journalism that eventually led her to the White House. With __Alone Atop the Hill__, Carol McCabe Booker has condensed Dunnigan's 1974 self-published autobiography to appeal to a general audience and has added scholarly annotations that provide historical context. Dunnigan's dynamic story reveals her importance to the fields of journalism, women's history, and the civil rights movement and creates a compelling portrait of a groundbreaking American. Dunnigan recounts her formative years in rural Kentucky as she struggled for a living, telling bluntly and simply what life was like in a Border State in the first half of the twentieth century. Later she takes readers to Washington, D.C., where we see her rise from a typist during World War II to a reporter. Ultimately she would become the first black female reporter accredited to the White House; authorized to travel with a U.S. president; credentialed by the House and Senate Press Galleries; accredited to the Department of State and the Supreme Court; voted into the White House Newswomen's Association and the Women's National Press Club; and recognized as a Washington sports reporter. In __Alone Atop the Hill__, "Dunnigan's indelible self-portrait affirms that while the media landscape has changed, along with some social attitudes and practices, discrimination is far from vanquished, and we still need dedicated and brave journalists to serve as clarion investigators, witnesses, and voices of conscience (__Booklist__, starred review). In 1942 Alice Allison Dunnigan, a sharecroppers daughter from Kentucky, made her way to the nations capital and a career in journalism that eventually led her to the White House. With Alone atop the Hill , Carol McCabe Booker has condensed Dunnigans 1974 self-published autobiography to appeal to a general audience and has added scholarly annotations that provide historical context. Dunnigans dynamic story reveals her importance to the fields of journalism, womens history, and the civil rights movement and creates a compelling portrait of a groundbreaking American. Dunnigan recounts her formative years in rural Kentucky as she struggled for a living, telling bluntly and simply what life was like in a Border State in the first half of the twentieth century. Later she takes readers to Washington, D.C., where we see her rise from a typist during World War II to a reporter. Ultimately she would become the first black female reporter accredited to the White House; authorized to travel with a U.S. president; credentialed by the House and Senate Press Galleries; accredited to the Department of State and the Supreme Court; voted into the White House Newswomens Association and the Womens National Press Club; and recognized as a Washington sports reporter. A contemporary of Helen Thomas and a forerunner of Ethel Payne, Dunnigan traveled with President Truman on his coast-to-coast, whistle-stop tour; was the first reporter to query President Eisenhower about civil rights; and provided front-page coverage for more than one hundred black newspapers of virtually every race issue before the Congress, the federal courts, and the presidential administration. Here she provides an uninhibited, unembellished, and unvarnished look at the terrain, the players, and the politics in a roughand- tumble national capital struggling to make its way through a nascent, postwar racial revolution. In 1942 Alice Allison Dunnigan, a sharecropper's daughter from Kentucky, made her way to the nation's capitol and a career in journalism that eventually led her to the White House. WithAlone atop the Hill, Carol McCabe Booker has condensed Dunnigan's 1974 self-published autobiography to appeal to a general audience and has added scholarly annotations that provide historical context. Dunnigan's dynamic story reveals her importance to the fields of journalism, women's history, and the civil rights movement and creates a compelling portrait of a groundbreaking American. Dunnigan recounts her formative years in rural Kentucky as she struggled for a living, telling bluntly and simply what life was like in a Border State in the first half of the twentieth century. Later she takes readers to Washington, D.C., where we see her rise from a typist during World War II to a reporter. Ultimately she would become the first black female reporter accredited to the White House; to travel with a U.S. president; credentialed by the House and Senate Press Galleries; accredited to the Department of State and the Supreme Court; voted into the White House Newswomen's Association and the Women's National Press Club; and recognized as a Washington sports reporter. A contemporary of Helen Thomas and a forerunner of Ethel Payne, Dunnigan traveled with President Truman on his coast-to-coast, whistle-stop tour; was the first reporter to query President Eisenhower about civil rights; and provided front-page coverage for more than one hundred black newspapers of virtually every race issue before the Congress, the federal courts, and the presidential administration. Here she provides an uninhibited, unembellished, and unvarnished look at the terrain, the players, and the politics in a roughand- tumble national capital struggling to make its way through a nascent, postwar racial revolution Alice Dunnigan (1906-1983) Was The First African American Woman To Break The Color And Gender Barriers Of National Journalism. During Her Time As A Journalist, She Reported For The Louisville Defender And Chicago Defender, And Was A Member Of The Negro Associated Press. Dunnigan Has Been Inducted Into The Kentucky Hall Of Fame For Journalism (1982) And For Human Rights (2010), And In 2013 Was Inducted Into The National Association Of Black Journalists Hall Of Fame. [her] Original Autobiography Was Self-published And Quite Long, Thus Failing To Gain The Wide Readership It Might Have; Booker Aims To Make Dunnigan's Story Available Once More And ... Readable For A General Audience-- Those Early Years. No Greater Thrill -- The Family Tree And Its Bittersweet Fruit -- Alone Atop A Hill -- School Days -- Where There's A Will -- The Job Hunt -- The Ups And Downs Of My First Job -- A Plunge Into The Sea Of Matrimony -- A Rugged Voyage Ends -- Moving On -- Wading Through The Depression -- Seeking Identity, Experience, And Recognition -- A Great New World. Converging On Washington -- Breaking Down Race And Gender Barriers -- A Trip With The President -- The Civil Rights Fights Of The Forties -- Profiles Of Injustice -- The President Proposes; The Congress Debates -- Almost Pushing The Panic Button -- Freedom Fights Of The Fifties -- Eisenhower's Pique. Edited By Carol Mccabe Booker With A Foreword By Simeon Booker. Revision Of The Author's A Black Woman's Experience : From School House To White House (1974). Includes Bibliographical References And Index. "Booker proposes the republication of Alice Allison Dunnigan's original, unedited autobiography A Black Woman's Experience: From School House to White House (unavailable except as a collector's item). Alice Dunnigan (1906-1983) was the first African American woman to break the color and gender barriers of national journalism. During her time as a journalist, she reported for the Louisville Defender and Chicago Defender, and was a member of the Negro Associated Press. Dunnigan has been inducted into the Kentucky Hall of Fame for Journalism (1982) and for Human Rights (2010), and in 2013 was inducted into the National Association of Black Journalists Hall of Fame. The original autobiography was self-published and quite long, thus failing to gain the wide readership it might have; Booker aims to make Dunnigan's story available once more and highly readable for a general audience. She has edited from its original 673 pages into a flowing, compelling narrative of approximately 234 pages (71,000 words)"-- Provided by publisher In 1942 Alice Allison Dunnigan, a sharecropper’s daughter from Kentucky, made her way to the nation’s capitol and a career in journalism that eventually led her to the White House. With Alone atop the Hill, Carol McCabe Booker has condensed Dunnigan’s 1974 self-published autobiography to appeal to a general audience and has added scholarly annotations that provide historical context.