Large 4to (203 x 273 mm). Original red cloth with black titles (significant wear throughout including some separation to internal and external binding, dampstaining and some creasing/tearing to pages, and scuffing to covers).

Gilbert compiled and published the directory and was also the editor of Applause magazine. The Directory features an illustrated guide of the city and highlights Dallas’s first black police officers, postal carriers, and others. A section of Dallas attorneys includes William J. Durham (1896-1970), a prominent leader in the civil rights movement who would try Sweatt v. Painter (1950) forcing the integration of the University of Texas School of Law. Illustrated throughout with advertisements of black-owned businesses as well as national brands including Budweiser and Borden's. The State Fair of Texas even advertises “Two Big Negro Achievement Days” and the white Texas League Dallas Rebels baseball team thank their “loyal Colored Fans who deserve the Best in Sports entertainment.”