Frank Holloman collection
Documents related to Memphis police chief and former F.B.I. agent Frank Holloman related to the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.
More About This Collection
Creator
Holloman, Frank
Date of Original
1968-04
Subject
Murderers--Tennessee
Crime scenes--Tennessee--Shelby County
Assassination--Tennessee--Shelby County
Criminal investigation--Tennessee--Shelby County
Evidence, Criminal--Tennessee--Shelby County
Memphis (Tenn.). Police Dept.
People
Holloman, Frank
King, Martin Luther, Jr., 1929-1968--Assassination
Ray, James Earl, 1928-1998
Location
United States, Alabama, Montgomery County, 32.22026, -86.20761
United States, Alabama, Montgomery County, Montgomery, 32.36681, -86.29997
United States, Tennessee, Shelby County, Memphis, 35.14953, -90.04898
Medium
letters (correspondence)
wanted posters
Type
Text
Description
The Frank Holloman Collection consists of personal letters, photographs and official documents spanning Holloman's professional life. The collection includes material related to his service in the FBI and the Memphis Police Department, and the material gives details related to the inner workings of these law enforcement agencies. The material related to Holloman's service as Fire and Police Director in Memphis is especially significant, because his period of service was marked by important events such as the sanitation workers' strike and the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. Frank Holloman died in 1997 and is remembered as a man dedicated to law enforcement who served the citizens of Memphis during a very difficult period in its history., Frank C. Holloman was born in Itta Bena, Mississippi, and grew up in nearby Ruleville. After graduating from Ruleville High School in 1932, Holloman attended the University of Mississippi, where he earned a law degree in 1937. Later that year he joined the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a Special Agent, and he served with this organization for the next twenty five years. During his service with the FBI, Holloman acted as Special Agent in Charge at the Atlanta, Cincinnati, Jackson, Mississippi and Memphis offices and conducted security inspections of South American war production plants. Perhaps most importantly, he was the inspector in charge of Director J. Edgar Hoover's Washington office from 1949 to 1959. After retiring from the FBI in 1964, Holloman was named Director of Development for Memphis State University and then Executive Director of the Mid-South Medical Center Council. In 1968, Holloman was appointed the first Fire and Police Director of Memphis. Leaving the Memphis Police Department in October of 1970, Holloman became Coordinator of Security for the University of Missouri. He remained there in a full-time capacity until 1972 and served as part-time coordinator until 1978. Holloman returned to Memphis in 1972 to become Executive Director of Future Memphis, Inc., a position he held until his retirement in 1980.
Original Collection
Frank Holloman Collection, Memphis Public Library, Memphis, Tennessee
Contributing Institution
Memphis Public Library. Memphis and Shelby County Room
Rights
