James White was born in Elaine, Phillips County, Arkansas, in 1961.
White moved to Chicago with his family in the mid-1970s. After high school, he relocated to Texas, where he worked for Texas Instruments. In 1988 he returned to his native Elaine to start his own business. White has owned The Spot, the only Black-owned business on Main Street in Elaine, since 2013.
White cofounded the Elaine Legacy Center in 2017 and became the program director. He initiated the idea of establishing a museum as a place to preserve and share the history of Elaine residents. During construction of the Elaine Museum & Richard Wright Civil Rights Center, White donated a portion of his property to the museum.
White is a descendant of African American victims of the Elaine Massacre of 1919.
#1: Still frame from Pyror Center video interview with James White (pictured) conducted by Trent Harlan Bozeman; Fayetteville, Arkansas, 2022
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#2: Behind-the-scenes photo from Pyror Center interview with James White (left) conducted by Trent Harlan Bozeman (right); Fayetteville, Arkansas, 2022
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#3: Still frame from Pyror Center video interview with James White conducted by Trent Harlan Bozeman (pictured); Fayetteville, Arkansas, 2022
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
