Florida Memory • Letter from Sheriff Malcolm E. Beard to Governor Claude Kirk Regarding Tampa Riots, 1967

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Letter from Sheriff Malcolm E. Beard to Governor Claude Kirk Regarding Tampa Riots, 1967

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Letter from Sheriff Malcolm E. Beard to Governor Claude Kirk Regarding Tampa Riots, 1967

Download Citation

Source

State Archives of Florida, Series s923

Description

A letter from Hillsborough County Sheriff Malcom E. Beard to Governor Claude Kirk, also addressed to the attention of Dick Warner, regarding the Tampa riots of June 1967. Beard references a telephone conversation with Warner on August 1, 1967, and then provides a list of civil rights organizations, local agitators, and vehicles under investigation in the area. The letter also includes a summary of arrests made during the riots.

Date

1967-08-02

Creator

Beard, Malcolm E. (Malcolm Elmore), 1919-

Format

Letters (correspondence)

General Note

The Tampa riots took place in June 1967 following the police shooting of Martin Chambers, a 19-year-old Black man, by a white police officer named James Calvert.

Title

Letter from Sheriff Malcolm E. Beard to Governor Claude Kirk Regarding Tampa Riots, 1967

Subject

African American civil rights workers

Black Muslims

Police shootings

Riots

Riot control

Description

Creator

Beard, Malcolm E. (Malcolm Elmore), 1919-

Source

State Archives of Florida, Series s923

Date

1967-08-02

Format

letters (correspondence)

Language

eng-US

Type

text

Identifier

s923_b102_f10_x02

Coverage

Postwar Florida (1945-1968)

Geographic Term

Tallahassee (Fla.)

Leon County (Fla.)

Tampa (Fla.)

Hillsborough County (Fla.)

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/FMP/selected_documents/thumbnails/s923_b102_f10_x02.jpg

ImageID

s923_b102_f10_x02_001

s923_b102_f10_x02_002

s923_b102_f10_x02_003

topic

Civil Rights and Freedoms

Subject - Corporate

Florida. Governor (1967-1971 : Kirk)

Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office (Fla)

Tampa Police Department (Fla.)

Congress of Racial Equality

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (U.S.)

Subject - Person

Warner, Richard

Kirk, Claude R. (Claude Roy), Jr., 1926-2011

Gilder, Robert L, 1930-2003

Yeshitela, Omali, 1941-

X, Hasty

Reed, Anthony

Thomas, Eddie

Taylor, Jerald

Nelson, Jimmy

Johnson, Bobby

Turner, Charlie

Johnson, Paul

Agnew, Eugene

Billups, Marion W.

Billups, Allen J.

Napper, Louis

General Note

The Tampa riots took place in June 1967 following the police shooting of Martin Chambers, a 19-year-old Black man, by a white police officer named James Calvert.

Chicago Manual of Style

Beard, Malcolm E. (Malcolm Elmore), 1919-. Letter from Sheriff Malcolm E. Beard to Governor Claude Kirk Regarding Tampa Riots, 1967. 1967-08-02. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. <https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/351442>, accessed 16 February 2026.

MLA

Beard, Malcolm E. (Malcolm Elmore), 1919-. Letter from Sheriff Malcolm E. Beard to Governor Claude Kirk Regarding Tampa Riots, 1967. 1967-08-02. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.<https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/351442>

AP Style Photo Citation

(State Archives of Florida/Beard)

Florida Memory is a digital outreach program providing free online access to select archival records from collections housed in the State Library and Archives of Florida. Florida Memory digitizes materials that illuminate the state's history and culture.

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Florida Memory is funded under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Florida's LSTA program is administered by the Department of State's Division of Library and Information Services.

For FY2025-26, the percentage of total costs for the Florida Memory program financed with federal money is 66%; the federal dollar amount to be spent on the program is $1,027,650. This program does not receive any non-governmental funding.

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Letter from Sheriff Malcolm E. Beard to Governor Claude Kirk Regarding Tampa Riots, 1967

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