Video: 'Oct. 1, 1962 - James Meredith Enrolls at the University of Mississippi'

(Monday, October 1, 1962, 8:15-9:10 a.m. EDT; just after the Ole Miss riot of 1962, part of the American Civil Rights Movement) — Escorted by U.S. Marshals, James Meredith, the first Black student to enroll at the all-white University of Mississippi, registered for classes this morning as federal troops, and federalized units of the Mississippi National Guard quelled a 15-hour riot.

The campus in Oxford was littered with the debris of a major riot that took two lives and injured at least 75 persons, tearing down the barriers of segregation at the 114-year-old school.

Meredith’s first class was in Colonial History, and only 12 of the 19 students registered attended.

Video: 'video Ole Miss Campus Riots'

Many students harassed Meredith during his two semesters on campus, but others accepted him.

According to first-person accounts, students living in Meredith’s dorm bounced basketballs on the floor just above his room through all hours of the night.

Other students ostracized him: when Meredith walked into the cafeteria for meals, the students eating would turn their backs. If Meredith sat at a table with other students, all of whom were white, the students would immediately get up and go to another table.

He persisted through harassment and extreme isolation to graduate on August 18, 1963, with a degree in political science.