2.5 Charles W. Florence, 10th President of Lincoln University, 1931-37.

Gaines studied History and Education at Lincoln and was frequently seen in Memorial Hall chatting with his mentors in the History Department, Drs. W. Sherman Savage and Lorenzo Greene about his future after graduation.

2.5 Missouri State Supreme Court Building, Jefferson City, Missouri

On December 12, 1936, Charles Hamilton Houston was in Jefferson City, Missouri arguing Gaines’ appeal in front of the Missouri Supreme Court. Houston added some teeth to his argument by adding that neither “the slender hope” that Gaines may someday attend a new law program at Lincoln nor the provision of tuition scholarships to attend an out-of-state law school met the US Constitution’s requirement of equal treatment regardless of race.

2.5 J. Edgar Hoover FBI Director 1935-72

Many theories, much speculation and a considerable amount of guessing can be attributed to the sudden and complete disappearance of Lloyd Gaines. Known as a loner and having a habit of taking off for days at a time, the whereabouts of Lloyd was not a concern to his family. In fact, Gaines wrote to his mother three weeks before he vanished that if she did not hear from him he would be okay. Local and federal authorities, including the FBI were not notified immediately of his disappearance. Houston and the NAACP lawyers had not been in contact with Gaines for several months.