Black History

From Nashville's earliest days as a pioneer town in Middle Tennessee, it would be nothing without its African American community.

Like many cities of the Antebellum South, Nashville was built by enslaved people, as African Americans built the first successful water system, maintained the streets, cultivated crops, and bred livestock. For years, Nashville was considered one of the wealthiest Southern cities, but after the Civil War, it struggled to regain that status while its newly freed Black citizens struggled to survive the South's Reconstruction and subsequent Jim Crow laws. As the Civil Rights era brought long-needed reforms, the Black community of Nashville has persevered through their determination, spiritual strength, and the unique leadership fostered by the visionary city they call home.

A fascinating history of Suffolk's heroic African-American community. A must-have for African-American and Virginia history enthusiasts.

After the Civil War, African-Americans throughout Suffolk and Nansemond County fought against injustice by demanding equality before the law, the right to vote, and equal access to schools, employment, and professions. Because of their tolerance and sense of fortitude, they were able to own land and businesses and to establish churches, schools, and social organizations that paved the way for generations to come.

Suffolkis a result of the many contributions made by countless pioneers in education, business, religion, social organizations, and community leadership. In this volume, Suffolk native and archivist Annette Montgomery shares timeless, evocative images and passages for all to enjoy.

Filled with remarkable vintage photographs, Black America: Augusta, Georgia captures the essence of the African-American heritage in this historic Southern community.

The Garden City has produced a wide variety of intellectual and political pioneers, including a handful of educators who were instrumental in the pivotal Brown versus Board of Education case. Within the pages of this volume, their stories unfold.

Join Author and historian Herman Skip Mason Jr. in this unique look at the rich history of the African-American community of East Point, Georgia.

An industrious, spiritual, and neighborly people, the African-American community of East Point, Georgia has a rich and enduring heritage, explored in this volume of vintage photographs. Notable landmarks such as South Fulton High School, Lige Sims Funeral Home, and Union Baptist Church-all long gone but not forgotten-are seen within these pages. The pioneering leaders who have contributed to the town's growth are highlighted as well, including the civic and social organizations they formed for the betterment of the community.

But it is not only this tragedy that has given Walton County a sense of identity. Indeed, other lesser-known events and accomplishments have contributed to its history. Whether boasting Atlanta's first black millionaire, a member of the U.S. Olympic basketball team, or a high school state football championship, Walton County has thrived both in and out of the national spotlight.

Durham is a progressive New South city, one in which both the white and black populations have economically and culturally prospered over the past
century.

Durham's Hayti opens a door into the community's past that will allow you to walk down
familiar streets into a time that may seem distant, but is not that far removed, and to experience the full life of Hayti, from its churches and schools to its businesses and recreational pursuits.

Known as the birthplace of black capitalism, Richmond had one of the largest black business districts in America at the turn of the 20th century.

Richmond, Virginia boasts a proud legacy of achievement among its African-American residents. Medical pioneers, civil rights activists, education leaders, and enterprising bankers are listed among the city's African-American sons and daughters. As individuals these men and women made their mark not only on Richmond's, but also the nation's, history. As a community, they have endured centuries of change and worked together for the common good. In their determined faces and in unforgettable scenes of the past, we celebrate and pay tribute to their history.

Join author and educator Evelyn Scales Thompson, Ph.D. as she recounts the rich history of the black communities in and around Surry County, North Carolina

From slavery in the 1800s to freedom in the 1950s, Black America Series: Around Surry County traces the footsteps of African Americans through their transition from house servants and field hands to landowners, farmers, and successful small business proprietors. This detailed pictorial history celebrates and honors the strong faith, courage, and determination of the Surry County area's black community.

The Baltimore African-American community, with its well-known personalities and cultural contributions have made the town what it is today.

Throughout the years, the city of Baltimore has played host to many well-known figures, including Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and boxer Joe Louis; the city has been called home by Billie Holiday, Frederick Douglass, and Thurgood Marshall. But it is the local African-American community's members, working diligently to advance and empower themselves, who made history while they lived it.

Join authors Vermelle Diamond Ely, Grace Hoey Drain, and Amy Rogers as they celebrate the rich history of the black community in Charlotte, North Carolina.

As in many cities in the early 20th-century South, the African-American citizens of Charlotte created their own society that mirrored the larger white community. Yet, black Charlotte was always self-sustaining, with its own schools, library, and businesses. Second Ward High School (1923-1969) was the area's first high school for blacks, and although the school and much of its surroundings have since been razed, the photo archive at the Second Ward Alumni House Museum helps keep alive the memories of the school and the entire black community.

Join author Fred Whitted as he recounts the unique history in this visual record of the black community in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

A city known historically for its ethnic diversity, Fayetteville has truly served as a leader and model in the state by providing opportunity to the African-American community. During the South's antebellum era, freedmen and local slaves established a strong black identity in the city, one that would grow cosmopolitan and evolve over the decades, surviving wars, depressions, and social inequalities. This work, with over 200 images, relates the black contribution to the city, featuring its earliest civic leaders, some of its older schools, such as Fayetteville State University, and a few of its outstanding citizens.

See how the African-American community has played a vital role in the development and success of Vance County, North Carolina.

The African-American community has been an integral part of Vance County's history over the years. From antebellum times, to Reconstruction, to the Civil Rights era, to the present, this community has been through it all. Making a difference in all walks of life--educational, spiritual, commercial, and civic--the black citizens of this historic Tar Heel county share an impressive story, one marked by a determination and undeniable will to succeed through economic hardships and social challenges.

A fascinating look at Ann Arbor's heroic African-American communitiy's journey and progress. A must-have for African-American and Michigan history enthusiasts.

The black community in the Ann Arbor area includes Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, Second Baptist Church, Brown Chapel, theAnn Arbor Community Center, the old Jones School, and other well-remembered places.

The photographs representing this history follow the progress of the African American community from 1857, when the Rev. J. M. Gregory gathered together a small congregation at 504 High Street, to 1996, when Dr. Homer Neal assumed leadership of the University of Michigan as its interim president. This integral but little-known part of Ann Arbor area history is preserved in Another Ann Arbor.

Lexington's African-American community has survived and flourished despite obstacles that may have proven insurmountable to some.

Enriched by diversity and filled with fortitude, the Black community of Lexington has made their mark on history as well as the Bluegrass State's heritage. In Black America: Lexington, vintage images from archives and personal collections showcase the people, places, and events at the very heart and soul of the Black communities over the generations. Rare photos of civil rights demonstrations in the downtown area highlight Lexington's contributions to the local movement and to our nation's continued search for equality.

Whether assisting escapes through the Underground Railroad, forming banks, publishing a newspaper, or providing recreational facilities, Portsmouth's African Americans created one of the most stable middle-class black communities in America.

African Americans in Portsmouth built a strong, insulated community because they were cognizant of the need to look inward. Early 20th-century leaders such as Dr. William Reid, Nancy T. Wheeler, and the Reverend Harvey N. Johnson Sr. were civic models and guiding forces for a community emerging from the ravages of slavery, and enduring the hardships of segregation.

Black America: Portsmouth, Virginia captures the world of an ever-changing community and a people who persevered, no matter the odds.

Fascinating images of Cincinnati's African-American heritage.

Located on the banks of the Ohio River, Cincinnati was incorporated as a town in 1802. It became a major stop on the Underground Railroad and the gateway to the North for thousands of African Americans during the Great Migration after the Civil War. Cincinnati's African-American heritage is revealed here through images of African-American life in the community, churches, education, politics, entrepreneurship, civil rights, community benevolence and sports.