The following are short descriptions of the places which have contributed to the shaping of African American history. These encyclopedia entries serve as a starting point for much more inclusive descriptions and discussions that appear in other sources. For additional information please consult the print or website sources cited in the entry.
The Vineyard of Château Hough was founded by Mansfield Frazier in 2010 in Hough, a working-class neighborhood in Cleveland, Ohio. This vineyard at the intersection of 66th Street and Hough Avenue, is among the first in America to build upon repurposed land. It is also unique as it … Read MoreChâteau Hough (2010- )
Asbury Park, New Jersey’s West Side district—predominantly black and housing 40% of the town’s permanent population—was consumed by rioting from July 4 to July 10 in 1970. At the time of the riot, 30% of the population, 17,000 people approximately, were African American. The town’s huge tourist-resort industry … Read MoreAsbury Park Race Riot (1970)
The city of Camden, New Jersey was the setting for two deadly race-related riots on September 2nd, 1969, and August 20th, 1971. Both riots were in response to alleged police brutality or murder, the victims being an unidentified young black girl, who was beaten by a white police officer in … Read MoreCamden, New Jersey Riots (1969 and 1971)
The Carolyn Downs Family Medical Center is a government funded medical clinic that provides primary care services located in the heart of the Central District of Seattle, Washington. It was founded by Leon “Valentine” Hobbs in 1968 and further developed through Seattle Black Panther Party community services program. The Party saw … Read MoreCarolyn Downs Family Medical Center (1968- )
Map of New Orleans at the Time of the Founding of the Institute Catholique Image Ownership: Public domain The Institute Catholique, or the Catholic School for Indigent Orphans, was opened in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1848, and aimed to offer a free educationto all African American orphans in the city … Read MoreInstitute Catholique, The (1848-1915)
Mound Bayou Library, 1910 Image Ownership: Public domain Constructed in 1910 with a grant from Andrew Carnegie’s library development program, the Carnegie Library of Mound Bayou, Mississippi was the first free public library intended for African Americans in the state of Mississippi and one of the first African … Read MoreCarnegie Library, Mound Bayou, Mississippi (1910-1935)
Image Courtesy of Matthew Griffis The East Henry Street Carnegie Library is a branch of the Live Oak Public Libraries in Savannah, Georgia. It originally opened in 1914 as the Colored Carnegie Library, one of twelve segregated public libraries in the south funded by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and … Read MoreEast Henry Street Carnegie Library, Savannah, Georgia (1914- )
Atlanta Auburn Branch Library, 1921 Image Ownership: Public domain The Auburn Branch Library was a segregated branch of the Carnegie Library of Atlanta, Georgia (now the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System). Opened in 1921, it was the first free public library in Atlanta for African Americans and one of twelve … Read MoreAuburn Branch Library, Atlanta, Georgia (1921-1959)
Founded and constructed in 1867 in Harford County, Maryland, the McComas Institute, also known as Mountain School, was built two years following the establishment of the U.S. Freedmen’s Bureau which provided aid to former enslaved blacks and poor whites in the South in the wake of the U.S. Civil … Read MoreMcComas Institute (1867)
The Eastern Colored Branch was a segregated public library located at 600 Lampton Street in Louisville, Kentucky. Opened in 1914, it was the second of the city’s “colored” libraries and served Louisville’s east end. The Western Colored Branch, which opened in 1905, was the first free public library in the United … Read MoreEastern Colored Branch Library, Louisville, Kentucky (1914-1975)