The Genesis Group of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1971- )

In 1971 Ruffin Bridgeforth, Darius Gray, and Eugene Orr, all African American Mormons, met at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City to create a strategy for receiving greater support for the black members of the Latter Day Saints. In that year, there were … Read MoreThe Genesis Group of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1971- )

Martha Ann Jane Stevens Perkins Howell (1875–1954)

“Image Ownership: Pulic Domain” Martha Ann Jane Stevens Perkins Howell, born on January 20, 1875, was named for her maternal grandmother, Martha Vilate Crosby Flake, who had been a slave during the Mormon migration to the West. Martha Howell’s maternal grandfather was Green Flake, also … Read MoreMartha Ann Jane Stevens Perkins Howell (1875–1954)

Trinity African Methodist Episcopal Church (1890- )

(Photo Courtesy of Tricia Simpson) The Trinity African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church is the oldest continuously operating black church in Utah.  Trinity AME was organized in 1890 by Rev. T. Saunders when Salt Lake City was the capital of Utah Territory.  The early date of … Read MoreTrinity African Methodist Episcopal Church (1890- )

The Harlem Renaissance in the American West

In the following article historians Bruce Glasrud and Cary Wintz discuss their new book, The Harlem Renaissance in the American West which argues that the literary and artistic outpouring by African Americans during the third decade of the 20th Century was a national phenomenon which … Read MoreThe Harlem Renaissance in the American West

24th Infantry Regiment (1866-1951)

When the U.S. Army was reorganized on July 28, 1866, for peacetime service after the American Civil War, six regiments were set aside for Black enlisted men. These included four infantry regiments, numbered 38th through 41st. The 24th Infantry was organized during a reduction in … Read More24th Infantry Regiment (1866-1951)