Found 175 collections.

The ancestors of the Polk Family, Jim and Amey, their daughter, Judah, and her husband, Kit, along with their children, upon reaching the age of twenty-one), were emancipated in 1840. This occurred one and one-half years after the death of their master, plantation owner Thomas Smelly, in Isle of Wight County, Virginia. The newly-freed Smelly family left Virginia that same year, according to the law prohibiting freed slaves to remain in the state more than one year, and migrated to New Jersey. At some point the family changed their name from Smelly to Smiley. In New Jersey, the Smiley family met another freed family from Maryland, the Polks, and the two families intermarried. By 1993, Amey and Jim Smiley had over one hundred descendants. The Smiley-Polk family documents consist of nine holograph 19th-century documents relating to the emancipation of the ancestors of the Smiley-Polk family of New Jersey, and other items concerning the genealogy of this family. less

John Brooke Pinney was an American born Presbyterian minister, serving as a missionary in Liberia on various occasions from 1833-1878. He graduated from the University of Georgia in 1828 where he studied law. In 1832, he graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary and was ordained by the Presbytery of Philadelphia that same year. The following year, Pinney became a missionary in Africa as an agent of the American Colonization Society, which constituted him ex-officio Acting Governor of the colony of Liberia. From 1848 to approximately 1872, he was Corresponding Secretary of the New York Colonization Society. Pinney was also one of the organizers of the College of Liberia, now known as the University of Liberia. The John Brooke Pinney journals consist of two journals that Pinney maintained as a missionary for the Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church. Two separate trips to Liberia are discussed in his jounrals, one in 1868-1869, and the other in 1876-1877. The journals provide descriptions of Pinney's activities and trips to villages and churches in Liberia, people he worked with and knew, schools he visited and/or helped to establish in Liberia, other missionaries, teachers, students, and American freed slaves then living in Liberia. He also wrote about his journeys and described the production of various agricultural crops and aspects of world history. The 1876 journal contains minutes of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees of the College of Liberia (now known as the University of Liberia) which he copied, with his comments on changes at the college. In addition, written into the journals are letters that Pinney wrote for others, which he later transferred for mailing. Transcriptions of both journals are available. Biographical information about Pinney is also available. less

Robin W. Winks, a professor of history at Yale University during the major part of his research for Blacks in Canada: A History (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1971), received his doctorate from Johns Hopkins University in 1957. His career was mostly spent at Yale University, beginning as an instructor in 1957, through his appointment in 1977 as Master of Berkeley College at Yale. Additionally, Winks was a visiting professor at the University of Malaya (1962-1963)and the University of Sidney (1963), and he was a State Department lecturer in the Middle East (1966) and West Africa (1972). He conducted research in a number of areas besides race relations, including Canadian-American diplomatic and cultural relations and the role of Australia, New Zealand, and Britain in the Pacific. Among his publications are Failed Federations: Decolonization and The British Empire (1970), Myth of the American Frontier (1971), and The Relevance of Canadian History (1978). He died in 2003. This collection includes correspondence, manuscripts, and research materials related to Winks's authorship of Blacks in Canada: A History (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1971) and other articles concerning the history of Blacks in Canada. Research material consists of notes taken by Winks in the field and in archives; printed matter, consisting of articles, pamphlets, magazines, and newspaper clippings; and correspondence with reviewers. less

Charles Anthony Frye (1946-1994) was an early proponent of Black studies and taught philosophy, religion, and literature, and he was a published novelist and poet. The Charles A. Frye papers, 1964-1995, reflect the teaching and writer career of this professor of African and African American philosophy, religion, and literature. less

The Wynn family, consisting of the Reverend Robert Daniel Wynn, his wife Rosie D. Wynn, and their daughter, Cora, lived in New York City and Newark, New Jersey. Reverend Wynn was the pastor of the Abyssinian Baptist Church from 1885 until 1902, during the period the church was located in Greenwich Village, New York City. He later pastored at Bethany Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey, where he remained until his death in 1921. His daughter, Cora, was a pianist and performed in a number of recitals both before and after her marriage, when she was also known as Cora Wynn Alexander. The Wynn Family collection contains a small amount of material representing two members of this family. Rev. Robert D. Wynn's documents consist of a program celebrating the 90th anniversary of the founding of Abyssinian Baptist Church (1898); lyrics for a song he wrote, "I Would Live Longer"; and a program from Newark's Bethany Baptist Church (1907). Cora Wynn Alexander is represented by a letter written to her by a missionary friend in Cape Town, South Africa (1898), and several programs for music recitals, a few for which she performed. There are fifteen legal documents for property that the family owned in various locations in New Jersey (1919-1927). less

New York City's first so-called Slum Clearance Project, headed by urban planner Robert Moses, caused the physical destruction of a once tight-knit African American community that dated back to the early 1900s. The buildings on 98th and 99th in Upper West Side Manhattan, or what is affectionately known today as "The Old Community", were razed from the 1940s to the 1950s as part of this urban renewal program. Although the residents were forced to relocate, the community stayed connected through annual dances (ca. 1950s-1990s) organized by constituents of the West 98th and 99th Streets Association, and then through "The Old Community" annual reunions (1999-) headed by Jim Torain. The Old Community West 98th-99th Streets Reunion collection consists of "The Old Community" reunion programs, 2003-2011; background information on some of the former community members; reports; journal, newspaper, and magazine articles about the history of the West 98th and 99th Streets community, Park West Village (which replaced the buildings on West 98th and 99th Streets), and the urban renewal program and its impact on this neighborhood. Additionally, there are a few Spirit of 179 newsletters, 1952-1953, which were written by the young members of the PS 179 Community Center. They note some of the community events before the relocation took place. less

Moorish Science Temple of America, is an U.S. religious movement founded in Newark, N.J., in 1913 by Timothy Drew (1886–1929), known to followers as Noble Drew Ali and also as the Prophet. Drew Ali taught that all Blacks were of Moorish origins but had their Muslim identity taken away from them through slavery and racial segregation. He advocated that they should "return" to the Islam of their Moorish forefathers, redeeming themselves from racial oppression by reclaiming their historical spiritual heritage. He also encouraged use of the term "Moor" rather than "Black" in self-identification. Many of the group's formal practices were derived from Muslim observances. This collection consists of materials collected by Allen Ahmed Bey for his research on the Moorish Science Temple in the United States. Included in the collection are legal briefs on the status of Moorish Nation Nationals (citizens) which contain a public declaration of national constitutional immunity. Also included are a number of documents on the history of the Moorish Nation and instructional manuals (lessons) for members. less

White Rose Mission and Industrial Association was incorporated in 1899 in New York City. It was founded by Victoria Earle Matthews (1861-1907), former slave, journalist, author and social worker. The White Rose Mission was a Christian, non-sectarian social center for African-American women who migrated from the South to New York City in search of employment. It offered traveler's aid to African-American girls and women who were stranded at railway stations and the docks, and offered training for domestic service through cooking and sewing classes. The collection contains institutional and financial documents including: Presidents' annual reports, 1928-1932, 1940 prepared by Ildica E. H. Scott, President, ca. 1929-1940; expense reports, 1928-1930, 1932, 1937; bank statements, 1937-1941; gift receipts, 1930, 1932, 1940-1942; Mission event invitations, programs and guest lists, 1923-1942; membership forms and donor acknowledgments, 1923-1943; employment letters for Elizabeth Mayfield and Annie E. Johnson; reports of the residents of the White Rose Home, June 1932-January 1933; and other miscellaneous documents. less

Aubrey Howard Bowser was a writer, editor, and educator. Bowser was born in La Mott, Pennsylvania, a town founded by African American Civil War veterans that were led by his grandfather. He was a 1907 graduate of Harvard College, and later worked at the New York Age where he met and subsequently married Jessie Fortune, the daughter of T. Thomas Fortune, editor of the Age. Bowser's writings included book reviews and literary criticism for the New York Amsterdam News; poetry; and an unpublished novel entitled "Black Pilgrim: A Novel of Harlem's Early Life". Bowser also taught in the New York City public schools, including at New York Vocational High School, eventually becoming dean of that school. He died in 1979. The Aubrey Howard Bowser papers consist primarily of writings, academic and school related papers, and letters. Bower's writings include a manuscript for "Black Pilgrim: A Novel of Harlem's Early Life"; a short story, "Maryelle Rose"; poetry; book reviews; and critiques. There are also two full runs of The Rainbow, a weekly literary magazine that he edited, 1919-1920. Academic papers consist of a Harvard College notebook; course lecture notes; papers written for courses taken for his Master's degree and to qualify for a New York City high school teacher's license, 1943; and the publication, "Harvard College Class of 1907 Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Report" (1935) in which his picture appears. Included are T. Thomas Fortune's book of poetry, Dreams of Life (1905). less

This ledger, most likely from the 19th century because of the dates listed, is possibly a city or county government's ledger used to assign personal, land, and property taxes to the members of the surrounding towns and/or communities. Among the "items" listed are enslaved people, who are denoted as property and assigned arbitrary values. Two dates can be found in the ledger, 1853 and 1865. The ledger mentions the areas of Polk Mill, Seaford Road, and Concord, and the name "Morgan". Items are listed mostly in alphabetical order by last name of free/white adult citizens. In some cases, a citizen is listed, but the only value listed is for "person" which could mean that the individual did not own property but was still taxed. less

Collection of newspaper clippings, programs, and some correspondence documenting Rudolph J. Thomas' career (1920-1965) at the Harlem Branch of the Young Men's Christian Association at 135th Street in New York City. Also included are certificates, honors, and a scrapbook. less

Correspondence, reports, rosters listing names of troops, ledgers, performance evaluations, and discharge papers, relating to Rudd's command of I Company, 48th Infantry, an all African-American unit fighting in the Spanish-American War, and the administration of Benguet Province in the Philippines. Includes a map of the province and notes on its agriculture. less

The Leila Danette Madison Small family papers document the lives of an African-American upper middle class family from Baltimore and Florida in the late 19th through the 20th centuries. The papers include wills, certificates, travel logs, and property documents. less

The records of the Sharp Street Memorial United Methodist Church in Baltimore, Maryland consist of three series: Financial Records, Minute Books and Reports, and Cemetery Records. The Financial Records series, 1913-1944, contains trustee reports with entries pertaining to the cemetery. Collection plate records and records of rallies for church projects are also included. The Minute Books and Reports series, 1911-1962, contains the minutes of the official boards and various church groups as well as affiliated organizations in which the church has had membership. The latter includes the Baltimore Preachers Meetings and the Women's Society of Christian Service, North Baltimore District. The Cemetery Records series, 1873-1993, is comprised of ledgers in which are entered cemetery lot owners, burial and death records. In many ledgers information on place of origin, date of birth, cause of death and physician's name has been indicated. Information on the lots include location and number of burials per site. A schematic drawing of the cemetery is also included. less

Abolitionist, reformer,and author. Redpath was appointed commissioner of emigration in the United States by Haitian president Geffrard in 1859. He founded the Haitian Emigrant Bureau in Boston and New York, and simultaneously published a newspaper, The Pine and Palmm (May 1861-), "devoted to the interests of freedom and of the colored races in America." He later became the Haitian Consul at Philadelphia and was instrumental in obtaining recognition of Haitian independence by the U.S. government. Letter copy book owned by James Redpath containing letters written to various government officials in the United States and Haiti regarding specific details concerning the emigration of American slaves and freedmen to Haiti. less

Interracial organization devoted to the discovery and promotion of talented black artists and educating people on the contributions of black artists to the performing arts. Constitution and bylaws, financial and legal documents, financial reports, correspondence to private individuals as well as government institutions, news clippings, and other printed material relating to the Society. Also, Aldridge family papers consisting of copies of birth, marriage, and death certificates, and correspondence to and from Ira Aldridge and other family members. less

Louis Joseph Janvier was a Haitian diplomat and charge d'affaires for Haiti in London from 1896-1902. The collection contains correspondence pertaining to official diplomatic matters including relations with the United States and England, Haitian neutrality in the Spanish American War, Haitian history in general, and financial matters. less

This collection consists largely of correspondence; included are letters from Joel E. Spingarn to Amy Spingarn written during the 1914-1915 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) speaking tour; letters to Amy Spingarn regarding researcher access to the Joel E. Spingarn collections at the Moorland Collection at Howard University and the James Weldon Johnson Collection at Yale University; and letters to W.E.B. Du Bois. Additional material includes information regarding the opening of Joel E. Spingarn High School in Washington, D.C.; a 1898 speech; NAACP printed material; articles by and about Arthur Spingarn, Joel's brother; a typescript by Jacques Roumain on Vodun (voodoo); and other printed material. less

The Green family letters comprise correspondence of the Green family, namely between Charlotte Green and her husband Frisby Green, who worked as a waiter, coachman and valet and moved around either with his employer or on his own while Charlotte remained behind. Included are letters to and from their daughter Drusilla, who also corresponded with an aunt in New Haven, Connecticut, and cousins in New York City and New Haven. less

This collection consists of material pertaining to Harrison's portrayal of "de Lawd" in the play The Green Pastures, written by Marc Connelly. Material primarily includes news clippings about Harrison and the play; Harrison's death in 1935; drafts of lectures given by Harrison; letters to Harrison from family members and others, including Paul Lawrence Dunbar; programs and playbills; and a biography of Harrison entitled "Even Playing 'De Lawd': Some Experiences from the Life of Richard Harrison" written by Olive L. Jeter. Jeter used the materials in this collection and her notes from discussions with Harrison for the biography. Additionally, there are two scrapbooks compiled by Jeter after Harrison's tours with Green Pastures." less

Henry C. Bunton's papers consist of personal papers, writings, chaplaincy records, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church records, and correspondence. These papers principally document Bunton's role as a bishop with the C.M.E. Church. Church records consist of copies of sermons, office files, correspondence, denominational records, pamphlets and related material from his years in the ministry. Denominational records include correspondence with other bishops from the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church such as J. Claude Allen, Norris S. Curry, Chester Kirkendoll, Elisha P. Murchison, P. Randolph Shy, and P. Julian Smith regarding plans for meetings, annual conferences, expansion of the church and other church activities. There is also correspondence with individual pastors, and officers from the many member churches in Bunton's district regarding requests for assignments and transfers, securing property and other church business, as well as financial reports. Among the churches represented are Israel Metropolitan Church in Greenville, South Carolina; Mount Olive Cathedral in Memphis, Tennessee; and Russell Memorial Church in Durham, North Carolina. less

Printed material relating to the National Association of Negro Musicians (NANM) including programs and playbills from NANM and other small groups; and annual breakfast, convention and conference materials, and other records of the New York and New Jersey chapters of NANM and the National Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History. Other material relating to concert performances by black artists consisting primarily of programs and playbills, scrapbooks, and news clippings. Also programs, playbills, news clippings, newsletters, and financial reports pertaining to the Thomas Music Study Club, founded by Blanche K. Thomas, which was affiliated with NANM since 1946. Papers of Glover and his wife, Martha Seabrook Glover, contain personal and professional correspondence, and documents concerning the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Free-Masonry, the Oddfellows, the Republicans and Democratic parties, church groups, the A. Philip Randolph Leaders of Tomorrow Scholarship Fund, the Patriotic American Society, the Harlem Cultural Council, and news clippings about Glover. Also, personal papers of Martha Seabrook Glover relating to the Seabrook family. less

The records of the First African Baptist Church of Savannah, Georgia are divided into nine series: Church Minutes; Financial Records; Membership Records; Deeds, Leases and Legal Papers; Minutes of Boards and Associations; Sunday School Records; Baptist Young Peoples Records; Workers Council Records; and Church Histories, Printed Matter and Miscellaneous. less

Edward Demby was the first black Bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church, his wife Antoinette M. Demby was a member of the first graduating class of nurses from Howard University's Freedmen's Hospital. Bishop Demby's collection, 1893-1957, consists of an autobiographical sketch, correspondence, 1930s-1950s sermons and scrapbooks of printed material including a golden anniversary scrapbook. Mrs. Demby's collection consists of a journal, 1901-1955, personal papers and several notebooks kept by her while a nursing student. less

The DuPree African-American Pentecostal and Holiness Collection was compiled by Sherry Sherrod DuPree during research for her "Biographical Dictionary of African-American Holiness Pentecostals" (Washington, D.C.: Middle Atlantic Regional Press, 1989). Mrs. DuPree is a research librarian at Santa Fe Community College, Gainesville, Florida, a member of the Church of God in Christ, and the author of "Exposed!!! Federal Bureau of Investigation Unclassified Reports on Churches and Church Leaders" and "African-American Good News (Gospel) Music" (both Washington, D.C.: Middle Atlantic Regional Press, 1993). The DuPree African-American Pentecostal and Holiness Collection consists of original and secondary material documenting the history, beliefs, and activities of hundreds of Pentecostal and Holiness denominations, congregations, and individuals. The collection is arranged in four series: Denomination and Congregations, Individual Clergy and Evangelists, Subject Files, and Non-Pentecostal Material, and consists of news clippings, newsletters, journals, yearbooks, sermons, bulletins, brochures, programs, articles, theses, book excerpts, and other printed material. There is virtually no correspondence. less