Collections in Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division

409 Edgecombe Avenue, also known as Colonial Parkway Apartments, is a residential apartment building in the Sugar Hill section of Harlem that was home to many of the city's Black elite during the 1920s–1950s. The 409 Edgecombe collection consists of the personal effects of building residents, typically including correspondence, bills, receipts, and other ephemera. The collection is made up of the contents of trunks found in a storage room of the building by the 409 Edgecombe Avenue Tenant Association. less

The 555th Parachute Infantry Battalion (PIB), formed in 1944, was the first African American parachute unit to actually use parachutes in the military; the first to become smoke jumpers who fought forest fires; and the first African American battalion to integrate the armed forces just months before President Truman officially directed the integration of the United States military.This collection is comprised of newspaper articles, letters, photocopies of pictures, and lists of members. less

The AMAS Musical Theatre production files consist of documentation for thirty-six plays produced by AMAS, including both original plays and well known plays such as "It's so nice to be civilized," "Bojangles," "Jam," "Juba," "Blackberries," and "The buck stops here." Revivals have included "Bye Bye Birdie," "Carousel," and "My Fair Lady." A variety of material can be found in the files; however not every kind of material will be available for each production. The following list provides a sampling of files: attendance sheets; audition sheets, budgets, cast lists/contact sheets; casting lists and notices; contracts; costume inventories; cue sheets; equity contracts; flyers and programs; memoranda and correspondence; music and lyrics; performance reports; production schedules; rehearsal logs, schedules and reports; reviews; scene breakdown sheets; scripts-blocking/production/master/music; set design and illustrations/lighting/props; sound; stage manager's notes; and VIP lists. Additionally, the collection includes background information about AMAS and Rosetta LeNoire, AMAS's Eubie Blake Youth Theatre, programs and flyers for productions not represented in the files, and certificates awarded to AMAS. less

This collection mostly contains material related to Raoul Abdul's career as a singer and author. There is a limited amount of personal information, including some clippings from his early life. A large part of the collection consists of concert programs and tour information. Additionally, there is material on lectures and seminars, and reviews and correspondence regarding his writing, including 3000 Years of Black Poetry, The Magic of Black Poetry, and Famous Black Entertainers of Today. less

The Abyssinian Baptist Church Oral History Project consists of transcripts of interviews with ten African-American women—all Abyssinian members—about their recollections of Abyssinian Baptist Church as well as their Southern roots, their spiritual experiences and their political and Christian education. All of the women interviewed were more than seventy years old, and one was over ninety, at the time the interviews were conducted in 1992. The interviewees are: Helen Brown, Robbie Clarke, Susan Craig, Gwendolyn Jones, Esther McCall, Estelle Noble, Fannie Pennington, Olivia Pearl Stokes, Amy Terry, and Laura B. Thomas. Their remembrances date to the late 1920s, but the primary time period under discussion is from 1940 to 1970. Located in Harlem, Abyssinian was the first black Baptist church established in New York State (1808) and the fifth in the United States. The interviewer was Martia G. Goodson, an assistant professor at Baruch College at the time of the project. less

Action for Community Empowerment (ACE) was a grassroots community development non-profit organization based in Central Harlem dedicated to decent housing, safe neighborhoods, and tenant empowerment. The Action for Community Empowerment records, 1987-2006, contain information regarding ACE's efforts to improve housing and organize tenants in Central Harlem from the early 1990s to the mid-2000s. less

Civic leader of New York City and a major figure in local Democratic Party activities. Official correspondence, minute books, press releases, photographs, invitations, annual convention and activity programs, printed material, and news clippings, chiefly relating to Adams' participation in various social, political, and civic organizations in New York, including the Aeolian Ladies of Charity, Democratic Club, Friends of the Northside Center, a child guidance center for the prevention of delinquency and maladjustment, Harlem Cooperating Committee on Relief and Unemployment, Harlem Hospital Chaplaincy Committee, Nannie H. Burroughs Philanthropic Club, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women's Clubs, National Committee for the American Celebration of the 100th Anniversary of Liberia, National Council of Negro Women, New York State Committee on Discrimination in Housing, New York Urban League, New York World's Fair Committee of Negro Women, and the Utopia Neighborhood Club, a nursery center for small children, as well as several local New York City organizations. Also included are personal papers and memorabilia. less

The Wilhelmina F. Adams Papers (Additions) consist principally of her files chronicling her work as a civic leader primarily with New York Democratic club activities, the National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women's Clubs (NANBPWC) and the National Council of Negro Women. These files contain correspondence, newsletters, programs, brochures, minutes of meetings, official memoranda, reports, invitations, and news clippings. Files of the NANBPWC also include membership records, directories of officers, handouts, annual conference programs, and the constitution. Scrapbooks of the NANBPWC document annual events such as contests, parties and conferences from 1968-1972, and contain programs, invitations, certificates, handmade illustrations, newsletters, correspondence, and news clippings. less

SDiane Adamz-Bogus (b.1946) is a writer, educator, and new age healer; she is also known as Shariananda Adamz and "The Oracle Soul-Joiner". The SDiane Adamz-Bogus papers date from 1946 to 2002, and document her work and life through correspondence, journals, photographs, scrapbooks, teaching files, files for the Woman in Moon publishing company, and writing files. less

Bill Adler is an American music journalist and critic who specializes in hip hop. He was director of publicity at Def Jam Recordings between 1984 and 1990, and subsequently co-authored the book Def Jam Recordings (2011). He also founded Eyejammie Fine Arts Gallery and co-founded the poetry record label Mouth Almighty Records. Since the early 1980s, he has promoted hip hop in a variety of capacities, including as publicist, biographer, record label executive, museum consultant, curator, and documentary filmmaker. Adler's work as a hip-hop archivist commenced during his years at Rush/Def Jam. The Adler hip hop archive, which includes sound recordings along with album cover art, books, films, videos, photographs, newspaper and magazine articles, publicity materials, and other advertising, was acquired by Cornell University in 2013. This collection mainly consists of printed matter about hip-hop artists, topics related to hip-hop, and hip-hop record labels. less

The African Academy of Arts and Research was a cultural organization established in the 1940s to facilitate cultural exchange between Africa and the United States. The collection includes a contract between dancer and musicisan Asadata Dafora (also known as Austin Dafora Horton) and the Academy and others to organize a production of Africa: A Tribal Operetta, financial report for the Academy, miscellaneous correspondence, and a certificate of appreciation to Ruth Foster. less

The Afro-American Investment and Building Company was founded in 1893 by Frederick R. Moore, who also served as president. The company's offices were in Brooklyn, New York, and it managed property in New Jersey. The Afro-American Investment and Building Company collection consists of correspondence and an agreement regarding the mortgage of David C. Pinckney of Asbury Park, New Jersey. All the letters were written by Frederick R. Moore to John S. Applegate, attorney for the investment company. less

Cleveland G. Allen was a newspaper journalist, music historian, and music lecturer for the Board of Education. Born in South Carolina, Allen moved to New York around 1902. He wrote for such publications as The New York Herald Tribune, Musical America, and Christian Science Monitor. He also worked for Booker T. Washington as one of his publicity staff members. Allen also was a civil rights activist; he organized an annual pilgrimage to see the bust of Harriet Beecher Stowe in the Hall of Fame at New York University. He advocated for a bust of Booker T. Washington to be added as well, and he lived to see its dedication. This collection consists of letters regarding two annual events organized by Allen, the celebration of the anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation and a pilgrimage to the New York University Hall of Fame to honor Harriet Beecher Stowe and Booker T. Washington. Also included is a statement issued by New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey concerning elimination of discrimination in the state. less

An African-American educator and writer, James Egert Allen was the first president of the New York chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and an active member of the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity, and the Johnson C. Smith Alumni Association. He was the author of The Negro in New York (1964), Black History: Past and Present (1971) and The Legend of Arthur A. Schomburg (1975). Allen died in 1980. This collection consists of correspondence and writings ranging from 1938-1975, documenting James Egert Allen's activities as a columnist, Kappa Alpha Psi member, chairman of the Johnson C. Smith University Centennial Committee, and founder of International Associates of Cultural Affairs, a group travel venture. less

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated (AKA) is the first African American Greek sorority. It was founded in 1908, by nine college students on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. AKA currently has members in graduate and undergraduate chapters across the world. Their mission is to encourage high scholastics and ethical standards, promote sisterhood, and help young girls and women to improve their social stature. The Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Collection consists of historical sketches and other related materials for several New York State chapters, including Delta Mu Omega, Delta Rho Omega, Epsilon Phi Omega, Theta Iota Omega, Xi Chi Omega, and Zeta Nu Omega Chapter. In addition, there are letters, news articles, flyers, and programs. Lastly, there is some information on the AKA Educational Advancement Foundation's scholarship, which is a national program. less

The formation of the American Bridge Association (ABA) in 1932 was due to racial prejudice; a group of African American players in the New York area conceived the idea of a national organization, leading to the ABA's formation at Buckroe Beach, Virginia. The American Bridge Association records (1933-2004) consist principally of printed matter, correspondence of the editor of the "Bulletin," and histories of the organization. less

The American Negro Ballet Company scrapbook consists of news clippings and programs about the company founded by Eugene van Grona. Included are reviews of its performances in New York City and Brighton, England, in 1937 and 1938; and programs for the ANB and Lew Leslie's "Blackbirds" of 1939, which featured dances choreographed by van Grona. A program and a news clipping refer to performances honoring the company, 1981 and 1983. less

The American Society of African Culture was an organization of African-American writers, artists, and scholars. It educated Americans on African culture through publications, lectures, and conferences. These records consist largely of printed material, a book and play, reviews, speeches, and conference programs concerning many aspects of African culture in transition; minutes of an annual meeting, 1961; correspondence with John A. Davis and Brooke Aronson, 1962-1966; and budgets. less

The American West Indian Ladies Aid Society (AWILAS) records are fragmentary in content, making it difficult to determine the actual transition of officers and other organizational activities, the exception being sick and death claim requests and payments. There are some financial and medical records and related correspondence; minutes; a few membership applications; correspondence with other benevolent organizations; and a folder of printed material, consisting of tickets, raffles, flyers, programs, invitations to events hosted by different organizations, Communist Party literature, bulletins, commercial solicitations, and political literature. There is correspondence between Ashley L. Totten, A. Philip Randolph (National President of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters) and Casper Holstein discussing issues of concern to all Virgin Islanders. less

Born in 1950 in Nassawadox, Virginia, Wilmer Ames was best known as the founder and editor-in-chief of Emerge, a monthly newsmagazine which addressed social, political, and economic issues from a black perspective. Ames received his BA from Lincoln University and his MA from Columbia University's School of Journalism. He studied medicine at Rutgers University for two years before returning to journalism. Ames also worked as a reporter and freelancer for a number of publications before he founded Emerge, including Time, Sports Illustrated, People, GQ, and New York magazines. Emerge targeted upwardly mobile blacks and covered popular news stories of the day, as well as in-depth portraits of leading figures in the 1990s such as Louis Farrakhan, Jesse Jackson, and Clarence Thomas. The collection contains biographical information on Ames; published articles and research materials for Time and Sports Illustrated; typescripts for a pilot television series; personal and professional correspondence with editors; reviews; and a manuscript for the book Chuck Norris: Being Physically and Mentally Fit (which he co-authored). The bulk of the collection concerns the formation and development of Emerge. Found here are board minutes and memoranda, detailed plans, proposals, financial records, advertising and marketing plans, and articles submitted to and published in the magazine. less

The papers document Andrews' personal life and professional career and activities. Correspondence, reports, printed material, and writings are included. The papers include manuscripts of Andrews' plays Climbing Jacob's Ladder, The Man Who Passed, and Matilda; the posthumously published The Black New Yorkers and an unpublished manuscript "Women ...With Banners and Human Rights: Laws, Statutes and Amendments in the Constitution of the United States." Andrews' professional activities at the Washington Heights Branch of the New York Public Library are, in part, very well documented by a series of scrapbooks containing photographs, broadsides and other printed material of the "Family Night at the Library" programs. Also included among the papers are some family correspondence, clippings, and a scrapbook relating to Andrews' husband, attorney and assemblyman William T. Andrews. less

Maya Angelou (1928-2014) was one of the most renowned and celebrated voices in American literature. The Maya Angelou papers consist of original manuscripts, computer generated typescripts, galleys, and proofs of published work as well as manuscripts for unpublished work and dozens of poems. Additionally, there is personal and professional correspondence, teaching files, printed matter, and materials from public and academic appearances and engagements. less

The Antigua and Barbuda Progressive Society was established to provide charitable assistance to Antiguans, Barbudans and the neighboring community, as well as lend assistance to institutions on the home island. The Antigua and Barbuda Progressive Society Records, 1934-1984, contain correspondence, membership application forms, meeting minutes and financial documents. less

The Archambeau family, consisting of John Nicholas Archambeau and his two children, Lester and Sybil, immigrated to the United States from Jamaica in 1908 and 1919, respectively. John Nicholas attended Howard University, became a dentist, and married Julia Hood of Virginia. His daughter, Sybil, graduated from Teachers Training School in New Jersey in 1927, and in 1938, married Clyde Ewart St. Hill, Jr., originally from Barbados. Lester Archambeau married Thelma Woodward and had two children, Jason and Rita Louise Archambeau. The Archambeaus owned and operated the Old Ladies Home in Hackensack, New Jersey. The Archambeau and St. Hill family collection consists of papers pertaining to family members before and after they immigrated to the United States from Jamaica and Barbados. Documents for the Archambeau family include copies of the marriage certificates for John and Elizabeth Jane Archambeau, John Nicholas Archambeau's parents, who were married in Jamaica in 1869; and Emile Archambeau, a member of the family who owned members of John Archambeau's family during slavery. Other documents for the Archambeau family include several copies of nineteenth-century baptismal certificates; Elizabeth Jane Archambeau's passport and immigration documents for her grandchildren, Lester and Sybil; and deeds and other legal documents regarding the foreclosure of the family house in Hackensack, New Jersey (1932-1933). less