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Creator
KéKumbha, Kanya
Call number
Sc MG 988
Physical description
0.42 linear feet (1 box)
Language
English
Preferred Citation
[Item], Kanya Vashon McGhee papers, Sc MG 988, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, The New York Public Library
Sponsor
Next Century of Black Studies grant funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation
Repository
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.

Kanya Vashon McGhee, also known as Kanya KéKumbha, was the owner of the Tree of Life Books of Harlem, a metaphysical bookstore formerly located in Harlem, New York. His father, Norman L. McGhee Sr., was the first African American licensed to trade stocks in the Midwest, and the first African American to own a brokerage firm and mutual investment fund in the United States. The Kanya Vashon McGhee papers primarily contains materials pertaining to the Tree of Life bookstore, as well as assorted ephemera; certificates; and printed matter belonging to Kanya Vashon McGhee and Norman L. McGhee, Sr.

Biographical/historical information

Kanya Vashon McGhee, also known as Kanya KéKhumba, was born Norman Leroy McGhee, Jr. on September 8, 1927 in Cleveland, Ohio to Norman Leroy McGhee, Sr. (1897-1979) and Margery Vashon McGhee. Norman L. McGhee, Sr. was the first African American licensed to trade stocks in the Midwest and the first African American to own a brokerage firm (McGhee & Co.) and a mutual investment fund (Every Man Mutual Fund) in the United States. McGhee, Sr. was also an early member of the Eta Lambda chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

Kanya Vashon McGhee studied science and business at McGill University while supporting his father's business. During his time as a student, he read Cosmic Consciousness (1901) by Richard Maurice Bucke and developed an interest in spiritual philosophy. McGhee pursued a Master's degree in Indian philosophy at Oxford University before moving to New York City in the 1960s.

In the late 1960s, McGhee grew concerned at the high dropout rate for Harlem high schoolers and began teaching in prisons. This work empowered McGhee to set up a metaphysical bookstore booth next to Lewis H. Michaux's African National Memorial Bookstore in 1969 on West 125 Street and 7th Avenue. The booth soon developed into the Tree of Life Books of Harlem. The Tree of Life Books of Harlem started as McGhee's experiment in hopes of resolving challenges such as the increasing dropout rate, mass incarceration, and drug abuse in Harlem.

By 1970, McGhee opened a storefront for the Tree of Life Books at the corner of West 125th Street and Lenox Avenue. The bookstore attracted patrons seeking spiritual, theological, historical, and scientific knowledge, and was often referred to as the University Corner of Lenox Avenue (UCLA) or the Kanya Academy of the Occult Sciences (KAOS). Additionally, after years of studying astrology, McGhee founded the Kanya Academy of Astrological Sciences. The bookstore continued on for 10 years until it was forced to close in 1980, which McGhee expressed was due to a $100 million dollar development of the Trade Center Hotel Complex on that very corner.

After the storefront's closure, McGhee tried to relocate to Florida, then to Atlanta, Georgia, but was unable to re-establish the bookstore. He continued to operate the bookstore from his Central Park West apartment and taught at Hunter College. Kanya Vashon McGhee passed away on December 22, 2021 in Decatur, Georgia.

Scope and arrangement

The Kanya Vashon McGhee papers primarily contains press and correspondence pertaining to the Tree of Life bookstore, as well as assorted personal and Divine Nine ephemera; correspondence with Margery McGhee; certificates; and printed matter mainly belonging to Kanya Vashon McGhee and Norman L. McGhee, Sr.

The archive is arranged chronologically within the following subject folders: Correspondence, Ephemera, Tree of Life Books of Harlem, Certificates, and Printed Material.

Correspondence holds two undated handwritten letters to Margery McGhee.

Ephemera consists of greeting cards; decorated invitations to high school, university, and fraternity events; and Norman L. McGhee, Sr.'s funeral program.

The Tree of Life Books of Harlem file is made up of press releases, newspaper clippings, event flyers, and an undated interview related to Tree of Life Books of Harlem. It also notably includes press releases and correspondence pertaining to the forced closure of the bookstore's West 125th St and Lenox Ave location.

The Certificates file features Kanya Vashon McGhee's 1992 New York State Certificate of Authority for KVM Co., Inc.

Printed Material contains newspaper clippings and copies of The Gist of the Lesson (1928) by R. A. Torrey; a signed copy of My Souvenirs: Selected Poems (1938) by George W. Hodges; an undated informational pamphlet from the South Carolina State Agricultural and Mechanical College (South Carolina State University); a 1965 centennial booklet from Atlanta University (Clark Atlanta University); and a 1986 Protocols and Traditions Manual from the Grand Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

This collection also holds a copy of Alpha in Atlanta: A Legacy Remembered… (1988), an annotated book commemorating the 67th anniversary of the Eta Lambda chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., based in Atlanta, Georgia. Norman L. McGhee Sr. served as General Secretary of the chapter and additionally established two chapters at Atlanta University (Clark Atlanta University) and Morehouse College in December 1923.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

NYPL purchased this collection from McBride Rare Books in 2023.

Processing information

Processed by Denise Mantey in 2024.

Separated material

See the Photographs and Prints Division for the photographs.

Using the collection

Location

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division
515 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, NY 10037-1801
Second Floor