Scope and arrangement
The Preservation of the Black Religious Heritage Project miscellaneous collections are arranged in three series:
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The majority of the institutions are located in Brooklyn, NY.
This collections mainly consists of printed matter on various institutions, including Christian, Muslim, and Jewish organizations, and individuals related to these insitutions. Printed matter contains flyers, pamphlets, newsletters, and articles. Additionally, there are some sermons, letters, conference programs, and budget proposals included in various folders.
The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture launched its Preservation of the Black Religious Heritage Project in January 1989 with a $300,000 grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc. The second project grant of $250,853 was awarded in October 1990. In undertaking this initiative, the Schomburg Center recognized the pivotal roles played by religious bodies in acting on social and economic concerns within the African American community, in addition to their spiritual functions. The goal of the project was to create a more comprehensive base of Black religious resources at the Schomburg Center and serve as a catalyst for preserving such resources in churches, religious bodies, and other repositories. The Schomburg Center wanted to develop collections that provided a strong foundation for the study of the spiritual aspects of the Black religious experience while documenting the role of the church in Black economic, political, and social life through survey answers. Additionally, the Schomburg Center sought to be the permanent home for these institutions' collections. A seven-member Scholars Advisory Council was organized, as well as an interdenominational National Advisory Board, along with project archivist Victor Smythe. Two major symposia brought together interdenominational and interfaith audiences composed of scholars, seminarians, clergy, and lay persons from across the country to address historical and contemporary concerns.
Surveys of historical records were completed in 70 churches in 12 cities across the country, encompassing 16 different denominations and faiths. Surveys were initiated in an additional 43 churches. Churches were recruited through mailings, direct contact by the project archivist and advisory committee members, newspaper articles, and radio interviews about the project.
Seventeen preservation workshops were conducted in nine cities involving representatives from churches in 17 different denominations and faiths. Workshops focused on the importance of preserving historical records and offered guidance on preservation strategies and techniques.
Throughout the project duration, the Schomburg Center acquired collections of personal papers, books, audiovisual material, photographs, and art objects.
The Preservation of the Black Religious Heritage Project miscellaneous collections are arranged in three series:
The majority of the institutions are located in Brooklyn, NY.
Transferred to the Art and Artifacts Division: 3 paintings
Transferred to the General Research and Reference Division: dissertations, microfilm, and microfiche
Transferred to the Moving Image and Recorded Sound Division: audio and moving image materials. For more information, please contact the division at schomburgaudiovisual@nypl.org or 212-491-2270.
Transferred to the Photographs and Prints Division: photographs
See also the following collections in the Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture:
African-American Pentecostal and Holiness collection, Sc MG 325
Andrew J. Chambers papers, Sc MG 443
Broadside collection, Sc MG 929
Henry C. Bunton papers, Sc MG 291
James Alfred Smith, Sr. papers, Sc MG 366
Milton Galamison papers, Sc MG 394
Miscellaneous American Letters and Papers, Sc MG 76
Olivia Pearl Stokes, Sc MG 432
Preservation of the Black Religious Heritage Project surveys, Sc MG 628
Second African Baptist Church (Savannah, Ga.) records, Sc Micro R-6632
Tyrone Pitts/National Council of Churches papers, Sc MG 393
Will Herzfeld papers, Sc MG 323