James Weldon Johnson collection

1930-1998

James Weldon Johnson was a publisher, educator, lawyer, composer, artist, diplomat, and civil rights leader. Together with his brother, J. Rosamond Johnson, he wrote the song "Lift Every Voice and Sing", which came to be known as the "Negro National Anthem", as well as a large number of popular songs for the musical stage of the early twentieth century. Johnson also served as consul of the United States to Venezuela and Nicaragua. He wrote several books and served as editor of the New York Age. From 1920-1931, Johnson was field secretary, then secretary, of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. In 1930, he became chair of Creative Literature and Writing at Fisk University. The James Weldon Johnson collection consists primarily of programs honoring Johnson following his death in 1938, including those sponsored by the NAACP, Yale University Library, Virginia Union University, and Hampton Institute. Two programs printed during his lifetime provide information about subjects for his lectures and work with students at Fisk University. News clippings discuss a marker erected, in 1972, at the site of his home in Jacksonville, Florida. An obituary marks the passing of his widow, Grace Nail Johnson, in 1976, and two towels with their embroidered initials complete the collection.