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9 Black Museums To Visit Across The U.S

Okechukwu Nzeribe011 mins

The most basic task of any museum must be the protection of works of cultural significance entrusted to its care for the edification and pleasure of future generations.

– Martin Filler

Museums have continued to remain a reservoir of knowledge and a guide to history. Whether it relates to the wonders of nature or provides a deep dive into the trajectory of humanity, museums all around the world have continued to provide a glimpse of man’s achievements and the world’s advancement through time.

Like all museums around the world, Black museums in the United States of America continue to tell the story of a people who have surmounted incredible odds to achieve greatness while redefining the identity of the nation.

Here are 9 Black museums in the United States that showcase the historical trajectory of African Americans.

National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC)


Fuzheado, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Established in 2003 by an act of Congress, the museum provides insight into the rich culture and history of the African American people from the point of slavery till the present day. Recognized as one of the museums of the Smithsonian Institution, the NMAAHC for 13 years had not been located in a permanent space, yet with efforts by one of its founding directors – Lonnie Bunch III, through an effort he termed “saving African American Treasures” several artifacts of Black history which many had casually kept in their homes or stashed away i a corner. 

This led to a record collection of 36,000 items, many of which as described by one of the world’s oldest encyclopedias “Britannica” included “the robe and headgear worn by boxer Muhammad Ali (c. the 1960s); costumes worn by the original cast of Broadway musical The Wiz (1975); the metal coffin of Emmett Till; a shawl given to Harriet Tubman by Queen Victoria” amongst many others. In 2016, in a ceremony led by President Barack Obama, the NMAAHC would open its permanent home.

Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History


Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Located in Detroit, the Charles H. Wright Museum of African History was a dream come true of a Detroit civil rights activist and physician – Dr. Charles Howard Wright, who believed that African Americans needed a place to document and safeguard their history, as well as educate the next generation to take pride in their culture and race.

The museum features a record of great civil rights activist as well as their works along with inventions founded by African Americans as well as African instruments and arts.

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center

By MamaGeek at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0

Based off the back of the Underground Railroad Movement led by Harriet Tubman who championed the move to get enslaved people to the North created a secret yet elaborate network known as the Underground Railroad.

The National Underground Railroad Center tells the story of that struggle and other efforts in the battle against slavery in America. Leveraging artworks, presentations, programs, and activities, the museum takes visitors through the remarkable journey of slaves fleeing the southern parts of America where slavery was legal and viciously imposed on the North.

The DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center

By TonyTheTiger at English Wikipedia.- Self-photographed, CC BY-SA 3.0

In Chicago sits one of the oldest and independently owned museums. Named in honor of Jean-Baptist Point Du Sable, the museum is dedicated to showcasing African American culture and history as well as leveraging programs and activities to showcase the achievements of African Americans through the years. The museum currently houses great works of art not only from African Americans alone but from Mother Africa as well.

African American Museum in Philadelphia



Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Founded in 1975 and opened to the public in 1976, the museum was originally called the Afro-American Historical and Cultural Museum, located In Philadelphia, the museum became an institution for the collection of black history and arts. As part of the institution’s drive to preserve black heritage and support efforts by African Americans in their demand for acceptance within American society, it played a crucial role in the civil rights movements, raising awareness of the inequality experienced by African Americans in society.

National Great Blacks In Wax Museum

 Wax figures of The Five Pearls, the founding ladies of Zeta Phi Beta sorority.

Instagram | National Great Blacks Wax Museum

For a better understanding of the struggles of African Americans in the fight against the 400-year Atlantic slave trade and the progress that has been made over the years, then the National Great Blacks Wax Museum located in Baltimore, Maryland is the place to go.

Being the only wax museum in the country, the institution provides visitors with an educational experience of the progress of Black history in America.

Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (NLBM)

Source: Facebook | Negro Leagues Baseball Museum

Long before Jackie Robinson broke through the segregation that was common in Major League Baseball in 1947, there was already existing a Negro League Baseball where African Americans could thrive and showcase their potential. It was in preserving this history that a group of former Negro league baseball players founded the museum in 1990.

Taking visitors through the progress of the Negro League, the history of black baseball comes alive as guests are introduced to the many players, officials, and owners of the Negro league baseball. Visitors are opportune to see uniforms, gloves, and equipment used by former great players in baseball history.

International African American Museum (IAAM)

Image Source: International African American Museum

Opened in June 2023, the IAAM is located at the famous Gadsden’s Wharf in Charleston, South Carolina. Gadsden Wharf was notoriously famous for its role as the last point for slave ships during the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Records note that between the periods of 1783 and 1808, a projected number of about 100,000 men, women, and children of African origin were brought in through the Wharf and sold into slavery.

Today, the museum plays host to several exhibits and over 150 historical objects, various works of Art, and significant exhibits during South Carolina’s civil rights struggle.

Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (BCRI)

By Carol M. Highsmith – Library of Congress Catalog, Public Domain

The civil rights movement was a major turning point in the history of America in its battle against segregation and racism. The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (BRCI) is a monument to that crucial stage in American history as it charts a part of true freedom for all. Visitors are introduced to what the Freedom Riders bus looked like, the Selma-to-Montgomery marches, and the famous civil rights activists like Martin Luther King Jr. 

Okechukwu Nzeribe works with the Onitsha Chamber of Commerce, in Anambra State, Nigeria, and loves unveiling the richness of African cultures. okechukwu.onicima@gmail.com

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9 Black Museums to Visit Across the U.S

FunTimes Writer011 mins

African American history and culture is inseparable from the identity of the United States. Sadly, a lot of Black history isn’t taught as in-depth as the rest of American history in schools. Now, more than ever, with the #BlackLivesMatter movement gaining prominence, putting a spotlight on African American history and culture is important.  May is Historic Preservation Month, and across the country, many compelling museums, monuments, and landmark trails commemorate significant moments in African American history—both the traumatic and the triumphant. Black museums and memorial sites are a great place to connect with the complex history of African Americans. Here are nine destinations across the U.S. for discovering more about African-American history and culture.

National Museum of African American Music

The National Museum of African American Music (NMAAM) traces African American music traditions from the 1600s to the present day, ranging from spiritual hymns to blues, jazz, gospel, R&B, and hip-hop. The NMAAM opened in Nashville, Tennessee in January 2021. It is the world’s only institution dedicated solely to preserving and celebrating the central role African Americans have played in shaping American music. The 56,000-square-foot museum features seven interactive galleries with more than 1,500 artifacts, objects, and memorabilia on display, from traditional African drums to a gown worn by the iconic late singer, Whitney Houston. 

National Museum of African American History and Culture

The Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture reopened its doors in May 2021. It provides an opportunity for those who are interested in African American culture to explore and revel in this history through interactive exhibitions. It was initially funded in 1915 by Black Civil War veterans, and a signed public resolution from President Calvin Coolidge in 1929 established a commission to plan its construction, but it only opened its doors for the first time in the fall of 2016. The museum houses more than 400 years of artifacts and historical information detailing the African American experience.

Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture

This museum offers 82,000 square feet of Maryland history. The Lewis Museum, the largest African American museum in Maryland, has been the authentic voice of Maryland African American history and culture since it opened in 2005. The Museum’s education department has developed an African American curriculum and provides teacher training that is invaluable to Maryland’s  850,000 students and 50,000 teachers. 

Alexandria Black History Museum

The mission of the Alexandria Black History Museum is to enrich the lives of Alexandria’s residents and visitors, to foster tolerance and understanding among all cultures, and to stimulate appreciation of the diversity of the African American experience. The building was formerly the Robert Robinson Library, originally constructed in 1940 as the first “separate but equal” library for African Americans in the segregated city.

Museum Of The African Diaspora

This San Francisco museum exhibits contemporary art from artists across the African diaspora. MoAD, a contemporary art museum, celebrates Black cultures, ignites challenging conversations, and inspires learning through the global lens of the African Diaspora. Since opening in December 2005, MoAD has brought people of all ages, ethnicities, and backgrounds together in the heart of the city so they can explore and discover the culture, history, and art of people of African descent.

The Whitney Plantation Museum

This is the only plantation tour in Louisiana dedicated to centering the personal histories and experiences of enslaved people. It opened up to the public as a museum in December 2014. The plantation’s restoration was funded by the museum’s founder, John Cummings, who was a trial attorney from New Orleans. Cummings owned and operated the property for 20 years, from 1999 to 2019, and he restored the plantation over 15 years before opening it to the public. Whitney Plantation educates the public about the history of slavery and its legacies.

Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History

This Midwestern museum is home to 35,000 artifacts including rare documents that reflect the role Black people played in Detroit’s labor movement .

Established in 1965, this Detroit museum holds the world’s largest permanent collection of African-American culture. Among the more than 35,000 artifacts, you can find interactive kids stations, displays on trailblazers in science and engineering, and stained-glass windows by Samuel A. Hodge that depict stories of notable African Americans, from dancers to civil rights activists. The annual three-day African World Festival, held in August, celebrates the cultures of the diaspora with hosts free performances by gospel legends such as the Clark Sisters, African drummers, and dance troupes.

Natchez Museum of African American History and Culture

The African American Museum of History and Culture contains exhibits from a number of Natchez- related African American historic sites, important citizens, and events. It has works of art, photographs, documentaries and books starting from 1716, including those of native son Richard Wright. This city in Mississippi has a legacy as the second-largest slave market in the South and of the Rhythm Nightclub fire, where more than 200 Black people died. The museum highlights the Parchman Ordeal, where hundreds of civil rights protestors seeking equal voting rights were rounded up and put in the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman in 1965. “People come here to start their ancestry search,” says Bobby Dennis, chairman of the Natchez Association of African American Culture. “They can access our log, pull up names of soldiers, and then go to the Department of Defense for records. This is a major step in finding information, because many records of Blacks were destroyed or hidden.”

Black American West Museum & Heritage Center

The Museum began with Paul Stewart, who as a child playing Cowboys and Indians, always played an Indian because he was told, “There is no such thing as a Black cowboy.” At the Black American West Museum & Heritage Center, Black cowboys are highlighted, as well as the history of the Five Points neighborhood of Denver. From the 1920s to the 1960s, Five Points was called the Harlem of the West because of its rich jazz history, restaurants, and nightclubs. The neighborhood was frequented by the likes of Duke Ellington, Lionel Hampton, and Ella Fitzgerald. The museum explores the contributions of Black people in the development of the western United States through its collections, programs, and exhibits.

Source

Essence

Condé Nast Traveler

Afar

National Geographic

 Boitumelo Masihleho is a South African digital content creator. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Rhodes University in Journalism and Media Studies and Politics and International Studies.  

She’s an experienced multimedia journalist who is committed to writing balanced, informative and interesting stories on a number of topics. Boitumelo has her own YouTube channel where she shares her love for affordable beauty and lifestyle content. 

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