African American History

The sculptor Edmonia Lewis (above: by Henry Rocher, c. 1870), “really broke through every obstacle," says the Smithsonian's Karen Lemmey.

Sculptor Edmonia Lewis Shattered Gender and Race Expectations in 19th-Century America

As the orphaned child of a black father and a Native-American mother, Lewis rewrote the 19th-century definition of sculptor

The exceedingly private and humble Marian Anderson (Above: by Beauford Delaney, 1965, detail) would become a worldwide phenom.

How Marian Anderson Became an Iconic Symbol for Equality

Her beautiful voice famously rang out from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial; a new show takes a look at the highs and lows of her global acclaim

A new episode of the web series “Re:Frame” from the Smithsonian American Art Museum explores the story and artworks of Mingering Mike.

All the World’s a Fantastical Stage for the Artist Mingering Mike

‘Re:Frame’ delves into a work of one of Washington D.C.’s most imaginative artists and his fascination with the historic Howard Theatre

Toni Morrison, painted by Robert McCurdy, 2006, oil on canvas

Toni Morrison, ‘Beloved’ Author Who Cataloged the African-American Experience, Dies at 88

'She changed the whole cartography of black writing,' says Kinshasha Holman Conwill of the National Museum of African American History and Culture

To Remember the Chicago Race Riot of 1919, Commemoration Project Looks to Public Art

The Windy City was just one place that went up in flames that summer

The company's publications (including Black World, EbonyJet) reached a wide audience with photo-driven narratives and interviews.

Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch Weighs In on Legendary Photo Archive of African-American Life

In historic moment, foundations and museums came together to rescue black history. "This is an optimistic tale," says Bunch

Sadie Roberts-Joseph founded the Baton Rouge African-American Museum because she believed "If you don’t know where you came from, it’s hard to know where you’re going”

Sadie Roberts-Joseph, Slain Activist, Showed How Museums Can Raise Up Their Communities

Baton Rouge police described the museum founder, whose death has been ruled a homicide, as a 'tireless advocate of peace'

Members of the 3rd Calvary arrive in D.C. to quash the racial unrest

One Hundred Years Ago, a Four-Day Race Riot Engulfed Washington, D.C.

Rumors ran wild as white mobs assaulted black residents who in turn fought back, refusing to be intimidated

Reverend Ralph Abernathy, flanked by associates, stand on steps of a mockup of the lunar module displaying a protest sign while demonstrating at the Apollo 11 launch.

While NASA Was Landing on the Moon, Many African Americans Sought Economic Justice Instead

For those living in poverty, the billions spent on the Apollo program, no matter how inspiring the mission, laid bare the nation's priorities

Several years after traveling through the South with fellow writer Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes wrote an essay about an encounter with a young man escaping chain gang labor.

A Lost Work by Langston Hughes Examines the Harsh Life on the Chain Gang

In 1933, the Harlem Renaissance star wrote a powerful essay about race. It has never been published in English—until now

One of Mae Reeves' "showstopper" hats

Entrepreneur Mae Reeves' Hat Shop Was a Philadelphia Institution. You Can Visit It at the Smithsonian.

The National Museum of African American History and Culture recreated one of the first businesses in the city to be owned by a black woman

A team from Howard University’s Department of Communication, Culture and Media Studies and the Smithsonian Folklife Festival recorded voices from the #DontMuteDC movement on June 6: (L to R) Donald Campbell, Ron Moten, Dr. Natalie Hopkinson, Dr. Brandi Summers, Tone P, Nico Hobson.

The Social Power of Music Will Take Center Stage at the 53rd Annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival

The D.C. tradition will hit the National Mall for two action-packed days this weekend. Here's what to know about this year's lineup

Robert Friend photographed in 2016 in Los Angeles, California.

Robert Friend, Tuskegee Airman Who Flew in 142 Combat Missions, Dies at 99

The World War II veteran also led Project Blue Book, a classified Air Force investigation of unidentified flying objects, between 1958 and 1963

A crop of a carte-de-visite of Harriet Tubman seated in an interior room.

An Internal Watchdog Will Investigate the Delay of the Harriet Tubman $20 Bill

The bill’s redesign was supposed to be unveiled in 2020, but Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the process would be delayed until 2026

People marching to protest the murder of Rev. James Reeb.

NPR Identifies Fourth Attacker in Infamous Civil Rights Murder

William Portwood admitted his involvement in attacking minister James Reeb to reporters just weeks before his death

This hand-colored carte de visite depicts Virginia L. Molyneaux Hewlett Douglass, who married Frederick Douglass, Jr., the son of the famous African American leader. The mount is inscribed: “Mrs. Fredk Douglass.”

These Photo Albums Offer a Rare Glimpse of 19th-Century Boston’s Black Community

Thanks to the new acquisition, scholars at the Athenaeum library are connecting the dots of the city’s social network of abolitionists

The Statue of Liberty and the new museum building on Liberty Island as seen from the approach by ferry.

The Americans Who Saw Lady Liberty as a False Idol of Broken Promises

Suffragists, African-Americans and Chinese immigrants all criticized the statue as representative of a nation that was not yet free for everyone

The descendants of Cudjo Lewis and Abache (above) heard stories of the ship that tore their ancestors from their homeland and now the wreck of the Clotilda has been confirmed to be found in Alabama's Mobile River.

The 'Clotilda,' the Last Known Slave Ship to Arrive in the U.S., Is Found

The discovery carries intense personal meaning for an Alabama community of descendants of the ship's survivors

Granville Coggs

Granville Coggs Fought Racism in the Military as a Tuskegee Airman

Coggs, who died on May 7, at the age of 93, was among the first black aviators in the U.S. Army Air Corps

Norma Miller photographed in 2015

Norma Miller, the ‘Queen of Swing,’ Has Died at 99

An electric performer of the Lindy Hop, Miller dazzled audiences on stage and screen

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