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African American History

This Booker T. Washington stamp was part of a series depicting influential educators.

Cool Finds

How Booker T. Washington Became the First African-American on a U.S. Postage Stamp

At the time, postage stamps usually depicted white men

Illustration of the New York slave market.

Trending Today

The New York Slave Revolt of 1712 Was a Bloody Prelude to Decades of Hardship

304 years ago today, a group of black slaves rose up against white colonists in New York

Whitney Plantation, Big House

Inside America’s Auschwitz

A new museum offers a rebuke — and an antidote — to our sanitized history of slavery

1960s family sitting in four-door sedan automobile

“Driving While Black” Has Been Around As Long As Cars Have Existed

Documentarian Ric Burns talks about his forthcoming film about the “Green Book” and other travel guides for African-Americans

Breaking Ground

How the Green Book Helped African-American Tourists Navigate a Segregated Nation

Listing hotels, restaurants and other businesses open to African-Americans, the guide was invaluable for Jim-Crow era travelers

On March 24, 1966, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Harper v. Virginia Board of Electors, that poll taxes for any level of election were unconstitutional.

Breaking Ground

Recalling an Era When the Color of Your Skin Meant You Paid to Vote

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of a ruling that made the poll tax unconstitutional

Royall has fallen—Harvard Law School wants a new logo.

Trending Today

Harvard Law Will Ditch Its Signature Shield Because of Its Slaveholding Roots

Student protests upended another on-campus symbol of racism and forced labor

Harriet Tubman's Hymnal

Breaking Ground

What Makes the Underground Railroad Such a Rich Opportunity for Storytelling

On television and in the new Smithsonian museum, the path to freedom comes alive

Ask Smithsonian 2017

Is the Earthworm Native to the United States and More Questions From Readers

You asked, we answered

Cool Finds

This Unfinished Film Highlights the Daily Lives of Black Americans in the 1960s

‘The American Negro’ shares stories of black surgeons, mothers and workers

In 1972, Ray Charles visited Richard Nixon in the Oval Office

Breaking Ground

Ray Charles Returns to the White House

The blind king of soul once sat down with Richard Nixon, now his music will be performed by a host of musicians for Barack Obama

The Dining Room of the Colored Girls Museum

A Pop-Up Museum Documents the Stories of Philadelphia’s Black Women

Vashti DuBois is looking to build community and pride in underserved neighborhoods, starting with her own

Hospital Apprentices second class Ruth C. Isaacs, Katherine Horton and Inez Patterson (left to right) were the first black WAVES to enter the Hospital Corps School at National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, MD. Photographed March 2, 1945.

Cool Finds

Photographs Document Some of the First Black Women to Serve With the U.S. Navy

Black women were not allowed to join WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) until 1944

New vistas remind visitors that the new museum presents a "view of America through the lens of the African-American experience."

Breaking Ground

Opening Day for the New African American History Museum Is Announced

Thirteen years in the making, the museum says it will open its doors September 24, 2016

Breaking Ground

The National Museum of African American History and Culture: Breaking Ground

Countdown begins towards the historic opening of the new national museum on Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016

Cool Finds

44 Years Ago, Shirley Chisholm Became the First Black Woman to Run For President

Chisholm saw her campaign as a necessary “catalyst for change”

An engraving showing the Pequot War

Cool Finds

Colonial America Depended on the Enslavement of Indigenous People

The role of enslaving Native Americans in early American history is often overlooked

Jesse J. Holland's book, "The Invisibles: The Untold Story of African American Slaves in the White House" offers new insight into lives of these men and women who lived in bondage in the White House.

The Slaves of the White House Finally Get to Have Their Stories Told

Long ignored by historians, the enslaved people of the White House are coming into focus through a new book by Jesse J. Holland

On the eve of Martin Luther King Day weekend, officials from the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture are announcing the recent gift of one of the rare copies of the 1970 Charles Alston sculpture of Martin Luther King.

A Rare and Important Sculpture of Martin Luther King

As the nation pauses to honor the great Civil Rights leader, Charles Alston’s work at NMAAHC is one of his most prominent pieces

A trial at the Destrehan Plantation sentenced 45 men from the uprising to death or to go to New Orleans for future trials.

Trending Today

How a Nearly Successful Slave Revolt Was Intentionally Lost to History

More than 500 slaves fought for their freedom in this oft-overlooked rebellion

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