African American History Collection

AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY

VOICE OF PROMISE THE AFRICAN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE, PAST AND PRESENT

From the exploration of the North American continent to the struggles to end slavery to the Civil Rights movement, the voices and experiences of African Americans are vividly documented in this extensive collection which includes books, videos, and a wide range of research materials.

The American experience has always included African Americans. The African American History collection gives voice to that experience so that general readers and researchers can better understand a significant part of our nation's history.

WHAT YOU WANT, WE'VE GOT

The variety of materials which encompasses the African American History collection is astounding: African history and culture, slavery and the slave trade, the efforts to end slavery, black migrations, the Harlem Renaissance, as well as the experiences of African American military, social, and political organizations. Generations of scholars such as W.E.B. Dubois Carter C. Woodson, Darlene Clark Hinc, Earl Lewis, and Columbus Salley have made major contributions to this field.

RARE BIOGRAPHIES

Researchers will find a wealth of biographical material in such works as Black Biography 1790- 1950k which includes material from hundreds of rare and out-of-print sources. The name, occupation, and place of birth for some 30,000 men and women are included in this enormous work on microfiche.

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN MEMPHIS AND SHELBY COUNTY

Local history sources in the Memphis and Shelby County Room add a significant amount of knowledge to the African American History collection. You'll find books, videos, genealogy records, oral history interviews, newspapers, photographs, and the collected papers of several African American Memphians such as George W. Lee, Maxine A. Smith and Blair T. Hunt.

MULTI-VOLUME INDEXES AND SERIES

A comprehensive name index accompanies the 31 volumes of The American Slave, a compilation of interviews with former slaves conducted by the Works Progress Administration. Multi-volume series also include The African American Encyclopedia, The Negro in American History, Timelines of African American History, Contemporary Black Biography, and Encyclopedia of African American Culture arid History.

AFRICAN AMERICAN CHURCHES. NEIGHBORHOODS, AND WORKERS

Works about local aspects of the African American experience are also included, from histories of predominantly Black churches, to the development of historic Black neighborhoods such as Orange Mound, Greenlaw, and DougIass to the history of the Black labor force in Memphis.

BRANCHES WITH SIMILAR MATERIALS

African American Biographies - Hollywood
African American Children's Biographies - North
African American Nonfiction - Cherokee, Levi
African American Reference - Hollywood, South
Encarta Africana 2000 Cherokee, Frayser, Highland,
Hollywood, Levi, Randolph, South, Whitehaven

The African American History collection is funded thanks to the generous support of Smith and Nephew.

LOCATION

4th Floor, History Department
Benjamin L Hooks Central Library
3030 Poplar Avenue
Memphis, TN 38111

CONTACT

(901) 415-2742 (History Department)
(901) 415-2700 (Library Information Center)
www.memphislibrary.org

OPEN

Monday - Thursday 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Friday - Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Sunday 1 p.m. - 5 p.m.

Mission Statement: The Memphis Public Library & Information Center is in the business of satisfying  the customer's need to know.