Celebrate African American History Month 2006--A National Register of Historic Places Feature

[graphic header] National Register of Historic Places African American History Month

Pope family on the front porch (c. 1915) featured in the TwHP lesson, An American Success Story: The Pope House of Raleigh, NC. (Photo courtesy of the Pope House Museum Foundation.)

The National Register of Historic Places is pleased to promote awareness of and appreciation for the historical accomplishments of African Americans during African American History Month. As part of the celebration, this site showcases historic properties listed in the National Register, National Register publications, and National Park units commemorating the events and people, the designs and achievements that help illustrate African Americans' contributions to American history. Join the National Register in paying powerful tribute to the spirit of African Americans.

Foster Auditorium
Photo from National Historic Landmarks collection

Streetscape of Lola St. east in The Campground
Courtesy of Mobile Historic Development Commission, photo by Shaun Wilson

National Historic Landmarks

• Bethel Baptist Church, Parsonage, and Guard House, Birmingham, AL
• Foster Auditorium, Tuscaloosa, AL
•Howard High School , Wilmington, DE

National Register listings

• African American Historic Resources of Prince George's County, Maryland MPS
• Dorsey--Jones House, Northampton, MA
• Hotel Theresa, New York, NY
• The Campground, Mobile, AL

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African American Historic Places

African American Historic Places

(ISBN 0-471-14345-6) describes more than 800 properties in 42 States and 2 U.S. Territories listed in the National Register of Historic Places that have played a role in African American history. Banks, cemeteries, clubs, colleges, forts, homes, hospitals, schools, and shops are but a few of the types of properties explored in this volume, which is an invaluable reference guide for researchers, historians, preservationists, and anyone interested in African American culture. Also included are eight insightful essays on the African American experience, from migration to the role of women, from the Harlem Renaissance to the Civil Rights Movement. (Available from John Wiley & Sons at 1-800-225-5945)

[Photo] Mrs. Nettie Hunt and daughter on the steps of the Supreme Court, Washington, D.C., Nov., 1954.
Mrs. Nettie Hunt and daughter on the steps of the Supreme Court, Washington, D.C., Nov., 1954, featured in Brown v. Board: Five Communities That Changed America. (Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.)

Teaching with Historic Places
This program offers a series of award-winning lesson plans that use places listed in the National Register to enliven the study of history, social studies, and geography. The many ready-to-use lesson plans, available for free downloading, that examine different aspects of African American history include:

The Raleigh, North Carolina, travel itinerary includes Estey Hall, the first building in the United States constructed for the higher education of black women.
Photo by Michael Zirkle Photography, courtesy of Raleigh Historic Districts Commission.

National Register Travel Itineraries
Travel to historic places that convey the courageous and inspiring stories of African Americans from their perseverance along the Underground Railroad to freedoms gained during their struggle for civil rights, from Atlanta's Sweet Auburn to Chicago's Black Metropolis. Be sure to visit the many newly recognized historic places that were added to our itineraries during the past year.

[photo] Coretta Scott King at the Democratic National Convention, New York City, 1976
Photo from Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division

As we celebrate African American History Month, the National Park Service will add two new units to the National Park System, both commemorating African American Heritage: Carter G. Woodson Home National Historic Site in Washington, DC and African Burial Ground National Monument, in New York City. In recent years there has been a growth in the study and interpretation of African American heritage in the National Park Service. In addition to these new sites, many other parks commemorate the important contributions to this nation by African Americans. In memory of the late Coretta Scott King (1929-2006), we are highlighting Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site. According to NPS Southeast Regional Director Patricia Hooks,

“Mrs. King was a stalwart leader who leaves an impenetrable legacy. It was because of Mrs. King's direct activism that the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site was established in Atlanta by the National Park Service on October 10, 1980. That action coupled with her countless other successes in safeguarding the legacy of Dr. King ensures that the vision for human dignity and justice that she shared with her husband will be proclaimed for the inspiration of present and future generations.”

Other African American History Parks

Presidential Proclamation: National African American Heritage Month 2006

African American History Month 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001 and 2000
For more information about African American historic places listed in the National Register, please visit these past features.

Celebrate African American Heritage in America's National Parks

Our Shared History: Celebrating African American History & Culture
An ongoing effort to provide a comprehensive list of African American related resources located within the National Park Service web pages.

Cultural Resources Diversity Program
A highlight of the National Park Service's on-going efforts to reflect the diversity of American culture.

African Reflections on the American Landscape: Identifying and Interpreting Africanisms
Examines African cultural heritage found in the built environment and its interpretation within the NPS cultural resources programs.

National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program
The National Park Service is implementing a national Underground Railroad initiative to coordinate preservation and education efforts nationwide and integrate local historical places, museums, and interpretive programs associated with the Underground Railroad into a mosaic of community, regional, and national stories.

Historic American Buildings Survey/Historic American Engineering Record/Historic American Landscapes Survey (HABS/HAER/HALS)
This program documents important architectural, engineering and industrial sites, and landscapes throughout the United States and its territories. Their collections, including numerous African American sites, are archived at the Library of Congress and available online. You can view these by clicking on the link above and entering the search term "African American."

African American History and Culture: A Remembering
A CRM issue that explores aspects of African American heritage. (PDF format)

Africans and African Americans on Jamestown Island 1619-1803
This on-line book (available as a large pdf) tells the story of Africans of the settlement of Jamestown, Virginia, from their point of arrival in the colony and ends with the establishment of a free black community.

American Visionaries: Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass has been called the father of the civil rights movement. He rose through determination, brilliance, and eloquence to shape the American nation. He was an abolitionist, human rights and women's rights activist, orator, author, journalist, publisher, and social reformer. This exhibit features items owned by Frederick Douglass and highlights his achievements. The items are in the museum and archival collections at the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site at Cedar Hill, Southeast Washington, DC.

American Visionaries: Legends of Tuskegee
Who are the Legends of Tuskegee and what do they have in common? Booker T. Washington, George Washington Carver and the Tuskegee Airmen all came to Tuskegee and created their own legends. Tuskegee is more than a town located in Macon County, Alabama. It was a bold experiment and a site of major African American achievements for over 100 years. This three-part web exhibit highlights the achievements of Washington, Carver and the Tuskegee Airmen.

Martin Luther King Jr., National Historic Site Historic Resource Study
Provides an historical overview of the historic park and identifies the park's cultural resources within its historic context.

A Tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr.
Commemorate Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday and the historic places associated with the struggle for civil rights that captured the attention of the United States and the world.

National Museum of African American History and Culture
This planned museum will give voice to the centrality of the African American experience, and will make it possible for all people to understand the depth, complexity, and promise of the American experience.

African American History Month 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001 and 2000
For more information about African American historic places listed in the National Register, please visit these past features.

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