Ebony Magazine’s Special Issues
At a time when depictions of African Americans in the media were largely negative and used racist stereotypes, Chicago-based Ebony magazine was founded in 1945 by John H. Johnson at … Learn More
Tag: Black history
Chicago History Museum Announces New Exhibition “Designing for Change: Chicago Protest Art of the 1960s–70s”
A dynamic experience that will transport visitors back to a pivotal time in Chicago and US history and connect to the present. CHICAGO (March 14, 2024) – The Chicago History … Learn More
The Congressional Career of Arthur Wergs Mitchell
The Arthur W. Mitchell papers in our Abakanowicz Research Center document his time representing Chicago’s First Congressional District from 1935 to 1943, during which he was the only African American … Learn More
The Bronzeville Origins of Black History Month
In 1913, a sturdy brick and limestone building was completed and opened to the public; standing at five stories tall, what would come to be known as the Wabash Avenue … Learn More
Ella G. Berry: Civic and Political Activist
Portrait of Ella G. Berry. Published on in The Story of the Illinois Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs 1900–1922 by Elizabeth Lindsey Davis, 1922. CHM, ICHi-177302A Ella Berry was born … Learn More
Timuel Black, Weaver of Life and History
Last week, noted Chicago historian, teacher, mentor, author, and civil rights leader Timuel Black died at the age of 102. Here, Warren Chapman, the second vice chair of the Chicago … Learn More
The Hidden Work of Everyday People in the Afro-American Patrolmen’s League
In this blog post, CHM intern Kirsten Lopez shares what she learned while preparing to interview a retired Afro-American Patrolmen’s League member as part of an ongoing CHM oral history … Learn More
Researching the Afro-American Patrolmen’s League
In this blog post, CHM intern Rebekah Otto reflects on her experience working on CHM’s ongoing Afro-American Patrolmen’s League Oral History Project. AAPL vinyl banner that reads, 1961–68. CHM, ICHi-170336 … Learn More
“A voice in making the law”
Naomi Anderson, c. 1893, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, The New York Public Library Digital Collections. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47df-755b-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99 On March 1, 1843, Naomi … Learn More
Concert is Power: The Opposition to Illinois’ “Black Laws”
From left: portrait of Mary Richardson Jones, c. 1865. Aaron E. Darling, painter. CHM, ICHi-062628. Portrait of John Jones, c. 1865. Aaron E. Darling, painter. CHM, ICHi-062485. In February 1853, a new law took effect that prohibited … Learn More