HTY 141 & HTY 142: African American History: Research Tools

This collection, part of the Jean Byers Sampson Center for Diversity in Maine, consists of collections of personal papers and archives of organizations active in the African American community of Maine. The bulk of the manuscript collection dates from the 20th century to the present, but a few collections contain items from the 19th century.

Learn about John Brown Russwurm (1799-1851), Bowdoin College's first African American graduate, and the third African -American graduated from an American college.

This Duke U. research center collects, preserves and promotes the use of published and unpublished primary sources for the exploration, understanding and advancement of scholarship of the history and culture of Africa and people of the African Diaspora in the Americas.

Northeast Archives of Folklore and Oral History at the Maine Folklife Center, University of Maine in Orono

The exhibition The African American Odyssey: A Quest for Full Citizenship, showcases the incomparable African American collections of the Library of Congress.

In their words, our shared history. (video)
When the Civil War ended in 1865, more than 4 million slaves were set free. By the late 1930's, 100,000 former slaves were still alive. In the midst of the Great Depression, journalists and writers traveled the country to record the memories of the last generation of African-Americans born into bondage. Over 2,000 interviews were transcribed as spoken, in the vernacular of the time, to form a unique historical record.

A documentary about black history in Maine. (video)

Images from the Maine Historical Society. (photos)

Primary sources, educational materials from libraries, archives, museums, and public broadcasters.

Focuses on films by and about African Americans and selections of short films from the 1890s-1900s. Search to find information about each title, such as year of release, plot summary, and genre.

Resources, links, & exhibits.