Presenting feel-good news stories to round out our posts for the year and say farewell to 2020 on a positive note! Hopefully, these uplifting, heartfelt, funny, and touching stories from yesterday’s news in Chronicling America* serve as a diversion from the darker news of this year… In 1947, after scouring newspaper stories around the country, […]
One hundred years ago, the world was a very different place. But many things from 1920 changed the course of history and, in a lot of ways, helped to shape the world we live in today.
This guest post by 2020 Junior Fellow Sophia Southard provides a history of African American newspapers with examples from our rich collections. Read more about how these black-owned businesses have provided voices for their communities from 1827 until today.
There are some cases that capture the public’s imagination and cause a media frenzy. There’s the political trials, which cover treason, spying, dissidents, and radicals. Celebrity trials that involve high-profile people, whether victims or defendants. And the “whodunit” trials that are surrounded in mystery. Whatever the case, 19th century America has its share of legendary trials that captivate the public interest and newspapers deliver all the sensational details.
On July 5, 1852, eminent African American abolitionist Frederick Douglass delivered a brilliant speech that was a powerful indictment of American slavery and racism. Read the speech as printed within days in his own newspaper.
This year’s celebration of Pride Month wrapped up this week and we wanted to highlight an important figure in the history of blues music whose story has often been overlooked. Gertrude “Ma” Rainey was hailed as the “Mother of the Blues” and was a bisexual Black singer who has and continues to inspire generations of musicians. […]
In honor of Juneteenth, we highlight our Headlines and Heroes blogs focusing on African American history and culture, ranging from a look at fugitive slave ads to our acquisition of a rare comic book series, Negro Romance.
Harriet Tubman escaped slavery on Maryland’s Eastern Shore in 1849. She then returned there multiple times, risking her life to bring others to freedom as a renowned conductor on the Underground Railroad.
Madam C.J. Walker (1867-1919) was one of the first American women to become a self-made millionaire through her company, Madam C.J. Walker Manufacturing. Though she had no formal education, she gained a wide reputation as an African American entrepreneur in the cosmetics industry and manufacturer of a hair remedy, which she coined the “Walker System.” […]
As COVID-19 changes our world, we rely on our medical community to care for us and our loved ones more than ever. But their names rarely make the headlines despite their tireless efforts and personal risk. So in honor of National Nurses Week, we are dedicating this issue to all of those nurses who are […]