The Alexandria Black History Museum presents lectures, tours of
the Museum and other activities relating the history and accomplishments
of African Americans in Alexandria. Paintings, photographs, books and
other memorabilia document the African American experience in Alexandria
and Virginia from 1749 to the present. The Museum also has a special
collection on the history and graduates of the Parker-Gray School.
The Alexandria Black History Museum's building, itself, is one of the key
artifacts in the collection. This includes the former Robert Robinson
Library which was the segregated Black public library in Alexandria. The
Robinson Library is 700 square feet and contains the museum's permanent
collection. In 1995, the Museum opened the Watson Reading Room next to
the museum. The Watson Reading Room site is also historically significant
to the collection as the original building was an early school and church
for the African American community. A series of sculptures, by well-known
artist and sculptor Jerome Meadows for the Alexandria African American
Heritage Park, is also part of the museum’s collection and are
maintained by the staff.
The entire stored collection includes over 3000 items.
These items include:
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Original
documents that relate to the establishment of the first public
schools for African American students in 1867, Civil War documents
relating to the "Colored Soldiers" and original documents that detail
the history of most of the local organizations in Alexandria.
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African
objects: Wood carvings from
the west coast of Africa. |
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Religious
objects: a one-hundred year old pump organ used at a local
Baptist Church and a one-hundred year-old church bible, support
the interpretation of African American churches in the 19th century.
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The
Moss Kendrix Collection:a collection of over 900 photographs
and 30 cubic feet of documents which examine the minority advertising
market of 1950s and 1960s. The Moss Kendrix Organization, based
in Washington, D.C., was one of the major black public relations
firms in the nation. Newspapers and magazines that are no longer
in print are a part of the collection. Among the photographs in
the collection are unpublished celebrity commercial stills. For
more information on Moss Kendrix and the African American image
in advertising, click
here. |
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Recent
acquisitions include a circa 1860 bronze fan shaped mirror
and 19th-century purses which belonged to one of the oldest
African American families in the City. The U.S. Postal Service
also donated a collection of stamps from its African American
stamp series. Also new to the collection are photographs from
a year-long exploration of worship in Alexandria African American
churches by local photographer Nina Tisara. Photographs by Eldrich
Murphy, an African-American photographer who worked in Alexandria
during the 1940s and 50s, are another new addition.
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Photographs:
The museum’s photograph collection has been growing rapidly. These
photographs are being used to create slide presentations and temporary
exhibits to showcase different aspects of African American history.
These photographs supplement the Watson Reading Room collection
which has more than 2000 holdings on African American History
and culture.
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