History | Online Exhibits | Changing Exhibits
- Securing the Blessings of Liberty The first phase of this exhibit, entitled “Freedoms Taken & Liberties Lost,” begins in 17th century Africa and ends in 1810 Alexandria. It details the lives and experiences of the earliest individuals of African descent residing in Alexandria. This exhibit opened at the museum in summer 2006.
- Serving with Distinction: African Americans in Alexandria Public Safety This temporary exhibit opened at the museum in summer 2006.
- Bonds to Alexandria's Black Public Education, 1800-1965 Based on an early exhibit at the museum, this online exhibit examines the role of the church and the development of African-American schools in Northern Virginia.
The Alexandria Black History Museum consists of two galleries offering visitors a chance to learn about Alexandria's past and present. The Parker-Gray Gallery is the changing exhibition gallery. Traveling exhibitions and short-term local exhibitions are presented in this gallery, where the shows change every three to four months. The second gallery is the Robert Robinson Library. This gallery is in the oldest part of the building. Built in 1940, the Robert Robinson Library originally served as the library for Alexandria's African American citizens during segregation. Currently, the Robert Robinson Library is used as the Museum's permanent exhibition gallery, and contains an exhibition on African American business in Alexandria.
The History of the Robert H. Robinson Library
Click to enlargeFrom 1940-1960, The Robert Robinson Library was the place where most African Americans came to read and study. The City of Alexandria integrated its library system in 1944, but most African Americans did not feel comfortable using the system. The Robert Robinson Library is now used as gallery space.
Click to enlargeThis photograph shows five young men, who in 1939 were arrested after staging a peaceful sit-in at the Queen Street (Barrett) Library after being denied library cards. Although the men were arrested, the charges against them were dropped.
The lawyer who defended the young men was Samuel Wilbert Tucker. His brother, Otto Tucker, was one of the five men arrested during the sit-in. Mr. Tucker was a famous civil rights lawyer who worked with attorney Oliver Hill in Richmond, Virginia. Tucker and Hill, along with lawyer (and future Supreme Court Justice) Thurgood Marshall, were part of the legal team responsible for the landmark civil rights decision in Brown v. Board of Education .
Built during the 1989 renovation of the Museum, the Parker-Gray Gallery of the Alexandria Black History Museum offers changing exhibitions with a focus on the contemporary African American experience in Alexandria, and the greater metropolitan area.
For information on the Museum's current exhibitions, check our Calendar and Press Releases.
