Black West by William Lorenz Katz

The American West: no period in our history has defined and shaped us more as a nation. Unique to the U.S., the Old West exerts a power on the American imagination that can still be seen in almost every aspect of our culture. Sadly, as is the case with most other periods, historic acknowledgment of [...]

Chicago Blues, As Seen From the Inside

A stunning collection of photographs from Chicago’s foremost blues photographer When Raeburn Flerlage was asked to take a picture of Memphis Slim in 1959, he began a career that would produce some of the most fascinating and important photos ever taken of blues musicians. By shooting concert performances, studio sessions, interviews, and club shows, he [...]

“Black Eden” and “Idlewild: The Black Eden of Michigan”

“Black Eden” chronicles the history of Idlewild, one of the many American black communities founded during the aftermath of the Civil War. As Michigan’s most popular black resort, Idlewild functioned as a gathering place for African Americans and, more important, as a touchstone of black identity and culture. Benjamin C. Wilson and Lewis Walker examine [...]

An American Beach for African Americans

Synopis: “In the only complete history of Florida’s American Beach to date, Marsha Dean Phelts draws together personal interviews, photos, newspaper articles, memoirs, maps, and official documents to reconstruct the character and traditions of Amelia Island’s 200-acre African American community. In its heyday, when other beaches grudgingly provided only limited access, black vacationers traveled as [...]

Bronzeville, Black Chicago in Pictures, 1941-1943.

Synopsis: In the 1940s, the federal government sent a group of gifted photographers across the United States to record and publicize conditions in cities, towns, and rural areas that were the destination of an unprecedented migration. Two of these photographers, Russell Lee and Edwin Rosskam, spent time on Chicago’s South Side, eventually producing over a [...]

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