10th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina

Today’s Record of the Week was contributed by Dr. Tina L. Ligon, Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland Hurricane Katrina formed on August 23, 2005, over the Bahamas in the Caribbean. It was the 11th tropical depression and the 5th named hurricane of the season. Within five days of formation, this tropical … Continue reading 10th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina

Julian Bond, A Soldier for Civil Rights

Today’s Tribute was written by Dr. Tina Ligon, Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland   “I do think that some of us began to realize that this was going to be a long struggle that was going to go on for decades, and you'd have to knuckle down. A lot of people … Continue reading Julian Bond, A Soldier for Civil Rights

DOJ Litigation Case File on the Watts Riot (August 11-17, 1965)

Today’s blog was written by Dr. Tina L. Ligon, Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland During the World War II years, thousands of southern African Americans relocated to the West Coast in search of employment in the defense industries and to escape the Jim Crow South. Many of the migrants made the … Continue reading DOJ Litigation Case File on the Watts Riot (August 11-17, 1965)

50th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965

This blog post was written by Dr. Tina L. Ligon, Supervisory Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland     On August 6, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the Voting Rights Act. This act helped disenfranchised African Americans to register to vote and gave the federal government power to oversee … Continue reading 50th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965

Ambrose Caliver, A Leader in 20th Century Black Education

Today’s blog was written by Kate Palm, summer intern at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland and graduate student at the Pratt Institute School of Information and Library Science Dr. Ambrose Caliver (1894-1962) was a national leader in the twentieth-century field of black education who spent over thirty years in the U. S. Office … Continue reading Ambrose Caliver, A Leader in 20th Century Black Education

USS Mason, USS PC-1264, and the African-American Crews during World War II

Today's blog was written by Dr. Tina L. Ligon, Archivist and Kevin Bradley, Archives Technician at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland In 1941, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) wrote a letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt demanding that African Americans be used in roles other than messmen in … Continue reading USS Mason, USS PC-1264, and the African-American Crews during World War II

W. E. B. Du Bois, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the Study of Black Life

Today’s blog was written by Mary Kate Eckles, summer intern at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland and a liberal arts student at St. John’s College W. E. B. Du Bois (1868-1963) was one of the leading academics on black life in the United States. He was a historian, sociologist, educator and the first … Continue reading W. E. B. Du Bois, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the Study of Black Life

Record of the Week: Bayard Rustin, Civil Rights and Gay Rights Activist

In Celebration of LGBT Pride Month The post was written by Dr. Tina Ligon, Archivist at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland Bayard Rustin was a believer in non-violence, a socialist, a civil rights organizer, and an openly gay black man. He was born on March 17, 1912 in West Chester, Pennsylvania and raised … Continue reading Record of the Week: Bayard Rustin, Civil Rights and Gay Rights Activist

Sold for the Benefit of the Captors

Today’s blog was written by genealogist Renée K. Carl   As a genealogist with a background in cultural anthropology, I relish the research project that allows me to put information about a family into the context of the times. When a genealogist in Canada put out a call for assistance on a project regarding his ancestor’s … Continue reading Sold for the Benefit of the Captors

Master Charles Michael Lee, A Patriot

This post was written by Netisha Currie, Archives Specialist at the National Archives at College Park Sometimes, instead of digging through boxes to find an interesting record, a record will find you. While walking through the offices of the Still Pictures branch in College Park, I saw an enlarged print on the wall of this … Continue reading Master Charles Michael Lee, A Patriot