Learning About Our Collective History

February is here, and CDPL has a Black History Month display and column to share with you. In previous years, our column addressed the origins of Black History Month as it stands today, and how the federal government started recognizing its significance for the African American communities around the country. This time, I’d like for us to take a trip into our past and understand why people say that Black History is American History – and we will start in our own backyard.

Did you know that between the years of 1881-1947, Crawfordsville was the location of the Lincoln School for Colored Children? In her book “To Remember the Forgotten School” (RA 370.9772 Sullivan Hudson) Shannon Sullivan Hudson states that “the school was created as a place for the education of the Colored and Mulatto youth” under “separate but unequal legislation.” Among its faculty, we encounter the first Black man to graduate from Wabash College.

Montgomery County was also an active Underground Railroad site. From anti-slavery believers to abolitionists and activists, community members hid and assisted Black people in escaping the horrors of slavery. Those who embraced the Quaker traditions and values risked their livelihood and lives. Black families and members of the AME church were instrumental as watchmen, caretakers, and conductors of “Freedom Seekers.” In reading “Abolitionists of the Underground Railroad: Legends from Montgomery County, Indiana” (326.809772 Hud) by Sullivan Hudson, you will learn of local ancestors who assisted many in their journey North to freedom.

Madam C.J. Walker, born Sarah Breedlove, is known for her line of cosmetics and hair care products for Black women, and for being the first female self-made millionaire in the US. She was an African American entrepreneur, philanthropist, and social activist. In 1910 she moved to Indianapolis where she established the headquarters for the Madam C. J. Walker Manufacturing Company. Because of the opportunities afforded to her as a result of her move to Indianapolis, her business thrived. Her official biography “On Her Own Ground: The Life and Times of Madam C.J. Walker” (921 Walker, C.J.) has been adapted into a Netflix series titled “Self-Made.” When in Indianapolis, you can visit the Walker Building, which houses the Madam Walker Legacy Center.

“The Survivors of the Clotilda: The Lost Stories of the Last Captives of the American Slave Trade” by Hannah Durkin (NEW 306.362 Durkin) tells us a history of defiance and survival. These are the stories of the documented survivors of the last slave ship to land on US soil, the last documented survivors of any slave ship. The Clotilda arrived in Mobile Bay, Alabama in July 1860 – more than fifty years after a federal law banned the importation of enslaved Africans and nine months before the start of the Civil War. Durkin traces the stories of the Clotilda’s 110 captives from their kidnapping in Nigeria to the beginning of the Civil Rights movement in Selma, including the founding of Africatown in Northern Mobile. Readers will deepen their knowledge and understanding of the Black experience in America.

Nikole Hannah-Jones is a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and founder of the Center for Journalism and Democracy. She is the creator and editor of “The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story” (973 Six), an anthology of essays, fiction, and poetry by various Black authors that expands the original 2019 project published in the New York Times Magazine. Not without political controversy, and disputed historical facts, the book seeks to include Black people in the conventional narrative of US history as active participants. This book may offer a new perspective to those who appreciate the power and beauty of poetry and fiction but also are open to reflecting on differing interpretations of our national history.

Finally, our display would not be complete without award-winning Black authors, actors, and directors. Come and check out over fifty works of fiction (novels and films), as well as non-fiction (poetry, documentaries, and self-care materials) carefully selected by your library staff.

CDPL is open Monday-Thursday 9a-9p, Friday-Saturday 9a-5p, and Sunday 1p-5p. Stop by the Reference desk on the second floor and we can assist you in finding your next great reads.