Historically Black

Collecting experiences of lived black history. A project from The Washington Post — and now a podcast, co-produced with APM Reports.

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If you miss the podcast, check out our live event in DC: a listening session for Episode 3,  “Tracking Down a Slave’s Bill of Sale.” 

“Tracking Down a Slave’s Bill of Sale” follows a Tennessee family as they hunt down their ancestor’s original bill of sale and unearths a surprising history. The listening session will be followed by a panel discussion moderated by Veronica Toney, Washington Post Digital Editor, Features and featuring historian Dr. Edna Greene Medford and Tauhid Chappell, Washington Post Social Media Producer.

Click Here to check out APM’s Podcast Historically Black .

Learn more here: Uncovering the Past: The Story Behind a Slave’s Bill of Sale – Hill Center DC

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How do you submit an interview request to the Historically Black podcast?

Hello! We’re no longer recording episodes of Historically Black. We ended the series in November 2016, with episode 8, “Black Love Stories. If you’re interested in talking to one of the podcast sources or creators, message this Tumblr and we’ll put you in touch. 

If you’re interested in learning more about the stories themselves, subscribe to Historically Black on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts.

[historicallyblack]

Why is the podcast gone?? It was so lovely!

We only made one season of Historically Black, but you can relisten to all eight episodes in celebration of Black History Month! 

Subscribe and listen here or wherever you find podcasts.

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Collection of letters, photographs and family items from the correspondence of AJ Micheaux and Lillie Smith Robinson, circa 1890-1899. Photo courtesy of Janice L. Cotton, 2016. 

These letters are my most cherished possessions.  They are well over 100 years old and have survived a massive flood and a house fire.  My great-grandfather was the uncle of the pioneer black author and filmmaker Oscar Micheaux.  My great-grandmother was Oscar’s mother’s first cousin.  These letters document correspondence between AJ Micheaux and Lillie Smith Robinson; and eventually include a proposal of marriage on Valentine’s Day 1898.

Story from Janice L. Cotton 

[historicallyblack]

We’ve told eight stories of black history – and each began as a submission on this Tumblr.

You can listen to the entire “Historically Black” podcast here: Subscribe on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.

[historicallyblack]

We’ve told eight stories of black history – and each began as a submission on this Tumblr. 

You can listen to the entire “Historically Black” podcast here: Subscribe on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.

[historicallyblack]

Harvey and Catherine Robinson,(née Jones) on their wedding day, September 6, 1957, pictured with Elizabeth and Clarence Jones. Photo courtesy of Robinson family. 

When I look at this photo of my parents on their wedding day, there is only one word that comes to mind…

truth.

See, for me, this photo represents everything that is not readily shown in the media: Black couples who got married years ago and are still married today. For me, the truth of this photo is that my four siblings and I have watched our parents remain together through sickness and in health, and for richer and for poorer.  And five children, nine grandchildren, one great grandson and almost 60 years later, my siblings and I also know that only death will do them part.

I once heard someone say that black love is revolutionary, and in a world where it seems so many outside forces are tearing up black families, the fact that my parents have managed to stay together so long is revolutionary indeed. 

So yeah, this photo is proof that black love is beautiful, but more than that, for me, it’s proof that black love is the truth.

Story from Geveryl Robinson

[historicallyblack]

This week’s episode, narrated by Tracy Clayton and Heben Nigatu, explores stories of black romance – and why it matters when we see these stories reflected back to us in popular culture.

This is our final episode! We’ve told eight stories of black history, as seen through the submissions on this Tumblr. You can listen to all eight episodes here on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.

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Lucy Parsons’s grave in Forest Homes Cemetery, Illi., October 2015. Photo courtesy of Thuc Nguyen.

Resting place of Lucy Parsons, near that of Emma Goldman. Lucy Parsons was such an astounding woman of color who originated the “sit in” strike, who led marches, who wasn’t afraid to speak up and got punished for it. She was such a survivor in the face of massive oppression, leading changes to American labor laws and workers’ rights.

Last Halloween weekend (2015), my pup and I went to visit Lucy’s grave at Waldheim Cemetery outside of Chicago!

Story from Thuc Nguyen

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Episode 8: Black Love Stories

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This week's episode, narrated by Tracy Clayton and Heben Nigatu, explores stories of black romance -- and why it matters when we see these stories reflected back to us in popular culture.

This is our final episode! We've told eight stories of black history, as seen through the submissions on this Tumblr. You can listen to all eight episodes here: Subscribe on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.

[historicallyblack]

Bianca Clark and Debra Clark-Russell, May 2013. Photo courtesy of Clark-Russell family. 

My children and a statue of their great great great grand father Rev. Dr. William Hooper Councill Esq. founder of Alabama A&M University, second HBCU in the Nation!

Story from Debra Clark-Russell

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This week’s episode, narrated by Tracy Clayton and Heben Nigatu, follows Debra Clark-Russell’s ancestor William Hooper Councill. In 1875, Councill founded Alabama A&M, an HBCU in Hunstville, Ala. – the town in which he was once enslaved.

Each Monday we’re bringing you a new episode from Historically Black. Subscribe on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.

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Florida State Senate, 1875. Photo courtesy of the Florida Senate Archive.

This is a photo of the Florida State Senate in 1875. That’s my great great grandfather, Thomas Warren Long, holding a hat in the front row.

T.W. Long was born into slavery in January, 1839 in Jacksonville, Florida. In 1860, he was enslaved by John Roberts, along with 6 others, including his wife, Mary Cornelia. But in 1862, T.W. joined up with the Union soldiers when they arrived in Florida. Before walking to South Carolina to officially enlist with the 33rd US Colored Infantry, he “stole” and escaped with his wife and 2 daughters. 

While fighting in the Civil War, T.W. taught himself to read with the Bible. He became a leader and inspiration among his fellow soldiers, a position that he maintained in his community when he returned home to Jacksonville as a free man after the war. He went on to walk through the state of Florida to start some of the country’s first African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) churches.

Due to his prominence within Florida’s Black community, it made sense for T.W. to seek public office. During the era of Reconstruction, prior to the enactment of Black Codes in Florida and nationwide, Black folks took advantage of their political clout. My ancestor was no exception. He was a Florida state senator from 1873 until 1879. And in spite of major setbacks that resulted from white backlash against black autonomy, he went on to have a thriving career as an A.M.E. church minister. Later, he was a founding Board Member of Edward Waters College. And he owned multiple plots of land by the time of his death in 1917.

This photo is a source of great pride for me and my family. There T.W. stands, just 10 years after the Civil War and 13 years after escaping to freedom with his family, looking all types of proud, cool and respected. That hat. That stance. That expression. As if he thought, “what ya’ll know about this greatness standing before you?”

I feel so fortunate to stand on the shoulders of T.W. and so many other powerful men and women in my family tree. They remind me everyday how to truly take advantage of my freedom.

Story from Dana Saxon 

[washingtonpost]

William Hooper Councill was once standing on the slave auction block in Hunstville, Ala. But by his death in the late 1800s, he was a free man, owned a plot of land and founded Alabama A&M, a historically black college, in the same town where he was once a slave.

Debra Clark-Russell, Councill’s great-great-granddaughter, submitted a photo of her first visit to campus to Historically Black, The Washington Post Tumblr project. She heard of Councill’s work from family stories, and several of her relatives were guests on the campus and even acted as student ambassadors for prospective black youth in the early 1970s. But Clark-Russell had never set foot on the land that was his life’s work. At age 49, she visited the Alabama A&M campus with her two children for the first time.

Read more: Her great-great-grandfather was born a slave. Almost 200 years later, she visited the HBCU he built.

Each Monday we’re bringing you a new episode from Historically Black. Subscribe on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.

[washingtonpost]

William Hooper Councill was once standing on the slave auction block in Hunstville, Ala. But by his death in the late 1800s, he was a free man, owned a plot of land and founded Alabama A&M, a historically black college, in the same town where he was once a slave.

Debra Clark-Russell, Councill’s great-great-granddaughter, submitted a photo of her first visit to campus to Historically Black, The Washington Post Tumblr project. She heard of Councill’s work from family stories, and several of her relatives were guests on the campus and even acted as student ambassadors for prospective black youth in the early 1970s. But Clark-Russell had never set foot on the land that was his life’s work. At age 49, she visited the Alabama A&M campus with her two children for the first time.

Read more: Her great-great-grandfather was born a slave. Almost 200 years later, she visited the HBCU he built.

Each Monday we’re bringing you a new episode from Historically Black. Subscribe on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.

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Episode 7: The Path to Founding an HBCU

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This week's episode, narrated by Tracy Clayton and Heben Nigatu, follows Debra Clark-Russell's ancestor William Hooper Councill. In 1875, Councill founded Alabama A&M, an HBCU in Hunstville, Ala. -- the town in which he was once enslaved.

Each Monday we’re bringing you a new episode from Historically Black. Subscribe on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.

[historicallyblack]

Photo of Marcelle Hutchins and her twin sister Danielle Jovanovic as children, Cameroon, 1989. Photo courtesy of Marcelle Hutchins.

The photo is of my mother holding my sister and me in Cameroon.  My family moved to America in 1997 so that I could get open heart surgery. I was 8 years old. Soon after my surgery we made the decision to stay in America. But for as long as I can remember I’ve always been told that I’m not “black enough” from various people – black and white – because of the way I talk, dress, my Caucasian adopted family and my relationship with men of different races and ethnic backgrounds.

To be told that I’m not “black enough” is alien to me, and for years I battled with my identity as a black woman in America.

Growing up in Africa race was never a topic of discussion, and when we moved to Maine, I was quickly reminded of the color of my skin.

What does it mean to be black in America? It means to disassociate myself from stereotypes because they don’t define my blackness.

Story from Marcelle Hutchins

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In the newest episode of Historically Black, narrator Roxane Gay tells the stories of four women exploring black identity. Marcelle Hutchins grew up being told she wasn’t “black enough.” She tells her own story in the podcast episode. 

Each Monday we’re bringing you a new episode from Historically Black. Subscribe on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.

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Jewelry tin, date unknown. Photo courtesy of Terri Abney.

My grandmother was born in 1945. She raised me, as a mother would. She didn’t have a lot of money, so when she bought something she kept it. She would always say, “Terri, you walk so hard in your shoes” or “You play too rough in your clothes,” meaning that they should be taken care of to last. Now I will hear her voice in the back of my mind, or see her placing the shoes back in the boxes and re-covering the clothes. She cared after everything and every day I try to get a little better at caring for my things. Keeping something that once belonged to her, I know its importance; her spirit continues to live and thrive … an item of hers fills a space in a world she is no longer in. There is a metal tin can that my grandmother used to keep jewelry in. Now I do. It has flowers on it and I feel it represents her personality. I have some of her things – her wedding band, a hair clip – with some of mine like my diamond cross necklace, solidifying my faith. I can put both my hands into the can and make the shape of a heart. “God sees the heart” is something she taught me, and she and God are ordering my path. I see God’s hand and her hand as well.

Story from Terri Abney, who plays Garnet Jeter in Loving, the new film telling the story behind the landmark interracial marriage case Loving v. Virginia.

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Family photograph, 1985, Benin City, Nigeria. Photo courtesy of Ani family.

This photo of my mother was taken at her job at the waiting area of Uncle Slim Printing Press in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria in 1985. She was 21 years old and had moved from Unogbo village to the city, and would later move to America in 1992.

This photo of my mother symbolizes the cultural diffusion of the time and how the global influence of black American pop culture in the 1980s parallels the cultural exchange between Africa and America in the new millennium.

Someone once told me that the world is more exposed to America than America is to the world. But now, I see glimpses of Africa in America more every day. Traditional African style has permeated modern black style in America, as the colorful wax prints have ascended to a global fashion phenomenon. West Africans use ankara fabric for everyday clothing. The more formal aso oke fabric is used to make women’s wrapper sets in Nigeria for celebratory special occasions.

Story from Ivie Ani, @cashmerethoughtsss

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In the newest episode of Historically Black, narrator Roxane Gay tells the stories of four women exploring black identity. @cashmerethoughtsss tells the story behind this photo of her mother. 

Each Monday we’re bringing you a new episode from Historically Black. Subscribe on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.

[historicallyblack]

Christmas tree topper, circa 2000, New Paltz, NY. Photo courtesy of Tucker family.

We’ve had this Black Santa Christmas tree topper for as long as I can remember. Growing up in a very white town with a white mom means a lot of my personal black history was created for me. Representation was (and is) a way that my mother made sure my brother and I knew we weren’t the only kids of color around, that there was nothing wrong with us, that we were a part of a people, of a culture. 

Story from Christina Tucker

[historicallyblack]

In the newest episode of Historically Black, narrator Roxane Gay tells the stories of four women exploring black identity. Christina Tucker of @theblackhotties talks about growing up in a predominantly white town, where her mother took great care to surround her children with black angel Christmas decorations, black Santa tree toppers and even black emojis. 

Each Monday we’re bringing you a new episode from Historically Black. Subscribe on iTunes or wherever else you listen to podcasts, and check back here for more info on the episodes.