Robert H. Robinson Library (Alexandria, Va.)

Robert H. Robinson Library
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<p>Robert H. Robinson Library was one of the earliest libraries for Colored People in the United States, during the Jim Crow laws era. Robert Robinson Library was located at 902 Wythe St., Alexandria, Virginia, and was operated since 1940 by the City of Alexandria.
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<p>History
<p>The library was named in honor of Rev. Robert H. Robinson, an African American minister, educator, and activist. He was the grandson of Caroline Branham, an enslaved women held by George and Martha Washington.[1]
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<p>In 1939 sit-in at the new and "whites only" Alexandria, Virginia public library (Kate Waller Barret branch) organized by the lawyer Samuel Wilbert Tucker since the library's budget was collected from the taxes paid by every American citizen.[2][3]
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<p>The original goal of Lawyer Samuel Wilbert Tucker was to allow African Americans to use Virginia's Public Library, but instead of it was built a small and segregated library—Robert Robinson Library. Its construction was completed in 1940 and functioned as the first "separate but equal" library for African Americans in the segregated city.
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<p>Librarians and collection
<p>Since the time of its foundation, its staff was formed by professional librarians who graduated from many American universities and the books were served to students of different levels from kindergarten up to university.
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<p>Importance
<p>The city's project followed a 1939 sit-in by African Americans and arrests at the whites-only Alexandria Library.
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<p>The 1939 event is commonly cited as the first non-violent protest by African Americans against racial segregation.
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<p>Current status
<p>Since the libraries were desegregated, Robert H. Robinson Library became part of the Alexandria Black History Museum.
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<p>The museum has changing exhibitions on local and national topics related to African Americans.[4]
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<p>The museum also operates the Alexandria African American Heritage Park, a 9-acre (3.6 ha) park at 500 Holland Lane, which contains a 1-acre (0.40 ha) nineteenth-century African-American cemetery that was buried under a city landfill in the 1960s.[5]
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<p>See also
<p>Contrabands and Freedmen Cemetery
<p>Franklin and Armfield Office
<p>Alexandria Black History Museum
<p>Frederick Douglass National Historic Site
<p>National Museum of African American History and Culture
<p>National Museum of African Art
<p>Anacostia Community Museum
<p>Founders Library
<p>List of museums focused on African Americans
<p>Further reading
<p>Roberts, Jay (January 9, 2010). "Alexandria Black History Museum". Retrieved February 15, 2017.
<p>External links
<p>Official Web site of the Alexandria Black History Museum
<p>References
<p>"Caroline Branham". Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial. National Park Service. January 21, 2021. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
<p>"America's First Sit-Down Strike: The 1939 Alexandria Library Sit-In". City of Alexandria. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
<p>"1939 Alexandria Library Sit-in". City of Alexandria. Retrieved 2010-09-04.
<p>City of Alexandria, VA (2017). "Past Exhibitions at the Alexandria Black History Museum". Retrieved February 14, 2018.
<p> Anderson, Adrian A.; Westover, Allan (1992). "THE AFRICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE PARK, ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA" (PDF). Tellus Consultants. Retrieved February 14, 2018.

African American History Division
<p>This new division, formed in 2023, will ensure the continued inclusion of Black History in City museums and public programming, as well as advancing the City’s goal of building a welcoming community through equity and inclusion.
<p>Page updated on September 18, 2023 at 2:02 PM
<p>
<p>African American History Division
<p>Since 1982, the role of the Office of Historic Alexandria has expanded beyond the walls of its museums to historic interpretation of the whole City. The African American History division is a part of a larger reorganization of OHA, which will prioritize resident outreach, improve visitor experience, and regularly engage residents in City initiatives. This new division will ensure the continued inclusion of Black History in City museums and public programming, as well as advancing the City’s goal of building a welcoming community through equity and inclusion.

80 Years Ago: Blacks-Only Robinson Library Opens on Wythe Street
<p>Today marks eight decades since African American patrons could register for library cards
<p> Mary Wadland April 24, 2020
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<p>ALEXANDRIA, VA – Less than a year after the 1939 Library Sit-in was organized by Samuel Tucker Jr., African Americans could finally register for library cards. The Robert H. Robinson Library opened on April 24, 1940, at the corner of Wythe and N. Alfred Street.
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<p>“The rushed approval and quick construction of the [Robinson] Library satisfied the desire of the Alexandria Library Board of Directors and the City Council to maintain the Kate Waller Barrett Library as a whites-only institution,” the City said in a press release this morning.
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<p>“The fact that 600 African American Alexandrians obtained library cards in the first year of its operation is a testament to its role in our community. The majority of these early patrons were children.”
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<p> Separate But Unequal
<p>While the facilities and resources were separate and unequal to those at the whites-only branch, this place of learning was important to Alexandria’s African American community.
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<p>It offered story hours for kids, an adult reading club, and a gathering space. Over time, the Alexandria Library system was quietly and gradually integrated. First, in 1959 for adults and high school students, then in July 1962, it integrated fully.
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<p>Immediately following the full integration of the libraries, the Robert Robinson Library operated as Alexandria’s Bookmobile Station. It later served as the Alexandria Black History Resource Center between 1983 and 2004.
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<p>Since 2005, the building has served as the Alexandria Black History Museum—an important community asset, then and now. For more info, visit: https://www.alexandriava.gov/114283

Robert Robinson Library
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<p>Celebrate Robinson Library!
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<p>This week we have the opportunity to honor Robinson Library. While many people know of the local history of the Kate Waller Barrett Library, of the 1939 Library Sit-In, and of the creation of the Robinson Library as a “separate but equal” institution, many people do not know that there was a long history of advocacy for a library to serve the African American community. The Robinson Library was the culmination of advocacy dating back to 1875 when the Virginia Historical and Literary Society served as the first “colored” library. From 1888 to 1919, Magnus Robinson and his brother, Robert B. Robinson utilized various organizations to advocate for funding for a library for the African American community. Thus, when the library board responded to the Sit-In in the August 28th issue of the Alexandria Gazette with "it took 143 years for the white people to obtain the library the city now has. Our colored citizens have been seeking a similar privilege for only 2 years," they were ignoring a long history of activism.
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<p>Even though a “separate but equal” library was not the result Sit-In organizer and attorney Samuel W. Tucker had hoped for, Robinson Library was still a vital and desired resource for the African American community. Designed by Ward Brown of Alexandria, the building was completed for approximately $4,500 in comparison to the $15,000 price tag for Barrett Library. Once constructed, the Robinson Library was named for Robert H. Robinson. It was managed by Evelyn Roper Beam, a fully credentialed African American librarian. Beam was paid $720 per year compared with the $1,940 salary for Barrett’s assistant librarian. From Board records, it is apparent there was a quick succession of librarians for Robinson Library until 1944 when Sara Murphy Carr took over management of the library. Carr, just as her predecessors, was not allowed to address the Library Board directly. Instead, she had to submit written reports to Barrett's Librarian Katherine A. Scoggin. However, her fortitude kept her in the position and provided stability and a much beloved story hour for children. Upon her departure, the library was unable to secure another credentialed librarian, so Mrs. Gladys Davis, an Alexandria native, became the librarian. She worked for the Alexandria Library for more than 60 years.
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<p>Integration of the Robinson and Barrett Libraries
<p>Integration in Alexandria Libraries began in February 1959, when African American high school students and adults could use Barrett Library. By 1960, Robinson Library was a children’s branch, but it closed on 1 July 1962 when children’s services moved to Barrett library. Eventually, the building became the Alexandria Black History Museum we know today as a testament to the resilience of Alexandria’s African American community.


As we celebrate National Library Week during this highly unusual year, think about the effort put forth by earlier generations to have equal access to library services. The public library - find your place at the library and the library at your place.

1939 ALEXANDRIA LIBRARY SIT-IN
<p>One of America's first sit-ins took place at Alexandria Library on August 21, 1939.
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<p>The present-day Barrett Branch Library on Queen Street (originally called Alexandria Library) was the only library building in a city with a population of 33,000. It was built in 1937 with money donated by the family of Kate Waller Barrett (1857-1925). However, as with many public services in the country financed by the community's taxpayers, the library was only available to whites. African Americans, though they voted and paid taxes, were not allowed to use the library.
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<p>Samuel Wilbert Tucker (1913-1990), who grew up only two blocks from the Barrett Branch, graduated from Howard University and prepared for the field of law. He passed Virginia’s bar exam at age 20, but Tucker, an outstanding student, was too young to be sworn in. A year later, he took the oath. Tucker tried for several years to establish equal access to community resources, but the white community, including the Alexandria Library Board, remained unswayed.
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<p>In the summer of 1939, Tucker, now 26, developed a strategy by preparing a select group of African American men for a deliberate act of civil disobedience. Ranging in age from 18 to 22 years, these Alexandrians challenged the status quo.
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<p>On August 21, 1939, Alexandria Library staff and patrons watched as a young African American entered and asked to register for a library card. When he was refused, he picked up a book, took a seat, and began to read. Minutes later, another well-groomed and polite young adult repeated these actions. This continued until William Evans, Otto L. Tucker (the attorney’s brother), Edward Gaddis, Morris Murray and Clarence Strange occupied five tables. Each one sat in silence and read a book.
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<p>Flustered library staff called the police. As planned, Robert Strange (his older brother Clarence was one of the silent protestors) ran to Tucker's law office to let him know that the police were on their way. Officers arrived and escorted the protestors from the library, arresting them for “disorderly conduct.” Samuel Tucker had called a photographer, who took a photo, and then quickly arranged for their release. He planned to challenge the city in court on the grounds that all citizens were entitled to equal access to public services. But the city, in an effort to resist integration, stalled the process with intense negotiations.
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<p>Virtually ignored by most newspapers, the case continued to be widely reported in the African American press across the country. Tucker became seriously ill and was unable to pursue the case. In 1940, community leaders proceeded without the young attorney’s involvement and accepted the promise of a “separate but equal” library. Tucker was infuriated. The Alexandria Library Board quickly approved the construction of the Robert H. Robinson Library, appropriated funding for books, and hired an African American librarian.
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<p>On February 13, 1940, Samuel Tucker replied to a letter from Librarian Katharine A. Scoggin inviting him to apply for a library card at Robinson Library. Click to read the complete text of Tucker's letter. His strongly worded reply demonstrates Tucker’s commitment to equal protection under the law: “I refuse and will always refuse to accept a card to be used at the library to be constructed and operated at Alfred and Wythe Streets in lieu of [a] card to be used at the existing library on Queen Street for which I have made application."
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<p>Samuel W. Tucker remained a leader in the war against segregation and intolerance. He argued groundbreaking civil rights cases across the state. He served as the lead lawyer for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in Virginia, appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court four times, and was a founding partner in the prominent Richmond law firm, Hill, Tucker, and Marsh.
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<p>On October 19, 2000, a decade after Tucker's passing, his hometown dedicated its newest elementary school in his honor. The sit-in is chronicled in a documentary called Out of Obscurity. Copies may be borrowed from Alexandria Library. On Friday, August 21, 2009, Alexandria Library hosted the 70th Anniversary of this first civil rights sit-in. Throughout 2014, Alexandria Library hosted events honoring the 75th anniversary of the peaceful protest.

History of the Alexandria Black History Museum
<p>In 1983 The Robert H. Robinson Library was repurposed as the Alexandria Black History Resource Center. Following a complete renovation, the Center was renamed the Alexandria Black History Museum.
<p>Page updated on February 5, 2022 at 2:05 PM
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<p>History of the Alexandria Black History Museum
<p>Alexandria Black History Museum
<p>Alexandria Black History Museum
<p>The Alexandria Black History Museum (ABHM) is located in the Parker-Gray Historic District of the City. This district is named in honor of the Parker-Gray School, the only high school African American students could attend in Alexandria until 1965.
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<p>In 1983, through the advocacy of the Parker-Gray Alumni and the Alexandria Society for the Preservation of Black Heritage, the Robert H. Robinson Library re-opened as the Black Alexandria & Parker Gray Alumni Historic Resource Center (later Alexandria Black History Resource Center and then Alexandria Black History Museum). At first, staffing was provided on a volunteer basis by the members of these organizations.
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<p>In 1987, the Alexandria City Council placed the operation of the Museum under the Office of Historic Alexandria and provided funding for an addition to the building that was completed in 1989.
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<p>The Museum has grown dramatically since 1989. In June 1995, two additional sites were added to the Museum: the Alexandria African American Heritage Park and the Watson Reading Room. The nine-acre park, which is located several blocks away from the Museum, preserves the site of a 19th-century African American cemetery. The non-circulating reading room, which was built next door to the ABHM, houses books and periodicals on African American life, history, and culture.
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<p>The Museum follows its mission to enrich the lives of Alexandria’s residents and visitors, to foster tolerance and understanding, and to stimulate appreciation for the diversity of the African American experience. The Museum uses its large collection to inspire the public to explore the integral relationship between African American history and other cultural traditions. With one permanent and one rotating exhibition gallery, as well as a variety of programs and lectures, the Alexandria Black History Museum continues to expand educational opportunities for residents, scholars, and tourists.
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<p>The Sit-Down Strike and the Robinson Library
<p>1939 Sit-In at Alexandria Library
<p>Alexandria Library sit-in, 1939
<p>An important event in 20th-century Alexandria’s African American history occurred in 1939. This event raised the consciousness of the minority community and became one of the watershed moments in Alexandria’s civil rights history.
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<p>On August 21, 1939, lawyer Samuel W. Tucker sent five young African American men to stage a peaceful protest at the whites-only library at 717 Queen Street in Alexandria, VA. The five men were arrested for disorderly conduct, but the charges against the men were dropped. In September, the court heard Tucker’s petition and agreed that African Americans should have access to a library. In 1940, the Robert H. Robinson Library was constructed for the African American citizens of Alexandria.
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<p>This segregated library was used until desegregation in the early 1960s. After desegregation, the building was used for various community service programs. Today, the Robert H. Robinson Library forms an integral part of the Alexandria Black History Museum.
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<p>The Alexandria Circuit Court dismissed all charges against the sit-in participants on October 18, 2019. Although the five African American residents were charged with disorderly conduct, the Court found that they were “lawfully exercising their constitutional rights to free assembly, speech and to petition the government to alter the established policy of sanctioned segregation at the time of their arrest,” and that “sitting peacefully in a library reading books … was not in any fashion disorderly or likely to cause acts of violence.”
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<p>The Robert H. Robinson Library
<p>Story time to a group of children at the segregated Robinson Library
<p>Story time at the Robert H. Robinson Library
<p>Dr. Brenda Mitchell-Powell, for the Alexandria Black History Museum
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<p>Robert H. Robinson Library opened less than a year after the August 21, 1939, Alexandria Library sit-in and less than four months from Judge William Pape Woolls’ ruling on the writ of mandamus filed by Samuel Wilbert Tucker on behalf of Sergeant George Wilson. Acting as Sergeant Wilson’s attorney, Tucker had completed Sergeant Wilson’s application for library privileges at the Alexandria Library. Judge Woolls ruled that if Sergeant Wilson had completed the library application himself and provided proof of his residence in Alexandria, Katharine Scoggins, the Alexandria Library Librarian, would have been obliged to grant his request for a library card. This ruling shocked the Alexandria Library Board of Directors and the City Council members. They realized the decision would open the doors of the library to African American Alexandrians. In fact, within two days of the court ruling, two African Americans applied for library cards. Dorothy Pierce was the first applicant.
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<p>The Alexandria Library Board of Directors and the City Council rushed to construct a separate and unequal branch library for the city’s African American citizens to circumvent integration of the whites-only Alexandria Library. City Council named the library in honor of Robert H. Robinson, a Methodist minister and formerly enslaved man. He was also the grandson of Caroline Branham, Martha Washington’s personal maid. Ward Brown, the architect for the structure, designed a one-room Colonial-style brick building on the corner of Wythe and North Alfred streets in Old Town Alexandria. The total costs for the new branch included $2,500 for construction expenses, $750 for the purchase of the site, $1,941.50 for books and equipment, and $1,750 for annual operating costs — considerably less than the cost to build, stock, and maintain the city’s white library.
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<p>The Robert H. Robinson Library opened for patron inspection on April 23, 1940. The next day the library was open for patrons to register for library cards. The first full-time Librarian was Evelyn Roper Beam, a highly qualified African American woman with superb credentials. Nevertheless, she was paid only $720.00 per year. By contrast, Ellen Coolidge Burke, the white, part-time Alexandria Library Assistant Librarian and Cataloger was paid $1,940.00 per year.
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<p>The first collection of books at the Robinson Library totaled approximately 1,500 volumes. Most were castoffs from the Alexandria Library or donated used books. Only a few new books were purchased for the library. Robinson Library patrons also had borrowing privileges from the Alexandria Library, but they were not allowed into the whites-only library to acquire books themselves. Instead, their selections had to be retrieved for them and returned to the main library by Miss Beam. To serve their research needs, they could borrow reference books overnight, but these, too, had to be retrieved and returned by Miss Beam.
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<p>Most Robinson Library patrons were elementary school and high school students who used the library’s resources to compete their schoolwork. In addition to providing assistance with class assignments, the Robinson Library offered story hours and activities for children. Adults were also library card holders, participated in a reading club and using the space for community meetings and social events.
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<p>The Robinson Library continued to serve the needs of African American Alexandrians, despite acknowledged, overcrowded conditions, until February 1959. That winter the Alexandria Library quietly integrated for African American adults and high school students. Children continued to be served by the Robinson Library until July 1962 when the Alexandria Library was fully integrated. From 1962 until 1969, the Robinson Library served as the city’s Bookmobile Station. In 1983, the building was repurposed as the Alexandria Black History Resource Center. It underwent a complete renovation from 1988 to 1989. In 2004, the Black History Resource Center was renamed the Alexandria Black History Museum.

Robert Robinson Library 1940
<p>Alexandria Black Resource Center / History Museum - 1989
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<p>Robert Robinson Library Marker image. Click for full size.
<p>Photographed By Richard E. Miller, October 30, 2013
<p>1. Robert Robinson Library Marker
<p>Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.
<p>Panel 1:
<p>In the summer of 1939, Attorney Samuel W. Tucker organized six youths — William Evans, Otto Tucker, Edward Caddis, Morris Murray, Clarence Strange, and Robert Strange — for a “sit-in” at the segregated Alexandria Public Library, protesting the denial of access to the African American community. The “sit-in” is believed to have been the earliest in America. The arrest of five of these young men and their court case, pleaded by Mr. Tucker, resulted in a separate facility for African Americans being built here, at 698 North Alfred Street, the present location of the Alexandria Black History Resource Center.
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<p>The library is named after the Reverend Robert Robinson, a 19th century minister at the Roberts Chapel M.E. Church in the 600 block of S. Washington Street. With Mrs. Evelyn Roper Beam as its first librarian, the Robert Robinson Library opened its doors to the African American community on April 24, 1940.
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<p>Panel 2:
<p>Alexandria Black History Resource Center
<p>April 8, 1989
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<p>The Alexandria Black History Resource Center opened in 1983 and was located in the Robert Robinson Library. This addition to the Library was completed and rededicated in 1989. The Center, established through the cooperation of the City of Alexandria, the Alexandria Society for the Preservation of Black Heritage, Inc. and the Alumni Association of Parker-Gray School, has as its mission: to preserve and interpret the history and culture of Alexandria’s African American community.
<p>James P. Moran, Jr., Mayor
<p>Patricia S. Ticer, Vice Mayor
<p>Council Members
<p>Lionel R. Hope • William Cleveland • Michael T. Jackson • Kerry J. Donley • Redella S. Pepper
<p>Vola Lawson, City Manager
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<p>Erected 1983 by the City of Alexandria, the Alexandria Society for the Preservation of Black Heritage, Inc. and the Alumni Association of Parker-Gray School.
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<p>Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Education. In addition, it is included in the Virginia, The City of Alexandria series list. A significant historical month for this entry is April 1921.
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<p>Location. 38° 48.725′ N, 77° 2.872′ W. Marker is in Alexandria, Virginia. It is in Old Town West. Marker is at the intersection of Wythe Street and North Alfred Street, on the right when traveling east on Wythe Street
<p>The Robert Robinson Library Marker, at the corner of Alfred and Wythe Streets image. Click for full size.
<p>Photographed By Richard E. Miller, October 30, 2013
<p>2. The Robert Robinson Library Marker, at the corner of Alfred and Wythe Streets
<p>. Panel 1: is on the southwest corner of the intersection, one block east of N. Patrick St. (U.S. Hwy. 1).
<p>Panel 2: is at the main (north side) entrance to the expanded Alexandria Black History Museum/Resource Center at 902 Wythe Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 902 Wythe Street, Alexandria VA 22314, United States of America. Touch for directions.
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<p>Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Alexandria Black History Museum (here, next to this marker); The First Parker-Gray School (within shouting distance of this marker); Ramsey Homes (within shouting distance of this marker); The Memorial Pool (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Student-Athletes of Parker-Gray High School (about 300 feet away); The Civil War & Archaeology of the Block (about 400 feet away); Saint Joseph's Church (about 400 feet away); James Bland Homes (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Alexandria.
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<p>More about this marker. The marker stands in the Old Town West neighborhood of Alexandria.
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<p>Also see . . .
<p>1. Alexandria Black History Museum. (Submitted on November 1, 2013, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland.)
<p>2. Samuel Wilber Tucker, esq. (Submitted on November 1, 2013, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland.)
<p>
<p>Additional keywords. "Jim Crow"; "separate but equal"; "desegregation"; "Alexandria Black History Museum"
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<p>"The Alexandria Black Resource Center," 1989 - plaque next to the Alexandria Black History Museum's image. Click for full size.
<p>Photographed By Richard E. Miller, October 30, 2013
<p>3. "The Alexandria Black Resource Center," 1989 - plaque next to the Alexandria Black History Museum's
<p>main entrance off Wythe Street.
<p>"638 N. Alfred Street" - the origial entrance to the Robert Robinson Library - 1940 image. Click for full size.
<p>Photographed By Richard E. Miller, October 31, 2013
<p>4. "638 N. Alfred Street" - the origial entrance to the Robert Robinson Library - 1940
<p>The Alexandria Black History Museum - incorporating the old Robert Robinson Library facility,1989 image. Click for full size.
<p>Photographed By Richard E. Miller, October 31, 2013
<p>5. The Alexandria Black History Museum - incorporating the old Robert Robinson Library facility,1989
<p>Samuel W. Tucker image. Click for full size.
<p>Photographed By Wikipedia
<p>6. Samuel W. Tucker
<p>Alexandria Library Sit-in, 1939 image. Click for full size.
<p>Photographed By Wikipedia
<p>7. Alexandria Library Sit-in, 1939
<p>The Alexandria Public Library - Kate Waller Barrett Branch image. Click for full size.
<p>Photographed By Richard E. Miller, October 31, 2013
<p>8. The Alexandria Public Library - Kate Waller Barrett Branch
<p>- site of the 1939 sit-in.
<p>Alexandria Public Library - interior plaque commemorating the 1939 sit-in image. Click for full size.
<p>Photographed By Richard E. Miller, October 15, 2013
<p>9. Alexandria Public Library - interior plaque commemorating the 1939 sit-in
<p>
<p>"Library the Scene of Human Rights Action"
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<p>A library is the collective memory of all humanity. Its contents are the common heritage of us all.
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<p>On August 21, 1939, five citizens of the city walked into this building and sat at one of its reading tables. Though surrounded by the wisdom of the ages, they were denied access to the thoughts on the shelves around them for a reason as implausible as the color of their skin. For merely being in this room, they were arrested.
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<p>The act of these five men in defying a discriminatory regulation was one of the earliest examples of a tactic successfully employed by a later generation to undermine racial segregation across the nation. This plaque is placed here so that the names of these five courageous citizens – William Evans, Otto Tucker, Edward Gaddis, Morris Murray and Clarence “Buck” Strange – will forever remain a part of the collective memory of our community.
<p>
<p>In Commemoration of the 25th Anniversary of the
<p>Human Rights Ordinance of the City of Alexandria
<p>March 25, 2000
<p>
<p>[The Seal of the City of Alexandria, Virginia]
<p>Exhibits in the Alexandria Black History Museum image. Click for full size.
<p>Photographed By Allen C. Browne, March 15, 2014
<p>10. Exhibits in the Alexandria Black History Museum inside the Robinson Library Building
<p>
<p>
<p>Credits. This page was last revised on January 27, 2023. It was originally submitted on October 31, 2013, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. This page has been viewed 1,757 times since then and 69 times this year. Last updated on October 26, 2019, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. Photos: 1. submitted on October 31, 2013, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. submitted on November 1, 2013, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. 10. submitted on March 22, 2014, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.

Alexandria Black History Museum
<p>The mission of the Black History Museum is to enrich the lives of Alexandria's residents and visitors, to foster tolerance and understanding among all cultures and to stimulate appreciation of the diversity of the African American experience.
<p>Page updated on September 13, 2023 at 5:30 PM
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<p>Alexandria Black History Museum
<p>The Alexandria Black History Museum includes the Museum, the Watson Reading Room, and the Alexandria African American Heritage Park. Other African American historic sites in Alexandria include the Freedom House Museum, the Contrabands and Freedmen Cemetery Memorial, and sites along the African American Heritage Trail.
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<p>These sites are part of the African American History Division. This division, formed in 2023, will ensure the continued inclusion of Black History in City museums and public programming, as well as advancing the City’s goal of building a welcoming community through equity and inclusion.