LibGuides: Black History Collection: Resources

Explore a selection of the Black history resources available to you via the university library.

The online collections provide a variety of primary source materials and secondary sources on Black history. We also hold a fascinating collection of archives and books in our own Special and Heritage Collections that relate to the diverse histories, experiences, stories and voices of Black people.

Books

Making Black History by Jeffrey Aaron Snyder

The New Black History by Manning Marable and Elizabeth Kai Hinton

The Oxford Companion to Black British History by David Dabydeen, John Gilmore and Cecily Jones

Early Black Media, 1918-1924 by Jane L Chapman

Beyond Slavery and Abolition by Ryan Hanley

The Making of the Black Working Class in Britain by Ron Ramdin

The Cambridge companion to British Black and Asian literature (1945-2010) by Deidre Osborne

Discover more books in our collections on...
Anti-Racism Black History Black British Authors

Black History databases

World map image Use the tabs to discover the different online databases available to you through the library.

To access the full range of databases, use the Database A-Z List.

Africa Commons: History & Culture This link opens in a new window
An important collection of African historical and cultural materials held by organisations around the world. Content includes books, magazines, photos, music. maps, speeches letter and diaries as well as film.

African American Communities This link opens in a new window From communal struggle to creative outpourings: uncover the everyday lives of African Americans spanning two turbulent centuries (Early 19th to early 21st century).
African Diaspora, 1860-Present This link opens in a new window Focusing on communities in the Caribbean, Brazil, India, United Kingdom, and France, this archive represents the voices of people of African descent. The archive includes personal papers, organizational papers, journals, newsletters, court documents, letters, and ephemera. Includes Hansib publications and the writings of George Padmore.
Aluka: Struggles for Freedom: Southern Africa This link opens in a new window An archive of objects, documents and images relating to 20th Century Southern Africa’s fight for independence. Materials include periodicals, pamphlets, speeches, interviews, personal papers, letters and official documents from this time with an emphasis on Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.
Black Studies Center This link opens in a new window Consists of scholarly journals, commissioned essays and historic indexes on US focused black studies and culture as well as black literature, and The Chicago Defender newspaper from 1910-1975. A major component is Schomburg Studies on the Black Experience, consisting of essays that provide an introduction to major topics in Black Studies. The other black newspapers we subscribe to and the Black Abolitionist Papers are cross-searchable in this resource.
Black Thought and Culture This link opens in a new window An extensive collection of non-fiction writings including essays, articles and book chapters, as well as oral histories by major American black leaders, teachers, artists, politicians, religious leaders, athletes, war veterans, entertainers, and other figures.
Decolonization: Politics and Independence in Former Colonial and Commonwealth Territories This link opens in a new window First-hand primary sources from over 70 former British colonies and Commonwealth nations, plus some former French and Portuguese territories. Focusing specifically on 20th century political movements within individual countries, the content includes the African Trade Union Papers, Marjorie Nicholson papers and the Political Pamphlets from the Institute of Commonwealth.
Independent Voices This link opens in a new window Independent Voices is an open access digital collection of alternative press newspapers, magazines and journals. These materials were produced by feminists, dissident GIs, campus radicals, Native Americans, anti-war activists, Black Power advocates, Hispanics, LGBT activists, the extreme right-wing press and alternative literary magazines during the latter half of the 20th century.
Popular Culture in Britain and America, 1950-1975 This link opens in a new window This collection explores the dynamic period of social, political and cultural change between 1950 and 1975. The resource offers thousands of images of manuscript and rare printed material as well as photographs, ephemera and memorabilia.
Race Relations in America This link opens in a new window Documenting three pivotal decades in the fight for civil rights (1940s to 1970's), this resource showcases the speeches, reports, surveys and analyses produced by the Departments staff and Institute participants, including Charles S. Johnson, Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., and Thurgood Marshall.

African American Poetry This link opens in a new window African American poetry from 18th & 19th centuries.
Aurora Metro Books This link opens in a new window Contemporary playtexts, with a focus on women’s drama, international drama, drama in translation, and drama by Black and Asian writers.
Black Drama, 3rd ed This link opens in a new window Contains the full text of more than 1,700 plays written from the mid-1800s to the present by more than 200 playwrights from North America, English-speaking Africa, the Caribbean, and other African diaspora countries. Many of the works are rare, hard to find, or out of print. More than 40% of the collection consists of previously unpublished plays.

Black Short Fiction and Folklore Black Short Fiction and Folklore brings together 82,000 pages and more than 11,000 works of short fiction produced by writers from Africa and the African Diaspora from the earliest times to the present.
Black Women Writers Black Women Writers presents 100,000 pages of literature and essays on feminist issues, written by authors from Africa and the African diaspora.
Caribbean Literature Literature One Collection. In Caribbean Literature, students and scholars can find, view, and analyze the interplay of language and culture, for an understanding of the struggle between indigenous and European languages. For the first part of the 20th century Caribbean writers defined themselves and their culture in the languages of their colonizers. But after independence, with a new self-determination and pride of origin, authors increasingly used local styles and vocabularies.

Papers of Amiri Baraka, Poet Laureate of the Black Power Movement This link opens in a new window Amiri Baraka was both a poet and a political activist in the U.S. noted for his leadership of the Harlem-based Black Arts Movement. Papers include poetry, records from the variety of organisations he was involved in, print publications, articles, plays, speeches, personal correspondence, oral histories, as well as some personal records. Coverage is 1913-1998.
ProQuest One Literature - Incorporating Literature Online This link opens in a new window Collection of 20th Century English Poetry, 20th Century Drama, 20th Century American Poetry literature, literary criticism, and reference works.
Twentieth-Century African American Poetry This link opens in a new window Full text database of modern and contemporary African American poetry.

Civil Rights and Social Justice via HeinOnline This link opens in a new window A diverse offering of publications covering civil rights in the United States. Includes books, scholarly articles, case law, legislation and publications from the Commission on Civil Rights
Colonial Law in Africa 1808-1919 This link opens in a new window Originally known as the 'Government Gazettes', these resources contain the colonial laws administered by the British for the year they were published. The legal records also include property for sale, probate records and bankruptcy notices. This is the first part of the three part series 'Colonial Law in Africa'. This resource covers the Napoleonic Wars, the Boer War and the First World War. It also covers the abolition of the legal status of slavery. These gazettes were published alongside the African Blue Books of Statistics during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Colonial Law in Africa 1920-1945 This link opens in a new window Originally known as the 'Government Gazettes', these resources contain the colonial laws administered by the British for Kenya, Nigeria, Malawi, Zambia, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Gambia, Ghana and Uganda between 1920-1945. The legal records also include property for sale, probate records and bankruptcy notices.
Colonial Law in Africa 1946-1966 This link opens in a new window Originally known as the 'Government Gazettes', these resources contain the colonial laws administered by the British for Kenya, Nigeria, Malawi, Zambia, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Gambia, Ghana, Uganda, Lesotho and Zimbabwe between 1946-1966. Their contents include tenders of property, probate records and insolvency notices.
Legal Battle for Civil Rights in Alabama: Vernon Z. Crawford Records, 1958-1978 Civil Rights Cases and Selections from the Blacksher, Menefee & Stein Records This link opens in a new window Selected portions of the records of attorney Vernon Z. Crawford and the Blacksher, Menefee and Stein law firm whose work represents a significant contribution to the shape of the civil rights movement in 20th century Alabama. Contains legal documents, correspondence, surveys and much more.
Making of Modern Law: American Civil Liberties Union Papers (Primary Sources): Part I: 1912-1990 This link opens in a new window Search the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) records on free speech, citizenship, race, discrimination, and other topics.
Slavery in America and the World: History, Culture & Law via HeinOnline This link opens in a new window Historical legal materials on slavery in the United States and the English-speaking world. Includes statute, case law, commentary and analysis on slavery issues.

Newspaper archives from across the world

African American Newspapers 1827-1998 This link opens in a new window 270 searchable newspapers drawn from over 35 U.S. states. A unique record of African American history, culture and daily life. Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1828-1998
African Newspapers: British Library Collection This link opens in a new window 19th century African newspapers collection offering eyewitness reports, editorials, letters, advertisements. obituaries and military reports. The collection includes publications from Djibouti, Egypt, Mauritius and Saint Helena, as well as deep coverage of Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and South Africa. Digitised article and page scans. Date coverage: 1821-1899
African Newspapers I and II This link opens in a new window Over 100 African newspaper titles from the 19th and early 20th century. The collection includes newspapers from Algeria, Angola, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Morocco , Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Content is mainly in English, Afrikaans and other African languages. Digitised article and page scans. Date coverage: 1800-1922
Caribbean Newspapers This link opens in a new window Over 140 searchable historical newspapers from 22 Caribbean islands. Offers insight into nearly two centuries of colonial history, the Atlantic slave trade, New World slavery and more. English, Spanish, French and Danish language titles are available. Digitised page scans. Date coverage: 1718-1876
Early American Newspapers, 1870-1922 This link opens in a new window Access to searchable issues of over 300 local U.S. newspapers, with titles available from all 50 states and Washington, D.C. This collection chronicles the evolution of American culture and daily life. Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1870-1922

East African Magazines, Newspapers and Films: The Hilary Ng'weno Archive Hilary Boniface Ng'weno (1938-2021) was considered Kenya’s finest journalist and a critically important figure in postcolonial Kenyan history. His publications were the only African-owned and African-managed independent newspapers and magazines south of the Sahara.

Independent Voices This link opens in a new window Independent Voices is an open access digital collection of alternative press newspapers, magazines and journals. These materials were produced by feminists, dissident GIs, campus radicals, Native Americans, anti-war activists, Black Power advocates, Hispanics, LGBT activists, the extreme right-wing press and alternative literary magazines during the latter half of the 20th century.
Middle East & African Newsstream This link opens in a new window Full text access to newspapers, news wires, websites, and blogs from leading publishers throughout the Middle east and Africa. Sources include The Jerusalem Post, the Gulf Daily News, Kuwait Times, Cape Times, and Yemen Times, among many others. Mainly English with some European, Middles Eastern and African language content. OCR text content. Date coverage: Late 20th century - current
Proquest News & Newspapers This link opens in a new window A gateway enabling cross searching of all University of Exeter subscribed news sources from Proquest. Mainly English language but with some European and other languages content. Digitised OCR text content.

African American Historical Newspapers

Black newspapers were on the frontlines of the civil rights movement. Organizing boycotts and nationwide protests, fighting discriminatory housing and employment practices, launching community clean-up campaigns, and advocating for improved health services for minorities, they gave voice and strength to communities often ignored by other media. The newspapers in this collection provide unique perspectives on local, national, and international events:

Atlanta Daily World This link opens in a new window Fully searchable archive of the Atlanta Daily World, a daily newspaper published in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S.) and one of the oldest African-American newspapers. Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1932-2010
Baltimore Afro-American‎ This link opens in a new window Fully searchable archive of the Baltimore Afro-American, ‎an African American weekly newspaper published in Baltimore, Maryland (U.S). Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1893-1988
Chicago Defender‎ This link opens in a new window Fully searchable archive of Chicago Defender‎‎, a daily African-American newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois (U.S.) known for its civil- and equal-rights advocacy. Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1909-1975
Cleveland Call and Post‎ This link opens in a new window Fully searchable archive of the Cleveland Call and Post‎, a weekly leading African-American newspaper published in Cleveland, Ohio (U.S.) Older material is available a digitised article and full page scans, newer material is available as OCR text. Date coverage: 1934-1991.
Los Angeles Sentinel This link opens in a new window Fully searchable archive of the Los Angeles Sentinel, a weekly newspaper published in Los Angeles, California (U.S.). The newspaper provides first-hand accounts, reporting and unparalleled coverage of the politics and society from one of America's most prominent African American newspapers. Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1934-2005
Michigan Chronicle This link opens in a new window Fully searchable archive of the Michigan Chronicle, an African-American weekly newspaper published in Michigan, Detroit (U.S.). Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1939-2010
New Journal and Guide‎ This link opens in a new window Fully searchable archive of the New Journal and Guide, a weekly newspaper published in Norfolk, Virginia (U.S) focusing on local and national African-American news, sports, and issues. Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1916 - 2010
New York Amsterdam News This link opens in a new window Fully searchable archive of the New York Amsterdam News, a weekly African American newspaper published in New York (U.S.). Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1922-1993
Philadelphia Tribune This link opens in a new window Fully searchable archive of the Philadelphia Tribune, an African American daily newspaper published in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (U.S.). Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1912-2001
Pittsburgh Courier‎ This link opens in a new window Fully searchable archive of the Pittsburgh Courier, a weekly Africa American newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (U.S.) and one of the leading Black newspapers in America in the 1930s. Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1911-2002

Magazines

Race Today Digitised issues of this eminent London (UK) publication that concentrated on black issues in the UK and abroad from 1969 to 1985.

Search to find key figures in Black History

American National Biography Online This link opens in a new window Access to thousands of biographies of the individuals who have shaped American history. Intuitive search and browse options are available to facilitate searching by name, date, occupation and more.
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography This link opens in a new window Online reference work for information about people who have helped shape British history, life and culture. The Dictionary offers concise, up-to-date biographies written by named, specialist authors.

Archives and documents relating to key figures

East African Magazines, Newspapers and Films: The Hilary Ng'weno Archive Hilary Boniface Ng'weno (1938-2021) was considered Kenya’s finest journalist and a critically important figure in postcolonial Kenyan history. His publications were the only African-owned and African-managed independent newspapers and magazines south of the Sahara.

Ralph J. Bunche Oral Histories Collection on the Civil Rights Movement This link opens in a new window The Ralph J. Bunche Oral History Collection from the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center includes around 700 interview transcriptions with those who were active in the US civil rights movement (1950's-1973).
Civil Rights and Social Activism in Alabama: The Papers of John LeFlore, 1926-1976 AND Records of the Non-Partisan Voters League, 1956-1987 This link opens in a new window Materials documenting the work of John L. LeFlore, the most significant figure in the struggle for black equality in Mobile, Alabama, throughout southern Alabama and Mississippi, and along the Florida Gulf Coast. Also in this collection are records from the Non-Partisan Voters League, founded in Alabama.
Fannie Lou Hamer: Papers of a Civil Rights Activitist, Political Activitist, and Woman This link opens in a new window Correspondence, financial records, programs, photographs, newspaper articles, invitations, and other printed items (1966-78) relating to Fannie Lou Hamer, a voting rights activist and civil rights leader in the U.S.
FBI File: Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. This link opens in a new window The 44,000-page case file of the FBI documents the bureau's role in finding James Earl Ray, who assassinated Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968, and obtaining his conviction. The file also includes background information amassed by the FBI on Dr. Kings social activism. This archive is of particular interest to students of the civil rights movement and of the continuing controversy surrounding Martin Luther King's murder.
James Meredith, J. Edgar Hoover, and the Integration of the University of Mississippi This link opens in a new window FBI documentation on Meredith’s attempt to legally become the first African American student at The University of Mississippi in 1962 and the white political and social backlash that followed. The collection includes correspondence from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and others .
Early English Books Online (EEBO) This link opens in a new window Full text digital versions of nearly every work printed in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and British North America, spanning from 1473 to 1700, plus works in English printed elsewhere. The collection includes pamphlets, books, broadsheets, manuscripts and periodicals.

A full list of primary sources collections relating to enslaved people and the slave trade can be found in the Slavery and the Slave Trade Primary Sources page.

Black Abolitionist Papers This link opens in a new window Covers the work of African Americans to abolish slavery in the United States prior to the Civil War. Covering the period 1830-1865, the collection includes the writings of the activists themselves, including pamphlets, newspaper articles and books.
Civil War Era This link opens in a new window Almost 2000 U.S. pamphlets and 8 U.S. newspapers from 1840-1865 covering a vast range of topics including the formative economic factors and other forces that led to the abolitionist movement, the 600,000 battle casualties and the emancipation of nearly 4 million slaves. Digitised scans of individual articles and full newspaper pages. Date coverage: 1840-1865
Introduction to U.S. History: Slavery in America This link opens in a new window This collection documents key aspects of the history of slavery in America from its origins in Africa to its abolition, including materials on the slave trade, plantation life, emancipation, pro-slavery and anti-slavery arguments, the religious views on slavery, etc.
Introduction to U.S. History: The Civil War This link opens in a new window This collection documents the war that transformed America, ending slavery and unifying the nation around the principles of freedom.
Liverpool Through Time: From Slavery to the Industrial Revolution, 1766-1900 This link opens in a new window Consists of the directories of Liverpool first established by John Gore in 1766. These contained lists of merchants, tradesmen, and principal inhabitants of Liverpool, initially being published sporadically but later published biennially.
Power and Profit: British Colonial Trade in America and the Caribbean, 1678-1825 This link opens in a new window This collection is composed of British Naval Office shipping lists between the years of 1678 and 1825. Information includes names of vessels, names of home ports and colonies, details of the vessels' construction, the name of the owners, tonnage, number of guns carried, number of crew, and the cargo carried (including enslaved people as well as raw material).
Slavery, Abolition & Social Justice This link opens in a new window Bringing together documents from archives and libraries across the Atlantic world, spanning from 1490 to 2007, this resource allows to explore and compare unique material relating to the complex subjects of slavery, abolition and social justice. Includes original manuscripts, pamphlets, books, paintings and maps.
Slavery and the Law (1775-1867) This link opens in a new window Contains petitions on race, slavery, and free blacks that were submitted to U.S. state legislatures and county courthouses between 1775 and 1867. Collected together from hundreds of courthouses and historical societies in 10 states and the District of Columbia. Also includes the State Slavery Statutes collection, a comprehensive record of the laws governing American slavery from 1789-1865.
Slavery in America and the World: History, Culture & Law via HeinOnline This link opens in a new window Historical legal materials on slavery in the United States and the English-speaking world. Includes statute, case law, commentary and analysis on slavery issues.
Slavery Through Time: from Enslavers to Abolitionists, 1675-1865 This link opens in a new window This collection contains a wide range of documents concerning the African slave trade during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. The papers focus primarily on Jamaica and the West Indies, but also cover the experience of other nations and regions.
Slave Voyages This link opens in a new window Explore publicly accessible records of the largest slave trades in history. Search these records to learn about the broad origins and forced relocations of more than 12 million African people who were sent across the Atlantic in slave ships, and hundreds of thousands more who were trafficked within the Americas.

This is the strongest area of Black History in our online collections. Collections include primary source materials relating to key figures in the US Civil Rights Movement, Civil Rights organisations as well as US government surveillance, monitoring and event reports.

Civil Rights and Social Justice via HeinOnline This link opens in a new window A diverse offering of publications covering civil rights in the United States. Includes books, scholarly articles, case law, legislation and publications from the Commission on Civil Rights

Civil Rights organisations

African America, Communists, and the National Negro Congress, 1933-1947 This link opens in a new window The working files of John P. Davis, a founding member and executive secretary of the National Negro Congress (NNC), a national coalition which aimed to coordinate protest action and pursue racial justice for African Americans. Also included are the files of successive executive secretaries of the NNC, and financial records.
Black Economic Empowerment: The National Negro Business League This link opens in a new window Files from the National Negro Business League (1901-1928), founded by Booker T Washington, who believed there was a need for African Americans to build an economic network and allow that to be a catalyst for change and social improvement.
Black Liberation Army and the Program of Armed Struggle, 1970-1980 This link opens in a new window FBI files relating to the Black Liberation Army, an underground, black nationalist-Marxist militant organization whose stated goal was to "take up arms for the liberation and self-determination of black people in the United States". The collection covers the years 1970-1983.
Black Nationalism and the Revolutionary Action Movement This link opens in a new window Collection of records reproducing the writings and statements of the Revolutionary Action Movement (RAM), a US-based revolutionary black nationalist group, as well as organisations that evolved from or were influenced by RAM. The collection spans the years 1962-1999.
Civil Rights and Social Activism in Alabama: The Papers of John LeFlore, 1926-1976 AND Records of the Non-Partisan Voters League, 1956-1987 This link opens in a new window Materials documenting the work of John L. LeFlore, the most significant figure in the struggle for black equality in Mobile, Alabama, throughout southern Alabama and Mississippi, and along the Florida Gulf Coast. Also in this collection are records from the Non-Partisan Voters League, founded in Alabama.
Liberation Movement in Africa and African America This link opens in a new window FBI surveillance files (1970 to 1985) on the activities of the African Liberation Support Committee and All African People’s Revolutionary Party .; this collection provides two unique views on African American support for liberation struggles in Africa, the issue of Pan-Africanism, and the role of African independence movements as political leverage for African Americans.
NAACP Papers: Board of Directors, Annual Conferences, Major Speeches, and National Staff Files This link opens in a new window Papers of the U.S. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, covering 1909-1970. This collection covers the work for civil rights and includes minutes of directors' meetings, monthly reports from officers to the board of directors, proceedings of the annual business meetings, significant records of the association's annual conferences, plus many special reports on a wide range of issues.
NAACP Papers: Branch Department, Branch Files and Youth Department Files This link opens in a new window Papers of the U.S. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, covering 1913-1972. Covers the work for civil rights in the branches by local activists as well as and youth department of the organisation. Files are divided by region and topic.
Quest for Labor Equality in Household Work: National Domestic Workers Union, 1965-1979 This link opens in a new window Records of the United Domestic Workers Union (U.S) from 1965-1979, including minutes of committees, financial documents and legal documents. Topics include involvement in the Black community, the Manpower Program, the Career Learning Center, the Homemaking Skills Training Program, Maids Honor Day, the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA), and various federal agencies.
Public Housing, Racial Policies, and Civil Rights: the Intergroup Relations Branch of the Federal Public Housing Administration, 1936-1963 This link opens in a new window Contains directives and memoranda related to the US Public Housing Administration's policies and procedures. Includes civil rights correspondence, statements and policy about race, labour-based state activity records, local housing authorities' policies on hiring minorities, court cases involving housing decisions, racially-restrictive covenants, and news clippings.
Rastafari Ephemeral Publications from the Written Rastafari Archives Project This link opens in a new window This collection contains magazines, newsletters and ephemeral publications from the Written Rastafari Archives Project (WRAP). The period covered is the early 1970s to 2014 and covers a transitional period, where the movement has spread across the Afro-Atlantic world and has become more globalized.
Republic of New Afrika This link opens in a new window An African-American social movement in the USA, believed by the FBI to be seditious. This collection contains FBI documentation from 1968-1980, collected through intelligence activities, informants, surveillance, and cooperation with local police departments.
Southern Negro Youth Congress and the Communist Party This link opens in a new window Papers of James E. Jackson and Esther Cooper Jackson, African American communists and civil rights activists, best known for their role in founding and leading the Southern Negro Youth Congress (1937-48). Papers cover 1932-2000 and include correspondence, lectures, research notebooks, speeches, and other publications.
We Were Prepared for the Possibility of Death: Freedom Riders in the South, 1961 This link opens in a new window The Freedom Riders operated during the struggle for civil rights in the U.S.. They set out to challenge the Jim Crow travel laws by riding public transport in the Southern States of the U.S. in 1961. This collection from the FBI Library covers the rides and the violent reactions they provoked.

Key figures

Fannie Lou Hamer: Papers of a Civil Rights Activitist, Political Activitist, and Woman This link opens in a new window Correspondence, financial records, programs, photographs, newspaper articles, invitations, and other printed items (1966-78) relating to Fannie Lou Hamer, a voting rights activist and civil rights leader in the U.S.
FBI Surveillance of James Forman and SNCC This link opens in a new window FBI reports on James Forman, a prominent African-American leader in the civil rights movement. The files cover the 1961-1976 period, when he was perceived as a threat to the internal security of the United States. The collected materials also include information on the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), in which Forman was active.
Federal Surveillance of African Americans, 1920-1984 This link opens in a new window A collection of FBI files relating to investigations into prominent African American individuals and groups throughout the twentieth century. The FBI recruited black "confidential special informants" to infiltrate a variety of organisations, and hundreds of documents in this collection were originated by such operatives.
Franklin D. Roosevelt, New Deal and Race Relations, 1933-1945 This link opens in a new window Materials from Franklin D. Roosevelt's official file concerning the issues of lynching, segregation, race riots and employment discrimination against African Americans. This collection offers an insight into Roosevelt's political style as well as material useful for the study of the early development of the Civil Rights Movement.
Grassroots Civil Rights & Social Activism: FBI Files on Benjamin J. Davis, Jr This link opens in a new window Comprised of FBI files on Benjamin J. Davis, Jr., a prominent African American member of the U.S. Communist Party. Records include details of grassroots organising successes and failures, minutes from meetings held on all the levels on which Davis engaged, and reports from member-informers on all the major political and theoretical debates. Records are taken from the personal collection of Dr Gerald Horne.
Ralph J. Bunche Oral Histories Collection on the Civil Rights Movement This link opens in a new window The Ralph J. Bunche Oral History Collection from the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center includes around 700 interview transcriptions with those who were active in the US civil rights movement (1950's-1973).

Events

FBI File: Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. This link opens in a new window The 44,000-page case file of the FBI documents the bureau's role in finding James Earl Ray, who assassinated Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968, and obtaining his conviction. The file also includes background information amassed by the FBI on Dr. Kings social activism. This archive is of particular interest to students of the civil rights movement and of the continuing controversy surrounding Martin Luther King's murder.
James Meredith, J. Edgar Hoover, and the Integration of the University of Mississippi This link opens in a new window FBI documentation on Meredith’s attempt to legally become the first African American student at The University of Mississippi in 1962 and the white political and social backlash that followed. The collection includes correspondence from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and others .
Integration of Alabama Schools and the U.S. Military, 1963 This link opens in a new window Records of the Army’s plans, codenamed "Operation Oak Tree", in the event of civil disturbances related to school desegregation in Alabama in 1963.
NAACP Papers: the NAACP's Major Campaigns - Education, Voting, Housing, Employment, Armed Forces This link opens in a new window Papers of the U.S. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, covering 1913-1965. Covers the work for civil rights via major campaigns of the NAACP including on equal access to education, voting, employment, housing and the military.
NAACP Papers: the NAACP's Major Campaigns - Legal Department Files This link opens in a new window Papers of the U.S. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, covering 1956-1972. Covers the work for civil rights done by the NAACP's general counsel and his Legal Department staff. Covers the NAACP's campaign to bring about desegregation throughout the United States, particularly in the South. Includes over 600 cases from 34 states and the District of Columbia.
NAACP Papers: the NAACP's Major Campaigns - Scottsboro, Anti-Lynching, Criminal Justice, Peonage, Labor, and Segregation and Discrimination Complaints and Responses This link opens in a new window Papers of the U.S. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, covering 1912-1965. Covers the work for civil rights, specifically the NAACP's efforts to combat lynching, mob violence, discrimination in the criminal justice system, and white resistance to civil rights efforts. Includes coverage of the Scottsboro boys trial as well as the NAACP's campaign to introduce a federal law against lynching.
NAACP Papers: Special Subjects This link opens in a new window Papers of the U.S. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, covering 1912-1972. Covers the work for civil rights that fell outside of the major campaigns, including the Klan, Birth of a Nation, communism and anticommunism, prosecution of Hollywood personalities and conscientious objectors during World War II, relations with African colonial liberation movements and more.
U.S. Military Activities and Civil Rights: Integration of the University of Mississippi and the Use of Military Force, 1961-1963 This link opens in a new window Collected records from the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Military Operations relating to the use of Federal marshals, U.S. Troops, and the federalised National Guard in Oxford, Mississippi, 1962-1963, on the occasion of James Meredith's enrolment at the University of Mississippi, as their first African-American student. Includes coverage of the riots as well as daily events in this period.
U.S. Military Activities and Civil Rights: The Little Rock Integration Crisis, 1957-1958 This link opens in a new window Manuscripts covering President Eisenhower's use of Federal troops and the Arkansas National Guard in the Little Rock integration crisis of 1957-1958. Records include a journal of events, a summary of the operation, a historical report, press reports and observations by Army officers surrounding events at the school and in the community.
U.S. Military Activities and Civil Rights: The Military Response to the March on Washington, 1963 This link opens in a new window Gives details of the Federal Government's plans to militarily intervene in the 1963 March on Washington (codenamed Operation "Steep Hill") in the event the march became disorderly. Includes Army staff communications, contingency plans, intelligence reports, press articles, and maps planning the route. Also some documents on Alabama school integration.

The Ghana Collection at the University of Exeter

The university is a member of SCOLMA, an organisation dedicated to monitoring, coordinating and improving the acquisition of library materials in Africa. Libraries participating in its cooperative scheme specialise in the acquisition of materials from particular areas of Africa and act as information centres.

We are responsible for the Ghana Collection, a collection of print books held in the Old Library at the Forum Campus, Exeter. Feel free to browse and borrow these books.

You can find items in the Ghana collection using Library Search and typing "Ghana Collection", then choosing the refine option "Available on shelves".

UK Black History

Physical UK archives

Black Cultural Archives
Black Cultural Archives (BCA) is the only national repository of Black history and culture in the UK. Contains materials on all aspects of Black British History, as well the archives of founders Queen Mother Moore and Len Garrison.
Black Dance Archive (State of Trust)
This unique and pioneering project focuses on the heritage of dance of the African Diaspora in the UK from 1950 to the present and fulfills an ongoing need for a current, coherent archive of Black dance.
George Padmore Institute
The George Padmore Institute (GPI) was set up in 1991. It grew out of a community of people connected with New Beacon Books, Britain's first black publisher and bookshop, and its founder John La Rose. The Institute is an archive, educational research and information centre housing materials and documents relating mainly to black communities of Caribbean, African and Asian descent in post-war Britain and continental Europe.
Haringey Vanguard
Haringey Vanguard is a BME LGBTQ+ History project focused on the history and contributions of Haringey-based community activists in the 1970s – 1990s, work whose influence was felt well beyond the [London] borough.
rukus
Black, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans (BLGBT) cultural archive based in London. Records relate to individuals including activists, DJs, club promoters, writers, artists and magazine publishers; community organisations; and subjects including sexual health, black lesbians and women and night clubs.

Local links

Black South West Network
A Black-led racial justice organisation based in Bristol that supports the development of dynamic, independent, and strong Black and Minoritised communities, businesses, and organisations to flourish whilst challenging systemic barriers.
Transcultural Devon
A University of Exeter archive of interview recordings that explores the polylingual and transcultural nature of Devon.
Celebrating Windrush in Devon
A project by Devon Development Education, a local organisation that works with schools and communities, aiming to help children and people of all ages understand the big issues in the world and their involvement in them; making links with the ‘global village’ within and outside Devon; and working together for a more just and sustainable world.

National organisations

Black Presence: Asian and Black History in Britain
An online exhibition created through a partnership between The National Archives (formerly the Public Record Office) and the Black and Asian Studies Association (BASA), funded by the New Opportunities Fund.
Black History Month - UK official site
The official UK Black History Month website, that showcases Black achievements, as well as offering articles, news features and job vacancies.
BLAM UK CIC
Organisation dedicated to promoting a positive dialogue of social identity and culture through history

Finding Resources using Library Search

Discover research material related to black history through Library Search.

Be mindful that terminology has changed over time and differing terms are used in different countries and at different times in history.

For example, in the UK, the terms BME (Black Minority Ethnic) and BAME (Black, Asian and Ethnic Minorities) have been widely used, but are also widely criticised..

You can try the terms black or african american plus a country/region or subject topic,

e.g. black music or african american employment

Black History Collection: Resources