Iconic Places to Visit To Celebrate Black History #BlackHistoryMonth
In honor of Black History Month, I’ve put together a list of some of the most iconic places in the US to see monuments and museums dedicated to our past. From the early days of slaves on plantations right up to the civil rights movement you’ll be able to find a wide spread of history to choose from.
Chicago
Pullman Historic District – An industrial town founded in 1880. It includes the historic Pullman Factory as well as the A. Phillip Randolph Pullman Porter Museum which is dedicated to African-American labor history.
DuSable Museum of African American History – A museum dedicated to the preservation of African-American History, culture, and art.
New York State
Dunbar Apartments – Apartments located in Harlem in 1926 to provide housing for African Americans, the first of its kind.
Langston Hughes House – The former home of famed author and poet James Langston Hughes who was one of the figureheads of the Harlem Renaissance.
Underground Railroad Heritage Trail – Follow the trail of thousands of enslaved people making the journey to freedom in New York. Along the trail, there are a number of museums and historic sites to see.
Hinchliffe Stadium – While technically in New Jersey Hinchliffe Stadium was home to the New York Black Yankees from 1939 to 1945. It’s also one of the few stadiums for black athletes still standing from the Segregation Era.
Harriet Tubman Residence and Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged – Home of the infamous leader of Underground Railroad. She also founded a home for older African Americans.
Florida
Kingsley Plantation – Get a glimpse into plantation life in the oldest known plantation in Florida, dating back to 1763.
Fort Mose – The site of the first free black settlement in the United States and later a stop on the Underground Railroad.
California
Allensworth State Park – A bit of a drive from the nearest city but Allensworth was a community dedicated to improving the social status of blacks. It’s the only town in California that was found and financed by African Americans.
Port Chicago – Two ships loaded with ammunition for WWII’s Pacific troops exploded at Port Chicago in San Francisco killing 320 people, mostly African-American sailors.
Museum of the African Diaspora – A museum built around the idea that all of humanity can trace its roots back to Africa with an emphasis on how African art and culture has influenced the world.
Washington DC
Frederick Douglass National Historic Site – The colonial mansion where abolitionist leader Frederick Douglass lived for the last 13 years of his life.
Lincoln Park – Home of the Lincoln Memorial and also the monument to honor a black woman in a public park. Frederick Douglass delivered a keynote address here. Funds for the memorial were collected from freed slaves.
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial – A granite sculpture of Martin Luther King Jr. near the National Mall.
Massachusetts
W.E.B. DuBois National Historic Site – The site of W.E.B. Dubois home with a self-guided tour around the grounds and archaeologic sites.
Royall House and Slave Quarters – An 18th century home that was once the home of the largest slaveholding family in Massachusetts.
Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Artists – A museum dedicated to preserving and fostering cultural arts of black people around the world.
Boston African American National Historic Site – Home of the oldest standing African-American church in the United States.
Alabama
Birmingham Civil Rights Institute – An interpretive museum that depicts the struggles of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and 1960s.
Rosa Parks Museum – A museum dedicated to the Montgomery bus boycott and civil rights activist Rosa Parks. Includes artifacts and even a reenactment of what happened on the bus.
Civil Rights Memorial Center – The location of a memorial dedicated to 41 people who died in the struggle for equality between 1954 and 1968.
Freedom Rides Museum/ Historic Montgomery Greyhound Bus Station – A Greyhound bus station that has been fully restored to how it looked in 1961. It’s also just one stop on the US Civil Rights Trail.
Great places, right? I encourage you to take your kiddos and visit a few or all of these amazing places over the next year. Perhaps you can plan our next family vacation or pop-up staycation to explore a little Black History. I’d love to hear about it if you do.
[latoyia]
