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GREENWOOD / BLACK WALL STREET WILMINGTON 1898 LITTLE ROCK NINE TUSKEGEE STUDY ROSEWOOD 1923 THE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN SENECA VILLAGE BLACK TOWNS GREENWOOD / BLACK WALL STREET WILMINGTON 1898 LITTLE ROCK NINE TUSKEGEE STUDY ROSEWOOD 1923 THE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN SENECA VILLAGE BLACK TOWNS
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THE JOURNEY THROUGH TIME
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Events

Moments that changed communities, movements, institutions and the nation.

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MY'STORY

The MOVE Fire

This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985 Philadelphia police fired thousands of rounds at the MOVE house, city officials approved dropping an explosive device on the roof, the resulting fire was allowed to burn, 11 people—including five children—died, and 61 homes were destroyed. Philadelphia City Council later called it a “brutal attack carried out by the City of Philadelphia on its own citizens” and acknowledged that no individual faced criminal consequences for the bombing. One timeline correction worth preserving for the BHP record: the major previous MOVE-police confrontation was August 8, 1978, about seven years before the bombing, not a year or two earlier. Officer James Ramp was killed, other police and firefighters were wounded, nine MOVE members were later convicted, and television cameras recorded police beating Delbert Africa during his arrest. The 1985 MOVE Commission later specifically criticized city planners for failing to adequately use lessons from that 1978 confrontation. And that actually strengthens the point you’re making: 1985 did not happen without precedent or institutional memory. There had already been a deadly confrontation with MOVE, years of conflict, negotiations and police involvement before Osage Avenue.

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BLACK FACTS
The Truths They Never Taught You...

The Violence That Helped Spark the NAACP

In August 1908, a white mob attacked Springfield, Illinois’s Black community, destroying homes and businesses and lynching two Black men. National outrage over the violence helped spur the movement that created the NAACP the following year.

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BHP gathered finds from its connected research sources. Showing the 4 strongest Black History matches.
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NMAAHC

Photographic postcard of Julis Graham and wife

Date
1907-1913
Photograph by
Geissinger Studio, American
Subject of
Julis Graham
Unidentified Woman or Women
Description
A sepia tone photographic postcard of Julis Graham and his wife. The postcard is in portrait orientation. The couple is depicted seated together on a concrete block. They are both facing the viewer and wearing serious expressions on their faces. Graham’s wife, depicted left, sits up straight with her hands resting side-by-side in her lap. She is wearing a light tone suit with a long sleeve, fitted lace bodice and a full length skirt. She is also wearing a pair of black shoes with small white bows on the top and a light tone, sun hat with a wide brim. Graham, depicted right, is wearing a dark suit, a white dress shirt, and a dark, narrow tie with a tie pin. He is also wearing white socks, dark dress shoes, and a straw boater hat with dark and light stiped band around the crown. The concrete block they are seated on is irregularly shaped. Behind them is a photographic backdrop with a painted beach shoreline. The floor in front of them is plain and resembles a beach. There are the three pin holes at the top and bottom center edges and a small loss at the top left corner. The reverse has a landscape orientation and is white with black ink text. The text [POST CARD] is written in outlined letters across the top. Below are sections for [CORRESPONDENCE HERE] on the left, and [NAME AND ADDRESS HERE] on the right divided by a short vertical line down the center. Printed vertically along the left edge is the photographers name and his studio addresses: [Geissinger] printed in script with a flourish below and [PHOTOGRAPHER / 2804 GTN. AVE. PHILA. / 827 BOARDWALK, ATLANTIC CITY]. Handwritten brown ink text in the bottom right corner reads [Mr. Julis Graham / and wife].
Place captured
Atlantic City, Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, North and Central America
Topic
African American
Correspondence
Photography
See more items in
National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
Classification
Photographs and Still Images
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of James M. Baxter
Data Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2021.13.11
Type
portraits
photographic postcards
Restrictions & Rights
Public domain
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Medium
ink on paper (fiber product)
Dimensions
H x W: 5 3/8 × 3 7/16 in. (13.7 × 8.7 cm)
Title
Object Name • Photographic postcard of Julis Graham and wife
Record ID
nmaahc_2021.13.11
Museum
NMAAHC
Title Sort
PHOTOGRAPHIC POSTCARD OF JULIS GRAHAM AND WIFE
Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Metadata Usage
CC0
Date
1910s • 1900s
Name
Graham, Julis • Geissinger Studio
Place
Atlantic City • United States • North and Central America • Atlantic County • New Jersey
Topic
Photography • Correspondence
Culture
African Americans
Geo Location
City • Atlantic City • County • Atlantic County • State • New Jersey • Country • United States • Continent • North and Central America
Type
Postcards • Portraits • Photographs
Online Media Type
Images
Online Media Rights
No Known Copyright Restrictions

Media

Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian Institution. Rights and restrictions shown above are supplied by the Smithsonian record.

NMAAHC

Photographic postcard of Julis Graham and wife

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Cabinet card portrait of Amy Graham, a formerly enslaved woman in Georgia

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Photograph of Louise Graham at the Cosmopolitan Tennis Club

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Photograph of Louise Graham and Joannie Floissac at the Cosmopolitan Tennis Club

Date: Date

Description

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TOPIC OF THE DAY

Greenwood / Black Wall Street

Before the 1921 destruction of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, Black residents had created a remarkable center of business and community life. The district included stores, professional offices, entertainment venues and homes owned by Black citizens. Understanding Greenwood means learning what was built—not only what was burned.

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TRIVIA QUESTION OF THE DAY

Which heavyweight champion was known as the “Brown Bomber”?

Joe Louis.