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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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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...

Katherine Johnson — Mathematics to the Moon

Katherine Johnson’s mathematical calculations helped guide some of America’s most important early space missions while she confronted the racial and gender barriers faced by Black women in twentieth-century America.

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

Tobacco tin used to store cartridge from raid on Harper's Ferry

Date
late 19th century - early 20th century
Created by
J. Wright Co., American
Subject of
John Brown, American, 1800 - 1859
Francis Jackson Meriam, American, 1837 - 1865
Description
A tobacco tin for J. Wright Co. "Pride of Virginia"-brand tobacco. This tin has been used to store a .52 Sharp's cartridge planned for use as part of John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry (NMAAHC 2023.84.1). The tin is painted in light blue, dark red or brown, and white with branding and a windmill or wagon wheel motif. Top left of the lid reads [J. WRIGHT CO.], top right reads [CONTINENTAL TOB. CO. / SUCCESSOR.], and bottom center reads [CUT PLUG]. A white scroll at center ostensibly reads [PRIDE OF / VIRGINIA] but is partially covered with a sticker, offwhite with red border, with handwritten label [Political].
The edge of the tin where the lid is attached via hinge to the rest of container has consumer notice that reads [FACTORY No 51, 2ND DISTRICT OF VA / NOTICE - The Manufacturers of this Tobacco / have complied with all the requirements of law. / Every person is cautioned under penalties of / law not to use this package for tobacco again. / PRIDE of / VIRGINIA / CUT PLUG]. There is no writing on the bottom.
Place depicted
Virginia, United States, North and Central America
Washington County, Maryland, United States, North and Central America
Topic
African American
American South
Antislavery
Resistance
Slavery
U.S. History, 1815-1861
Violence
See more items in
National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
Classification
Accessories and Personal Effects
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Data Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2023.84.2
Type
tins
Restrictions & Rights
Public domain
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Medium
tin and tin alloy
Dimensions
H x W x D (closed): 7/8 × 4 1/2 × 2 3/4 in. (2.2 × 11.5 × 7 cm)
H x W x D (open): 11/16 × 4 1/2 × 5 5/16 in. (1.7 × 11.5 × 13.5 cm)
Title
Object Name • Tobacco tin used to store cartridge from raid on Harper's Ferry
Record ID
nmaahc_2023.84.2
Museum
NMAAHC
Title Sort
TOBACCO TIN USED TO STORE CARTRIDGE FROM RAID ON HARPER'S FERRY
Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Metadata Usage
CC0
Date
1910s • 1880s
Name
Meriam, Francis Jackson • J. Wright Co. • Brown, John
Place
United States • North and Central America • Virginia • Maryland • Washington County
Topic
Resistance • American South • Violence • U.S. History, 1815-1861 • Antislavery
Culture
African Americans
Geo Location
State • Virginia • Country • United States • Continent • North and Central America • County • Washington County • State • Maryland
Type
tins
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

Unspent cartridge from John Brown’s Raid on Harpers Ferry

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Provenance note and label for unspent cartridge from John Brown's Raid

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Tobacco tin used to store cartridge from raid on Harper's Ferry

Date: Date

Description

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No preview image
NMAAHC

Information sheet from the Kids Solidarity Mini Zine Pack

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 Supreme Court case ruled state-sponsored public-school segregation unconstitutional?

Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.