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HIDDEN TRUTHS
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
BHP HOME BEFORE AMERICA 1800–1936 1937–1957 1958–1980 1981–2000 2001–PRESENT

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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

Stock certificate for Birth of a Race Photoplay Corporation

Date
September 27, 1918
Issued by
Birth of a Race Photoplay Corporation, American, founded 1916
Printed by
J. W. Middleton & Co. Stationers, American
Description
A stock certificate for 16 shares from the Birth of a Race Photoplay Corporation. The certificate is off-white paper with rust, gray, and black designs and text. At the top center of the certificate there is a drawing of a torch. To the left of the drawing a box reads: [Number / 8113] and a box on the right reads: [Shares / 2]. Text below the boxes and drawings reads: [Birth of a Race Photoplay Corporation / Incorporated under the Laws of the State of Delaware / Capital Stock $1,000,000.00]. The certificate is made out to Arthur C. Young, by hand in blue ink. Additional text conveys information about the stock shares. The certificate is signed by the secretary and president of the corporation in the bottom center of the stock. To the left of the signatures is a foil seal. Below the signatures, text inside the decorative scroll work reads: [Shares $10.00 Each]. The back of the document is broken up into three sections, indicating that the document would have been presented as a tri-fold. The section to the left has rust colored pre-printed text with blank spaces to be filled in by hand to fill out if the stock were transferred. The center section has rust and black decorations and text indicating the amount of shares, the type of stock, the corporation, the recipient, and the date. The section to the right is blank.
Place printed
Chicago, Illinois, United States, North and Central America
Topic
African American
Black Enterprise
Business
Film
Finance
Race discrimination
Race films
See more items in
National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
Classification
Documents and Manuscripts
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
2015.97.20.2
Type
certificates
Restrictions & Rights
No Known Copyright Restrictions
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Medium
ink on paper with foil
Dimensions
H x W: 8 1/4 × 10 7/8 in. (21 × 27.6 cm)
Title
Object Name • Stock certificate for Birth of a Race Photoplay Corporation
Record ID
nmaahc_2015.97.20.2
Museum
NMAAHC
Title Sort
STOCK CERTIFICATE FOR BIRTH OF A RACE PHOTOPLAY CORPORATION
Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Metadata Usage
CC0
Date
1910s
Name
Birth of a Race Photoplay Corporation • J. W. Middleton & Co. Stationers
Place
Chicago • United States • Illinois • North and Central America
Topic
Black Enterprise • Discrimination • Finance • Race • Race films • Motion pictures • Business
Culture
African Americans
Geo Location
City • Chicago • State • Illinois • Country • United States • Continent • North and Central America
Type
Certificates
Online Media Type
Images
Online Media Rights
No Known Copyright Restrictions

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

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NMAAHC

Stock certificate for the Birth of a Race Photoplay Corporation

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Stock certificate for Birth of a Race Photoplay Corporation

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

1914 - 1918 Inter-Allied Victory medal issued to Cpl. Lawrence Leslie McVey

Date: Date

Caption

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NMAAHC

Stock certificate for Birth of a Race Photoplay Corporation

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 Black woman became the first elected to the United States Congress?

Shirley Chisholm, elected in 1968.