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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

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Tom Sawyer's Comrade)

Date
1885
Written by
Mark Twain, American, 1835 - 1910
Published by
Charles L. Webster and Company, American, 1884 - 1894
Printed by
J. J. Little and Company, American, founded 1867
Description
A first edition, first printing hardcover of the “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Tom Sawyer's Comrade)” (2014.249a), by Mark Twain with a chemise (2014.249b) and slipcover (2014.249c). The front cover of the book is a dark green with the title embossed in various fonts that read, [Adventures / of / HUCKLEBERRY / FINN / (Tom Sawyer's Comrade) / BY / MARK TWAIN. / ILLUSTRATED.]. The "H" and the "F" of Huckleberry Finn are painted with gold leaf in a lettering that resembles wooden slats. The author’s name is also in gold leaf. In the bottom left corner of the front cover is an embossed illustration of a young boy wearing a straw hat, jacket and pants, with his hands in his pocket. Behind the boy is a fence in the background which has been filled in with gold leaf. The top third of the book spine is the title of the book embossed over a gold leaf square with a compass illustration to the left of the word [Finn. In the center of the spine is a floral design embossed directly above the author’s name, embossed in gold leaf [BY MARK TWAIN]. The bottom third of the spine is the publisher’s information, embossed in gold leaf, [CHARLES·L·WEBSTER / & CO.]. The back cover is blank. There is a handwritten note in pencil in top right corner of front flyleaf that reads [1st issue]. The book is inscribed in black ink in the center of second front flyleaf, [John W. Ruckman]. The frontispiece features a black-and-white illustration of Huckleberry Finn holding a shotgun in his proper left hand and a rabbit in his proper right hand. The illustration is signed on the bottom, left corner, reading [E·W·KEEMBLE / ·1884·]. The second frontispiece is a black-and-white photograph of a bust of Mark Twain in profile. The text below the image reads [Mark Twain / FROM THE BUST BY KARL GERHARDT. / Heliotype Printing Co. Boston and New York]. The book has forty-three (43) chapters, one hundred and seventy-four (174) black-and-white illustrations, and three hundred and sixty-six (366) pages. The interior pages are off-white.
A tri-fold, cardboard, dark green chemise (2014.249b), lined with an off-white interior. The chemise has extenders for the sides of book between tri-folds. A black fabric pull-tab is attached at the center of the proper left side of chemise.
A hardback slipcase, with proper left opening for the chemise-wrapped book to slide into. The exterior is covered with same green as the chemise, and the interior is lined with off-white paper. On the top third of the slipcase spine is handwritten text in black ink that reads [HUCKLEBERRY / FINN / MARK TWAIN].
Place printed
New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
Place depicted
Missouri, United States, North and Central America
Topic
African American
American South
Children
Language
Literature
Race relations
Slavery
See more items in
National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
Classification
Books and Published Materials
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
2014.249abc
Type
hardcover books
Restrictions & Rights
No Known Copyright Restrictions
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Medium
ink, metal, paper and cloth on cardboard;
paper and cloth on cardboard;
paper, cloth and ink on cardboard
Dimensions
H x W x D (OVERALL): 9 1/8 × 7 5/16 × 1 3/4 in. (23.2 × 18.5 × 4.4 cm)
H x W x D (2014.249a - Closed): 8 3/4 × 7 3/16 × 1 3/16 in. (22.2 × 18.2 × 3 cm)
H x W x D (2014.249a - Open): 8 3/4 × 14 1/2 × 3 9/16 in. (22.2 × 36.8 × 9 cm)
H x W x D (2014.249b - Folded): 8 3/4 × 7 3/16 × 1 5/16 in. (22.3 × 18.3 × 3.3 cm)
H x W x D (2014.249b - Unfolded): 8 3/4 × 23 13/16 × 1/16 in. (22.3 × 60.5 × 0.1 cm)
H x W x D (2014.249c): 9 1/8 × 7 5/16 × 1 9/16 in. (23.2 × 18.5 × 4 cm)
Title
Title • Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Tom Sawyer's Comrade)
Record ID
nmaahc_2014.249abc
Museum
NMAAHC
Title Sort
ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN (TOM SAWYER'S COMRADE)
Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Metadata Usage
CC0
Date
1880s
Name
J. J. Little and Company • Charles L. Webster and Company • Twain, Mark
Place
New York City • United States • North and Central America • Missouri
Topic
Slavery • American South • Literature • Language and languages • Children • Race relations
Culture
African Americans
Geo Location
City • New York City • State • New York • Country • United States • Continent • North and Central America • State • Missouri
Type
Hardcover books
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

Cabinet card of Charles, Jake, and Tom Young photographed by J.P. Ball & Son

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NMAAHC

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Tom Sawyer's Comrade)

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Songs, Sketch of the Life of Blind Tom

Date: Date

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No preview image
NMAAHC

Bow tie donated by Soul Train dancer Thomas "Tom Tom" Evans

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

Who was the first African-American woman millionaire in the United States?

Madam C.J. Walker