Mr. and Mrs. Bunel
While many slave couples formed lasting bonds during their enslavement, slave marriages had no legal foundation or protection. The abolishment of slavery not only...
Officially married, 21 years later
Former slaves Joseph and Mary Province of Lebanon, Tennessee, were officially married on April 23, 1866, after “living together for 21 years.” Joseph was a...
OK to fly
This World War II photograph, taken about September 1944, shows Captain Andrew D. Turner of Washington, DC, in his P-51C fighter aircraft. Turner graduated from...
On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial
On Easter Sunday 1939, African American contralto Marian Anderson sang from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC, before a crowd of 75,000 people....
Ordered by the court
The Freedmen’s Bureau was responsible for leasing abandoned or confiscated lands. James Hicks began the process of reclaiming his seized land by swearing to...
Petitioning the Freedmen's Bureau
James Hicks filed this petition with the Freedmen's Bureau for the return of seized land lots in the town of Hampton, Virginia. One of the major activities of the...
Petitioning to vote
On March 6, 1965, police attacked a peaceful march for voting rights in Selma, Alabama. Sixty African Americans were hospitalized. On March 15 President Johnson...