The AFRO Archives are a national treasure.

Background

The AFRO-American Newspapers have been chronicling world history through a Black lens since their founding in 1892. At its height, the company had 13 editions across the eastern seaboard as well as European bureaus during World War II. Because of this geographical breadth, the archives extend well beyond our home city of Baltimore. Our collection represents one of the best preserved Black newspaper archives in the country, inclusive of approximately three million photographs, thousands of letters, rare audio recordings, and other ephemera related to the publishing business.

Access

Today, Afro Charities works with the AFRO to maintain its archives and to create unique programming inspired by the collection. Nearly all of the Baltimore AFRO-American Newspapers are digitized and searchable through ProQuest (get free access via the Enoch Pratt Library here). Researchers with specific inquiries should fill out this form for assistance. Research and licensing fees may apply.

Afro Charities is currently developing a permanent home and research center for the AFRO Archives in the heart of Old West Baltimore at the Upton Mansion. Once complete, this site will become an international destination for the study of Black life. Learn more about the project here & donate here to help us bring our vision to life.

In 1989, Arthur Murphy, Cary Beth Cryor and Dr. Fred Stielow produced this video in support of saving the AFRO-American Newspapers Archives. The video documents the move of archival materials from the AFRO's former headquarters at 628 N. Eutaw Street in Baltimore, MD to Bowie State University for temporary storage and ends with scholar testimonies about the importance of the collection. At the time that we uploaded this video, the archives were housed on Morgan State University's campus. They are now temporarily located in a Maryland State Archives facility as Afro Charities redevelops Baltimore's historic Upton Mansion as the collection’s future home and research center.

This video was digitized from the original VHS with the help of Angela Rodgers-Koukoui and Deyane Moses. The VHS version is available at the University of Baltimore's Robert L. Bogomolny Library. Special thanks to Aiden Faust.