Black History Month: Resources for Students and Educators

In 1926, Dr. Carter G. Woodson began officially commemorating African-American history during an annual week of remembrance. Woodson promoted the observance of “Negro History Week” during the second week of February to coincide with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln.

Woodson was one of the first academically trained African-American historians in the United States. Through his efforts to celebrate and study the nation's African-American heritage, February is now officially designated as Black History Month.

The list below features resources on African-American history from the collections of the State Library and Archives of Florida. Black history in Florida is especially rich, dating back to the early 16^th century. These resources attest to the struggles and triumphs of persons of African descent in Florida history.

Resources: By Topic

Mary McLeod Bethune

Mary McLeod Bethune, Educator (Educational Unit) This educational unit focuses on the life and work of Mary McLeod Bethune, who founded the Daytona Normal and Industrial School for Negro Girls, now Bethune-Cookman College, in Daytona Beach.
Bethune-Cookman College: A Rock in a Weary Land (Video) This film provides an overview of the college and its individual departments.
Bicentennial Bethune (Video) This film provides a brief summary of the life and achievements of Mary McLeod Bethune. It includes still images of the Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute for Negro Girls, Bethune-Cookman College, and the Mary McLeod Bethune home.

Zora Neale Hurston

Zora Neale Hurston (Audio) This page provides a compilation of the known Zora Neale Hurston sound recordings created while she worked for the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the 1930s.
Zora Neale Hurston, the WPA in Florida, and the Cross City Turpentine Camp (Educational Unit) This learning unit focuses on Hurston’s work with the WPA in Florida.

Civil Rights

Governor Farris Bryant Addresses Senate Commerce Committee (Video) In this film, Governor Bryant addresses the Senate Commerce Committee concerning Senate Bill 1732 on the integration of interstate busing.
Images of the Civil Rights Movement in Florida (Photographs) These images document civil rights protests and the struggle to integrate buses, stores, theaters and beaches.
Angela Davis (Video) This film includes a speech by and interviews with civil rights activist Angela Davis at Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University's (FAMU) Black History Month convocation in 1979.
Interposition Resolution in Response to Brown v. Board of Education (Exhibits, Florida Highlights) The Florida Legislature passed this resolution in opposition to the landmark Brown v. Board of Education (1954) ruling, which overturned the notion of “separate but equal” established by Plessy v. Ferguson (1896).
Racism and the Struggle for Civil Rights in Florida (Photographs) These images illustrate the struggle for civil rights in Florida.
Reports of Investigators on Meetings of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the Ku Klux Klan (Exhibits, Florida Highlights) These documents relate findings by the Johns Committee into issues surrounding the civil rights movement and resistance to integration.
St. Augustine Race Riots (Florida Highway Patrol) (Video) This film provides extensive footage of the St. Augustine race riots of 1964, including remarks by Martin Luther King Jr.
Selma, Alabama Demonstration (Video) This film contains footage of the March 1965 voter registration demonstrations in Selma, Alabama. Present are Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders.
Reverend C.K. Steele (Video) This film features an interview with civil rights leader C.K. Steele at his home in Tallahassee.
Reverend C.K. Steele and Governor LeRoy Collins on the 1956 Tallahassee Bus Boycott (Exhibits, Florida Highlights) Steele and Collins exchanged these telegrams during the 1956 bus boycott in Tallahassee.
Vibrations: Julian Bond/Frenchtown/Pitts & Lee March (Video) In this film, interviewer Lucias Gant talks with Georgia Senator Julian Bond about civil rights issues.
Interview with Railroader Tom Watson (Audio) Interviewed in 1988, Watson reflects on his 30 years with the Jacksonville railroad, including civil rights issues, working conditions for African-Americans, and integration.
Excerpt from the interview:

Slavery

Distant Storm: Florida’s Role in the Civil War (Exhibits) This exhibit commemorates the Civil War sesquicentennial, including the history of slavery in Florida.
Elliot Family Papers, Contract for the Sale of Slaves (Exhibits, Florida Highlights) In this document, Cary Whitaker of North Carolina transferred legal ownership of 35 slaves to Frederick R. Cotton of Leon County, Florida.
Florida Broadsides (Collections) Search slave in the Florida Broadsides collection.
Florida Freedmen’s Contract, Jefferson County (Exhibits, Florida Highlights) This document is an example of the work agreements made between planters and freemen in the post-Civil War south; in this case, S.B. Alexander of Jefferson County and 13 African-American laborers.
Kingsley Papers (Collections) Kingsley was a wealthy planter and slave owner in Northeast Florida during the early 19^th century. This collection contains documents relevant to the Kingsley plantation and estate.
Images of the Zephaniah and Anna Kingsley Plantation (Photographs) Images of the Kingsley plantation and associated slave quarters built on Fort George Island north of Jacksonville.
Daniel Wiggins Diary Entry (Exhibits, Florida Highlights) This document is an excerpt from the diary of Daniel Wiggins, in which, among other topics, he describes slavery in territorial Florida.

Additional Resources at the State Library and Archives

The State Library and Archives of Florida is located on the second floor of the R.A. Gray Building, 500 South Bronough Street, Tallahassee, Florida, two blocks west of the State Capitol. Our public research facilities are open from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. The State Library and Archives is closed Saturdays, Sundays and on state holidays.

Researchers are encouraged to check with the The State Library and Archives to verify operating hours and records availability prior to visiting. Directions are available in an online map.

Additional Resources at Your Library

If you need additional assistance locating information for your process paper and annotated bibliography, talk to the librarian at your school or public library or use the Ask-a-Librarian service. A librarian can help you locate primary and secondary resources that may not be retrieved using search engines such as Google.