African American History

Learn about the achievements of African Americans who have shaped South Carolina and American history.

Black History Month is celebrated every February to honor the achievements of African Americans who have shaped American history. Historian Carter G. Woodson hoped to raise awareness of African American's contributions to civilization by establishing Negro History Week. The event was first celebrated during a week in February 1926 that included both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass' birthdays. The week was later expanded to a month in 1976 during the United States bicentennial.

PHOTO: On March 20, 1969, Black hospital workers at the Medical College of South Carolina in Charleston went on strike to protest the firing of twelve employees and to call for higher wages and union recognition.

Within this Collection

Bettis Academy Photo Gallery | Let's Go!
Bettis Academy Photo Gallery | Let's Go!

Photo

Established in Trenton (Edgefield County) in 1881 by the Reverend Alexander Bettis, this school provided former enslaved African Americans and their children with a basic education of reading and...
Penn Center Photo Gallery | Let's Go!
Penn Center Photo Gallery | Let's Go!

Photo

The Penn Center, founded officially as the Penn School in 1865, is a campus of buildings dedicated to African American education in St. Helena Island, South Carolina. The original school grew out of...
Leo Twiggs | S.C. Hall of Fame

Video

Leo Franklin Twiggs (born 1934 in St. Stephen, South Carolina) is an American batik artist. He taught from 1973 until 1998 at South Carolina State University. He was the first visual artist to receive...
Evelyn Wright | S.C. Hall of Fame

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Elizabeth Evelyn Wright was born April 3, 1872 in Talbotton, Georgia. While being educated, she learned about Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute and Booker T. Washington. In 1888, Wright...
3D VR - Penn Center: Brick Church | Let's Go!
3D VR - Penn Center: Brick Church | Let's Go!

Interactive

Penn Center is one of the most significant African American historical and cultural institutions in existence today. The historic campus is located on St. Helena Island, one of the most beautiful and...