African American Museum & Library at Oakland Oral History Collection, 2002-2007

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Summary

Creators:
African American Museum & Library at Oakland
Abstract:
The African American Museum & Library at Oakland Oral History Collection consists of 79 oral history interviews conducted in 2002-2007. The interviews were initially conducted by the AAMLO Coalition, a group of volunteers and supporters of the African American Museum & Library at Oakland, which interviewed prominent and long-time Oakland residents in the fields of education, performing arts, politics and religion.
Extent:
2.75 linear feet (6 boxes)
Language:
Languages represented in the collection: English
Preferred citation:

African American Museum & Library at Oakland Oral History collection, MS 191, African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California.

Background

Scope and content:

The African American Museum & Library at Oakland Oral History Collection consists of 87 oral history interviews conducted in 2002-2007. The interviews were initially conducted by the AAMLO Coalition, a group of volunteers and supporters of the African American Museum & Library at Oakland, as the Eternal Voices oral history project which interviewed prominent and long-time Oakland residents in the fields of education, performing arts, politics and religion. Interviewees included artist Frances Dunham Catlett, educator Josephine Bynum Dukes, Rev. Herbert Guice, businesswoman Esther Mabry, Dorothy Reid Pete, Tuskegee airman Garnett Quinn, teacher Audrey Gibson Robinson, nurse and historian Alice Royal, musician Loraine Cody Richmond, politician Maudelle Shirek, baseball player Turley, Weathy Turley, cartoonist Morrie Turner, activist Ruth Villa, and filmmaker Allen Willis. The project continued with Eternal Voices 2, a program of audio interviews with multigenerational Oakland families, and “Youth Speaks,” a panel discussion with youth from various Oakland high schools. The remaining interviews were conducted beginning in 2007 with residents of Oakland, California discussing the history and evolution of the African American community in Oakland and form part of the museum’s permanent exhibit. The interviews are arranged alphabetically by interviewee’s last name.

Biographical / historical:

The African American Museum & Library at Oakland (AAMLO) was organized on July 2, 1965 in the home of Marcella Ford as the East Bay Negro Historical Society (EBNHS). In attendance at the first meeting were the seven founding members of the society: Marcella Ford, Jesse Ford, Eugene Lasartemay, Ruth Lasartemay, E. Harold Mason, Morrie Turner, and Madison Harvey Jr. The society’s mission was to “collect, preserve, record, and disseminate information related to the history, culture and experience, of persons of Black American and African descent, especially those in the East Bay, the State of California and throughout the West.” The society consisted of members, officers, and an executive board and included library, museum, publications and publicity, program, membership, finance, and nomination committees which met on the third Saturday of every month. Initially, the society operated as a unit of the Oakland Unified School District Volunteer Program, with members giving lectures on black history to students that would visit the library and museum. In 1970, the society moved to a storefront located at 3651 Grove Street in Oakland, California and remained there for six years before moving to 4519 Grove St., where it established a museum and library. In 1982, the society was invited into the Golden Gate Branch of the Oakland Public Library, making it the first Oakland library branch with a collection focused on African American history and culture. Following the appointment of Dr. Lawrence Crouchett as its executive director in 1988, the society changed its name to the Northern California Center for Afro-American History & Life (NCCAAHL). In 1994, the City of Oakland and the NCCAAHL merged to create the African American Museum & Library at Oakland (AAMLO).

Acquisition information:
Oral history interviews conducted by the African American Museum Library at Oakland.
Processing information:

Processed by Sean Heyliger, December 10, 2015.

Arrangement:

Series I: Oral history interviews

Series II: Eternal Voices oral history project

Rules or conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: a Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

No access restrictions. Collection is open to the public.

Materials are for use in-library only, non-circulating.

Terms of access:

Permission to publish from the African American Museum & Library at Oakland Oral History Collection must be obtained from the African American Museum & Library at Oakland.

Preferred citation:

African American Museum & Library at Oakland Oral History collection, MS 191, African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California.

Location of this collection:
659 14th Street
Oakland, CA 94612, US
Contact:
(510) 637-0198
aamlo@oaklandlibrary.org
Website