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Guide to the Oakland Black Cowboy Association Records
MS 190
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Table of contents
Title: Oakland Black Cowboy Association Records
Dates: 1967-2018
Collection number: MS 190
Creator:
Oakland Black Cowboy Association
Collection Size:
6.75 linear feet
(6 boxes + 2 oversized boxes)
Repository:
African American Museum & Library at Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)
Oakland, CA 94612
Abstract: The Oakland Black Cowboy Association Records consist of administrative records, flyers, posters, videocassette recordings,
clothing, and photographs documenting mostly the Oakland Black Cowboy Parade between 1976-2018.
Languages:
Languages represented in the collection:
English
No access restrictions. Collection is open to the public.
Materials are for use in-library only, non-circulating.
Permission to publish from the Oakland Black Cowboy Association Records must be obtained from the African American Museum
& Library at Oakland.
Oakland Black Cowboy Association records, MS 190, African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland,
California.
Collection donated by Pat Haggerty, secretary of the Oakland Black Cowboy Association.
Processed by Sean Heyliger, 12/03/2015. Updated for additional accession #2016-092 by Sean Heyliger on December 15, 2016.
Updated to incorporate accession #2018-025 on October 30, 2018 by Sean Heyliger.
Biography / Administrative History
The Oakland Black Cowboy Association was established in 1976 as part of the preparation for the Oakland Black Cowboy Parade.
The mission of the association is to “educate all the citizens of Oakland and the Bay Area about the role played by Black
cowboys and other pioneers in the settling of the American West.” The association is governed by a board of directors whose
primary duty is to plan and raise funds for the annual Oakland Black Cowboy Parade. The first parade was held in 1975 as part
of the Oakland Museum’s exhibit, “Blacks in the West,” and was sponsored by the Oakland Museum Cultural and Ethnic Affairs
Guild. The following year the parade was co-sponsored by a group of local businessmen, Oakland Traders, and the parent organization
of the Oakland Black Cowboy Association, Blacks Unified to Motivate Progress (B.U.M.P.). Since 1977, the Oakland Black Cowboy
Association has funded and planned the parade each year. The parade has traditionally been held in October each year and the
parade route begins and ends in DeFremery Park in West Oakland.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Oakland Black Cowboy Association Records consist of administrative records, flyers, posters, videocassette recordings,
clothing, and photographs documenting mostly the Oakland Black Cowboy Parade between 1976-2018. The records are organized
into six series: Series I. Administrative history, Series II. Black Cowboy Parade, Series III. VHS tapes, Series IV. Juneteenth
picnic flyers, Series V. Clothing, Series VI. Assorted printed material. The bulk of the collection is the Black Cowboy Parade
series which includes parade flyers, posters, route maps, entry forms, news releases and photographs. Additional material
includes videotapes of the parade during the 1980s, a four-piece teal nylon cowboy suit, and administrative files documenting
the history of the Oakland Black Cowboy Association and its executive board.
Series I: Administrative history
Series II. Black Cowboy Parade
Series III. VHS tapes
Series IV. Juneteenth picnic flyers
Series V. Clothing
Series VI. Assorted printed material
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in
the library's online public access catalog.
Oakland Black Cowboy Association
African Americans--Cowboys.
Oakland (Calif.)--History.
Oakland (Calif.)--Culture.
Parades –California.
West Oakland (Oakland, Calif.)--History.