Category Archives: African American history

Emancipation Day at Cheyenne’s Allen Chapel AME Church

Posted on April 12, 2021 by ahcadmin

You’ve probably heard of Juneteenth, but have you ever heard of Emancipation Day? Emancipation Day has been celebrated on different dates in the U.S. since the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1862. The tradition of Watch … Continue reading →

Posted in African American history, community collections, Digital collections, Local history, Uncategorized, Under-documented communities, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Carrie Burton Overton, UW’s First African American Female Student

Posted on January 18, 2021 by ahcadmin

Author, Wyoming historian, and sixth generation Laramie native Kim Viner wrote a wonderful article in WyoHistory.org about Carrie Burton Overton, the University of Wyoming’s first African American female student. In this post I’d like to spotlight information that Kim discovered. … Continue reading →

Posted in African American history, Uncategorized, Under-documented communities, University of Wyoming history, women's history, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Searchlight Club: Elevating Cheyenne’s African American Women

Posted on August 24, 2020 by ahcadmin

August 26 marks the date in 1920 when American women were enfranchised equally with their male counterparts. Nonetheless, African American women continued facing barriers to voting for decades, as well as negative stereotypes, harassment, and unequal access to jobs, housing, … Continue reading →

Posted in African American history, Uncategorized, Western history, Women -- suffrage, Wyoming, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

The Vivid Life and Photographs of June Vanleer Williams

Posted on April 27, 2020 by ahcadmin

June Vanleer Williams was born on June 24, 1921, in Cleveland, Ohio. She was the first African American woman to be in a Stanford University Journalism fellowship program. She was part of the program from 1969 to 1970. As a … Continue reading →

Posted in African American history, Hollywood history, Motion picture actors and actresses, motion picture history, popular culture, Uncategorized, Under-documented communities | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

New Finding Aids: September 2019

Posted on September 22, 2019 by ahcadmin

Another productive month for our archivists at the American Heritage Center. Here’s another round of finding aids we’ve published so you can see what collections we’ve recently processed. As a reminder, Finding Aids act as a table of contents for … Continue reading →

Posted in African American history, Digital collections, energy resources, Finding Aids, Laramie, Local history, motion picture history, newly processed collections, Politics, Ranch history, resources, Student Life, University of Wyoming, University of Wyoming history, western politics and leadership, Wyoming, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Archives Rewind Vol. 5

Posted on July 8, 2019 by ahcadmin

Welcome back! It’s that time again — more highlights from rewinding our “Archives on the Air” series. Let’s get Volume 5 on rewind… Episode 163 – Wyoming Defends Woman’s Suffrage – Morton E. Post Famly Papers  Women’s Suffrage has been … Continue reading →

Posted in African American history, Archives on the Air, Blacklisting, Bolivian history, Communism, Gale McGee, Local history, Martin Luther King Jr., Motion picture actors and actresses, Politics, Suffrage -- United States, Women -- suffrage, women's history, Wyoming, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Traveling With the Ninth Cavalry

Posted on June 17, 2019 by ahcadmin

The 9th United States Cavalry was formed during the Civil War as a segregated unit with African American troopers and white officers. The regiment was stationed in the West in 1867 and served in Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, … Continue reading →

Posted in African American history, military history, Western history, Wyoming, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Black History Month Programs at UW

Posted on February 1, 2019 by ahcadmin

Thursday, January 31st kicked off a series of events taking place at the University of Wyoming in honor of Black History Month.  The day featured the Black History 101 Mobile Museum on display in the Wyoming Union breezeway, and later … Continue reading →

Posted in African American history, Martin Luther King Jr., University of Wyoming history | Leave a comment

Wyoming Legislator Liz Byrd’s Quest to Honor Martin Luther King, Jr.

Posted on January 19, 2019 by ahcadmin

January 21 is Wyoming Equality Day. Perhaps you wondered this morning as you sipped your coffee about how Wyoming Equality Day originated? Cheyenne native and Wyoming state legislator Harriett Elizabeth “Liz” Byrd was the guiding individual behind it, although a … Continue reading →

Posted in African American history, Current events, found in the archive, Martin Luther King Jr., Uncategorized, women's history, Wyoming history | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Celebrating Black History Month: The June Vanleer Williams Story

Posted on February 1, 2018 by ahcadmin

African-American journalist and editor June Vanleer Williams is not necessarily well-known, but what a rich life she led. Williams was an actress, a casting director, a journalist, a playwright, a poet, and an active member in Karamu House, which is the … Continue reading →

Posted in African American history, Authors and literature, Current events, found in the archive, Journalism, Motion picture actors and actresses, motion picture history, popular culture, Uncategorized, Under-documented communities, women's history | Tagged , , | Leave a comment