Tag Archives: Civil Rights

The Nat King Cole They Knew 

Posted on April 13, 2026 by ahcadmin

When Nat Cole was a teenager in Chicago, he couldn’t always afford to get into the clubs where the great jazz pianists played. So he found another way in. His first wife, Nadine, recalled that he would slip around to the alley behind the … Continue reading →

Posted in Collections Highlights, Music History, Racism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Beyond Prissy: The Literary Ambitions of Butterfly McQueen

Posted on January 27, 2025 by ahcadmin

In a small collection at the American Heritage Center – apparently the only archival collection of her papers anywhere – actress Butterfly McQueen preserved a series of typescript works that made me wonder: of all her experiences, why did she … Continue reading →

Posted in American Social History, Black History Month, Collections Highlights, Entertainment history, Uncategorized, women's history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment