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by Onajídé Shabaka - 6 June, 2007
Underground Railroad
by Onajídé Shabaka
On my recent trip to Philadelphia I needed to pick
up some research material at Temple University. While there I stopped
by a private collection of books and artifacts specializing on
African American studies. Very little of this type of research
material is available in S. Florida. That's one reason I refuse
to throw away books in my personal collection, many of which are
out of print.
Charles L. Blockson, introduction by Dorothy Porter Wesley
"My main goal in life is to build a good library of Black
history-knowledge is a form of Black power and this is my part
in it," stated Charles L. Blockson, curator of these extensive
holdings in African-Americana. Temple University’s Blockson
Collection is comprised of materials that date from 1581 to the
present. It is among the largest collection of items relating
to the African Diaspora experience and this is the first catalog
by an African-American bibliophile to be published by a major
university. The massive volume records approximately 11,000 entries
and includes more than a dozen photographs.
Determined to prove that
people of African descent had heroes and a great historical
past, Blockson began his lifelong passion for collecting while
researching the underground railroad throughout the United
States and Canada. Over forty-five years, he has acquired a
variety of historical artifacts—printed books, pamphlets,
addresses and speeches, art catalogs, newspapers, periodicals,
manuscripts, broadsides, handbills, lithographs, tape recordings,
stamps, coins, maps, oil paintings, and sculpture—that
all relate to African, African-American, and Caribbean life and
history.
In his Preface to this
volume, Blockson comments, "It has
long been my conviction that no race of people should be deprived
of the knowledge of itself and that libraries are the soul of a
nation." Scholars from all over the world, indeed, anyone
who is interested in the rich cultural heritage of African-Americans,
will welcome this long-awaited and much-needed resource.
The Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection
is one of the nation's leading research facilities for the study
of the history and culture of people of African descent. This collection
of over 30,000 items has materials on the global black experience
in all formats: books, manuscripts, sheet music, pamphlets, journals,
newspapers, broadsides, posters, photographs, and rare ephemera.
Rare books, prints, photographs, slave narratives,
manuscripts, letters, sheet music, foreign language publications
and ephemera comprise the impressive special collections component
of the Blockson Collection. The Collection's rare books section
is particularly strong in its first editions, as well as its holdings
in African, African-American and African-Caribbean publications
dating back to the sixteenth century.
In addition, the collection houses
selected artifacts, such as statues and busts. The collection must
be used in-house, however.
Charles
L. Blockson Afro-American Collection
Sullivan Hall, first floor
Philadelphia, PA 19122
(215) 204-6632
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