Collections

The Alcee Hastings Collection contains materials that document the career of Broward County lawyer, judge, and U.S. House of Representatives Congressman Alcee L. Hastings, such as photographs, printed materials, books, artwork, plaques, certificates, and award objects. The majority of the materials in the collection came from Congressman Hasting's congressional office.

The Arthur B. Steinman Collection contains twentieth century African sculptures and masks from the central and western regions of Africa. It also contains one lithograph print of "Planting" signed by Thomas Hart Benton.

The Audrey Peterman Collection documents the North Fork of the New River and development plans around the river in the 1990s and early 2000s. It contains oversize presentation boards with designs and photographs of the New River North Fork Master Plan dated 2003, a folder of materials related to the New River North Fork Initiative circa 1998-2000, one "Franklin Park Enhancement Plan" 1995, a folder of materials related to the Audubon Centers of Florida circa 2000, and newspaper clippings. The materials include plans and newspaper clippings discussing the development of the African American Research Library and Cultural Center (AARLCC).

The collection is comprised of Bobby G. Glenn's correspondence, awards and honors, newspaper clippings, Lieutenant uniform and hat, funeral program, and one photograph. Glenn served as Fort Lauderdale's first Black firefighter.

The Burnett Roth Collection contains books and pamphlets published between 1946 and 1999 related to the Civil Rights Movement and African American history. The collection also contains Jet magazines dated 1951 to 1973 and Ebony magazines dated 1964 to 1973. Also included are four VHS tapes on Jim Crow and Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Charles E. Barnes Collection contains personal papers, certificates, photographic reproductions, and a fireman's helmet belonging to Charles E. Barnes of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The Clinton Mack Collection contains more than 290 images of the Black community in Pompano Beach taken during the 1930s. The photographs are primarily portraits of African-American and Bahamian men, women, children, and families, but there are also group photographs, images of parades, Masons, and church groups. The original negatives from the 1930s form the bulk of the collection, along with the original box they were stored in. The collection also includes materials from Bob Pool Jewelry and Photo, and materials documenting Kurt Mulder's efforts to preserve the images and identify the people in them.

The Daniel M. Johnson Collection consists of approximately 5,200 books published between the 1780s to 2002 that are by and about Africans and people of African descent. The collection includes many first edition and signed copies as well as pamphlets, articles, letters and photographs. The major categories that Daniel M. Johnson delineated for his collection are: African-American literature and children's literature; African and Caribbean literature; African-American history and critical thought; African, Egyptian, and Middle-Eastern history; and African-American art, music, dance, and sports. The catalog includes 4164 nonfiction books and 907 fiction books.

The Earl Chesler Book Collection contains 84 books published between 1928 and 2001. Subjects include African American history and culture, Black biographies, Haitian history and art, African history, and fiction.