DuSable Museum of African-American History

Category: Museum

The DuSable Museum of African American History is the oldest independent institution of its kind in the country dedicated to the collection, preservation, interpretation and dissemination of the history and culture of Americans of African descent. Through exhibitions, archives and programs, DuSable Museum emphasizes the experiences of Africans in America and throughout the Diaspora and their contributions to American and world history and culture.

The museum’s permanent collection includes artifacts, books, slave documents, civil rights memorabilia, paintings, drawings and sculpture by such artists as Charles White, Archibald Motley, Henry Ossawa Tanner and Elizabeth Catlett among others; photograph collections; wood and ivory carvings, bronze castings, statues and masks from Africa; and archives of original documents, manuscripts, rare books, films, recordings and bibliographic files.

The Museum sponsors an annual Arts and Crafts Festival, held on the second weekend in July. The Festival is a showcase for local artists, a juried exhibition of fine art and unique and crafted work, which features artists working in traditional, ethnic and experimental fine arts and crafts that relate to African-American themes, identity, history and culture, and underscores the mission of preserving the history and culture of the African-American experience.