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Plan Your Visit

Welcome to the International African American Museum! Please note that all visitors need to book timed tickets in advance. Popular dates and times may be sold out.

About
IAAM

Our journey will challenge, illuminate, inspire, and move people to action.

HISTORY COMES ALIVE

Of Trauma, Truth, and Triumph

The International African American Museum tells the unvarnished stories of the African American experience across generations, the trauma and triumph that gave rise to a resilient people.

Our Logo

Grounding our logo—and represented in the small triangular mark at its base—is the International African American Museum’s location of Gadsden’s Wharf, a place of tragedy and death in the past, but one of pilgrimage and reconciliation today. Across time, a point of arrival. A place that can now be fully explored, interrogated, and honored. Together, we can move forward.
The lines of our logo, like the language of our mission, radiate from this place. They point upward to reflect our ongoing aspirations for racial justice and social equity, a movement we invite all to join. The lines intertwine in a woven pattern that recalls timeless African, African Diaspora, and African American art traditions of weaving, from cloth to baskets to language. Ultimately, these lines capture the transcendence of spirit that creates the music, food, and myriad cultural expressions that reconcile the trauma and joy woven throughout our history.

Our Founding
Donors

The International African American Museum’s Founding Funders generously supported our institution in its earliest days with gifts of $100,000 and more.

$2 Million+

The Boeing Company

City of Charleston

Charleston County

Charleston Naval Complex Redevelopment Authority

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Dominion Energy

Lilly Endowment Inc.

Mellon Foundation

The Darla Moore Foundation

Nucor Corporation

Rosalind and Jerry Richardson

Sony Group Corporation

State of South Carolina

Anita G. Zucker

$1 Million +

Bank of America

Blackbaud

BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina

BMW Group

bp America

Coastal Community Foundation

Lynne Dobson and Greg Wooldridge

The Duke Endowment

Ford Foundation

Google

Guffey Family Foundation

Susu and George Dean Johnson

Johnson Controls Foundation

George S. Loening

Macquarie Group

Mercedes-Benz

Vans

Michelin North America

City of North Charleston

Spaulding-Paolozzi Foundation

Yawkey Foundation

$500,000 +

Fluor Foundation

Susan and Harry Frampton

The Gilder Foundation

Mary and Mason Holland and Jocelyn and Shawn Jenkins

Bill Horton and Mary Major

Carolyn Hunter-Heyward

Ingevity

Morgan Stanley

Jim and Kim Pallotta

TD Bank

T-Mobile

TRUIST

Wells Fargo Foundation

WestRock Foundation

$250,000 +

American Express

AT&T

Michael, Amy, and Jack Bennett

Jill and John Chalsty

Denny’s Inc.

Greystar Real Estate Partners

Sheila C. Johnson

Alison and Tom Schneider

M. Edward Sellers and Dr. Suzan D. Boyd

Sherman Financial Group

The Marva Smalls Endowment

Speedwell Foundation

Synovus Financial

$100,000 +

Jessica and Todd Aaron

Ambassador J. Brady

Anderson and Mrs. Betty Anderson

Ascue Family Foundation

Bill and Valerie Barnet

The Beach Company

Hyman and Marietta Bielsky

Bloomberg Philanthropies

The Boulé Foundation

Jedd and Dara Canty

Chapman Cubine Allen + Hussey

Charleston Harbor Benefactors Society

Charleston World Heritage Coalition, Stephen Ziff, Chair Family and Friends of Henry N. Cobb

Dr. N. Anthony and Robyn Coles

College of Charleston

Cravens Foundation

The CWD3 Fund of Coastal Community Foundation

Ronda Dean

Deloitte Tax

Herbert L. Drayton III

First Citizens Bank

Hank Holliday

Patrick Condon Ilderton

Martha Rivers Ingram

The Jaharis Family Foundation

Della and Clifton Jordan

William Kennard and Deborah Kennedy Kennard

Kresge Foundation

Ambassador and Mrs. Philip Lader

Brenda Lauderback and Dr. Boyd Wright

Lowe

The Maddux Family

McColl Foundation

Tom and Chris Motamed

Charles and Celeste Patrick

The Pearlstine Family Fund

Pisgah Investments Foundation

Robert Porcher III

Post and Courier Foundation

Bob and Greg Royall

Select Health of South Carolina

Halle Tecco and Jeff Hammerbacher

Volvo

Anonymous Donor

We are endlessly grateful for our donors who have contributed gifts of all sizes, as well as our Charter Members. It is thanks to your support that we can collectively reframe our view of the past and usher in a new era understanding for the future.