Building a ‘place of pilgrimage’ at Charleston’s International African American Museum
February 24, 2019 — A painful history connects two different coastlines, more than 4,500 miles apart. Off the coast of Sierra Leone, remnants of a British slave fort still stand on Bunce Island. Many of the captive Africans who stepped onto slave ships from the island’s stone jetty took their first steps on American soil […]
International African American Museum President Finds Strength in the Past
February 22, 2019 — For as long as he can remember, Michael Boulware Moore has known the story of Robert Smalls; a slave who not only gained his freedom by commandeering a Confederate ship and turning it over to Union forces, but later served in the South Carolina State Legislature and the U.S. House of Representatives.Moore didn’t […]
Charleston’s IAAM to help African-Americans push past the ‘1870 brick wall’
February 24, 2019 — Researching genealogy is easier than ever, particularly with DNA analysis and online archives, but many African-Americans still struggle with a lack of government records on their enslaved ancestors. Among researchers, it’s known as “the 1870 Brick Wall.” Helping African-Americans get around or over that wall has become a driving mission of Charleston’s […]
‘Sacred ground’ a star of Charleston’s new International African American Museum
February 24, 2019 — Charleston’s International African American Museum was almost built in the wrong place. Mayor Joe Riley unveiled the idea for this new museum in 2000 and steadily worked toward making it a reality, but it wasn’t until 14 years later that a consensus emerged that there was a much better site. When […]
Johnson Controls Invests $1 Million in International African American Museum
CHARLESTON, S.C. (March 28, 2018) – The International African American Museum (IAAM) announced today a $1 million gift from Johnson Controls, a catalytic leadership investment that comes ahead of the museum’s anticipated groundbreaking later this year. “Receiving this level of support from Johnson Controls, a global company based more than 1,000 miles away from Charleston, […]
Bank of America Pledges $600,000 to IAAM
Bank of America Pledges $600,000 to Support the International African American Museum CHARLESTON, S.C. (February 23, 2018) – Bank of America will contribute $600,000 to support the International African American Museum (IAAM). “Bank of America’s leadership investment is catalytic at this crucial juncture as we approach our planned groundbreaking this summer,” said Joseph P. Riley, […]
