Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture

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Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture Collecting, preserving & promoting the unique history of the African Diaspora Self Guided Museum Tours: M, W, F at 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m.

to 3:30 p.m. Reading Room: M-F 10:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Closed for Lunch: 12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.

10/15/2026

That’s a wrap on our last Interpretive Guide training of the of the year at the Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture. We had such an amazing cohort!

We added 8 new Black interpreters to the ranks of the National Association for Interpretation and built what are likely to become lifelong friendships!

The Avery Research Center is an important resource for all interpreters in the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor and beyond.

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For the record NAI defines interpretation defines interpretation as a purposeful approach to communication that facilitates meaningful, relevant, and inclusive experiences that deepen understanding, perspectives and inspire engagement with the world around us (😂)

Learn more at NAI-us.org🔗

Join us via Zoom, October 15th as we host Katie Mitchell, author of Prose to the People: A Celebration of Black Bookstor...
10/09/2026

Join us via Zoom, October 15th as we host Katie Mitchell, author of Prose to the People: A Celebration of Black Bookstores.

“A stunning visual homage to Black bookstores, featuring a selection of shops around the country alongside essays that celebrate the history, community, activism, and culture these spaces embody, with an original foreword by Nikki Giovanni…”

Joining us in conversation will be VaLinda Miller, owner of Turning Page Bookshop, Charleston County’s sole Black-owned bookstore.

Continue to join the Dr. Conseula Francis Reading Circle as we celebrate 10 years of lively book discussions!

Yesterday during an archival instruction session for an Historic Preservation and Community Planning course, a student u...
10/09/2026

Yesterday during an archival instruction session for an Historic Preservation and Community Planning course, a student uncovered evidence of architect and Avery graduate, Herbert A. DeCosta, Jr. contracting master blacksmith Phillip Simmons to create a piece of ornamental iron work for a home in Ansonborough.

You never know what you’ll find when you book a research appointment at the Avery Research Center for AfricanAmerican History and Culture.

Check out these images of Arabian Temple no. 139 from the G. G. Lee photograph collection. Do you recognize any of the m...
10/08/2026

Check out these images of Arabian Temple no. 139 from the G. G. Lee photograph collection.

Do you recognize any of the members?
Let us know in the comments⬇️

The Avery Research Center honors the life and legacy of our friend, Barbara Gathers, who has taken her seat amongst the ...
10/07/2026

The Avery Research Center honors the life and legacy of our friend, Barbara Gathers, who has taken her seat amongst the ancestors. Presented here is a photo of the Edifites Junior Club featuring Ms. Gathers from our Mamie Garvin Fields collection (top row fourth from the right). We will miss Ms. Gathers, but keep in our minds and hearts her advocacy, work, and commitment to preserving the history of Black Charleston.

Attention interpreters and tour guides! Join the Black and Brown Interpreters Network for a sneak peak tour of the histo...
10/01/2026

Attention interpreters and tour guides! Join the Black and Brown Interpreters Network for a sneak peak tour of the historic Hutchinson House on Edisto island with Sarah Stroud Clarke and Vagella Smalls.

We’ll explore the history of the Hutchinson House. Built circa 1885, it is the oldest remaining 19th century home from the Clark Community, an African American Settlement Community founded on Edisto by a cooperative led by James “Jim” Hutchinson. The home was built by his son Henry Hutchinson, and successful Sea Island Cotton Farmer, and it is now a part of the Edisto Island Open Land Trust.

Space is limited. Save your spot!
https://libcal.charleston.edu/event/17669599

The Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture is hiring a Reference and Exhibit Coordinator. Apply ...
09/14/2026

The Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture is hiring a Reference and Exhibit Coordinator. Apply today! Link in bio 🔗

There's one week left to apply for the scholarship to attend Interpretive Guide Training at the Avery Research Center in...
09/11/2026

There's one week left to apply for the scholarship to attend Interpretive Guide Training at the Avery Research Center in October!

Images of the HI-Y Club at the Avery Norma School from our photograph collection. According to Edmund Drago’s book “Init...
09/10/2026

Images of the HI-Y Club at the Avery Norma School from our photograph collection.

According to Edmund Drago’s book “Initiative Paternalism and Race Relations: Charleston’s Avery Normal Institute,” the HI-Y Club was formed in 1939 to promote “high standards…clean speech, clean scholarship, clean athletics, and clean living” on campus. Alphonso Hoursey was a chief advisor to the club.

Do you recognize any of the students? Let’s us know in the comments ⬇️

Check out these wedding photos from the Walter N. Boags Papers. The collection consists mostly of black-and-white and co...
09/02/2026

Check out these wedding photos from the Walter N. Boags Papers. The collection consists mostly of black-and-white and color negatives of photos taken by Boags from 1945 through the 1980s.

Do you recognize this family?
Let us know in the comments ⬇️

Address

125 Bull Street
Charleston, SC
29424

Telephone

(843) 953-7609

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