Portrait of Frederick Douglass
A portrait from the Blockson Collection documenting prominent African American figures.
African AmericansPortraitsAbolitionists
Collection
Blockson Afro-American Collection Photographs
Photographs from the Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection, one of the nation's leading research facilities for the study of the history and culture of people of African descent. The collection encompasses over 500,000 items spanning five centuries of the African diaspora.
Total
items: 1000
Date Range:
1800s-Present
About This Collection
Assembled over decades by historian and bibliophile Charles L. Blockson, this collection was donated to Temple University in 1984. It is one of the largest privately assembled collections of African American artifacts in the United States, housed in Sullivan Hall on Temple's Main Campus.
Data Explorer
3 featured items
African American Military Service
Photograph documenting African American military service, part of the Blockson Collection's records.
African AmericansMilitary serviceWorld War II
Community Gathering
A community gathering captured in the Blockson Collection, documenting the richness of African American social life.
African AmericansCommunity lifeSocial gatherings
Explore the full collection
These featured items are just a sample. Browse the full Blockson Afro-American Collection Photographs at Temple University Libraries or use the IIIF collection manifest to access the data.