Browse Exhibits (12 total)

A History of the Interdenominational Theological Center

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The Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC) is a Christian Afrocentric ecumenical consortium of seminaries and fellowships that educates students who commit to practicing justice and peace through a liberating and transforming spirituality to become leaders in the church and local/global communities.  Located on ten acres in the heart of the Atlanta University Center, the ITC has a rich history in educating African-American ministers and theologians dating back to the end of the Civil War.

This exhibit was made possible through Spreading the Word: Expanding Access to African American Religious Archival Collections at the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library, funded by a grant from the National Endowment for Humanities, is a collaborative project between the Archives Research Center and the Digital Services Unit of the AUC Robert W. Woodruff Library. The project has prepared for access fourteen collections of rare materials on African American religion spanning from the late 19th century to early 20th century, and from the 1950s to 2000s. The reformatting of audio and visual materials previously underutilized or inaccessible is a major component of this project. The digitized collections are available for access on RADAR. Further explore the collections by following the project blog and LibGuide.

Exhibit created by Jessica Leming and DuJuan Morris

A House United: Celebrating 150 Years of Morehouse College

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Founded in 1867 originally in Augusta, Georgia, Morehouse College in the last 150 years has expanded and grown into an international powerhouse, educating leaders in the world across a variety of professions and disciplines. A House United: Celebrating 150 Years of Morehouse College, is a physical representation of the strides Morehouse College has made from its inception and continues to make currently. Highlighting the rich resources of the AUC Woodruff Library’s Archives Research Center, this exhibit celebrates the accomplishments of the nation’s only all-male, historically Black college by showcasing archival documents and images related to Morehouse College.  

Originally established for educating teachers and men for ministry, Morehouse has expanded its curriculum and in turn matured into an institution of prestige and excellence in scholarship. A House United, tells a visual story of Morehouse College from 1887 to 2017, and the school’s mission to “develop men with disciplined minds who lead lives of leadership and service.” Proudly birthed from a place of tradition and hallowed grounds, the faculty, staff, students, and alumni of Morehouse College exemplify excellence.

In conjunction with the A House United: Celebrating 150 Years of Morehouse College exhibit, the AUC Woodruff Library Archives Research Center is proud to display the Morehouse College Photograph Collection which includes 216 photographs depicting buildings and grounds, students, campus events and visitors, faculty, and individuals associated with the College dating from the 1880s to the 1970s. For more information visit RADAR.     

 

Black Neighborhoods and the Creation of Black Atlanta

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Black Neighborhoods and the Creation of Black Atlanta explores the history of Black neighborhoods in Atlanta. It provides an overview of several of these neighborhoods: Summerhill, Vine City, West End, Lightning, and Johnsontown. The exhibit highlights archival collections held in the Archives Research Center at the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. Collections include the Maynard Jackson Mayoral Administrative records, the Atlanta Urban League papers, the Atlanta Community Relations Commission collection, the Grace Towns Hamilton papers, the Neighborhood Union collection, the John H. Calhoun, Jr. papers, the Samuel W. Williams papers, the Atlanta Neighborhood Planning vertical file, the Johnsontown Neighborhood collection, and the Vivian W. Henderson papers.

Born to Rebel: The Life and Legacy of Benjamin E. Mays

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Benjamin E. Mays was an educator, leader, pastor, and civil rights activist during the time of segregation, lynchings, and Jim Crow Laws in the South. Mays served as president of Morehouse College from 1940 to 1967. During his time at the college, he created an era of expansion and advancement for the school. In 1969, he was elected to the Atlanta Public Schools Board of Education. He was the first African American to be president of the board. During his tenure, Mays supervised the desegregation of the schools and appointed the first African American superintendent of schools, Alonzo Crim.

Born to Rebel explores the life and legacy of Benjamin E. Mays. It provides an overview of his work at Morehouse College and the Atlanta Board of Education. The exhibit showcases his legacy as the president of Morehouse College and his work to desegregate the Atlanta Public Schools.

Title of the exhibit was adapted from Benjamin E. Mays autobiography: Born to Rebel

Finding A Way: The Black Family's Struggle for an Education at the Atlanta University Center

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Through Black self-help and the contributions of northern religious societies and philanthropies, several colleges were founded in Georgia, most of which now comprise the Atlanta University Center (AUC): Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, Spelman College, and Interdenominational Theological Center. The story of Black education tells of the struggle to become literate, skilled, and enlightened in a racist society. This exhibit focuses on the role families played in this struggle at the Atlanta University Center.

The Center’s mission, in the broad sense, was to serve families through education and training. Families sacrificed in the face of great odds to educate their children generation after generation. The Atlanta University motto, “I’ll Find A Way or Make One,” captures the spirit of their struggle, and speaks to the miracle of their achievement.

GLAM Center for Collaborative Teaching & Learning Digital Exhibits

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The Atlanta University Center (AUC) Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums (GLAM) Center for Collaborative Teaching & Learning is an AUC Robert W. Woodruff Library project funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The AUC GLAM Center is a collaboration between Clark Atlanta University Art Museum, Spelman College Museum of Fine Art and the AUC Woodruff Library’s Archives Research Center. 

View the GLAM Digital Exhibits here

Our Story: Photographs and Publications of the Atlanta University Center

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Our Story is a two and a half-year, collaborative grant funded project between the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library, Spelman College Archives, and the Digital Library of Georgia (DLG).  Through digital reformatting and a portal of publicly accessible collections on the AUC Woodruff Library’s Digital Commons and the DLG, this project will broaden access to unique publications, periodicals, theses, dissertations and photographs documenting the history of the AUC – the largest consortium of Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Once completed, archives related to the following schools will be more easily discoverable throughout the world for scholarship about various aspects of African American higher education directly after emancipation of slavery through to the 21st Century:  Atlanta University, Clark College, Clark Atlanta University, Gammon Theological Seminary, Interdenominational Theological Center, Morehouse College, Morris Brown College, and Spelman College.

Select from the schools on the right to view available research and scholarship.

WEBINAR RECORDINGS:

November 15th, 2018 Revealing Hidden Collections: The Our Story Digitization Project at the Atlanta University Center - View Recording

February 5th, 2019 Revealing Hidden Collections: The Our Story Digitization Project at the Atlanta University Center - Part Two - The Mechanics - View Recording

Seeking to Tell a Story: From Slavery to Civil Rights

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In this 150th anniversary year of the Emancipation Proclamation and the 50th anniversary year of the March on Washington, interest in black political activity during the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement is at a high point. What may not be included in these celebrations is the constant struggle, and triumphs, of African-Americans in the intervening years. As John Russworm and Samuel Cornish wrote in the first editorial published in Freedom’s Journal, "we seek to tell our own story because too many others have falsely told it." This exhibition will seek to tell the story of black political action in Georgia, bookended by the emancipation and civil rights eras.

Student Life: A Celebration of the AUC

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“Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are valuable institutions that provide intellectual domains for racial uplift, racial refuge, and cultural empowerment within a continually polarized nation” (The Athletic Experience at Historically Black Colleges and Universities: Past, Present, and Persistence)

This exhibit celebrates student life at both past and current schools in the Atlanta University Center. Through archival materials held in the Archives Research Center of the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library, this exhibit illustrates various aspects of student life from fraternities and sororities to homecoming and events. Collections include the Atlanta University Photographs, Clark College Photographs, the Interdenominational Theological Center Audio Visual collection, the Hugh M. Gloster collection, the Edward A. Jones papers, and the Morris Brown College Photographs.

The Joseph Echols and Evelyn Gibson Lowery Collection

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This exhibit features records from The Joseph Echols and Evelyn Gibson Lowery Collection, documenting the work of Joseph E. Lowery as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and Evelyn G. Lowery’s founding and leadership of the SCLC/Women’s Organizational Movement for Equality Now (SCLC/W.O.M.E.N.). The Lowery Collection contains personal papers, sermons, speeches, correspondence, SCLC and SCLC/W.O.M.E.N. records, and hundreds of historical photographs and audiovisual records documenting the Lowery's struggle for justice and equality. Select materials from the collection will be digitized and made available through the Library’s institutional repository.

The Lowery Trust granted sole ownership of the collection to Morehouse College in March 2021. Shortly thereafter, the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library was formally designated as custodian of the collection with responsibilities for housing and providing access for students, scholars, researchers, and the global community.

View the The Joseph Echols and Evelyn Gibson Lowery Collection Exhibit here