Baltimore has an incredible wealth and depth of African American history, culture and heritage. Discover Black History Month events and exhibitions throughout the city.
Below is a list of events that occurred during Black History Month in 2015. We will update this listing with 2016 events as soon as they are available. So please check back soon.
Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park
- Permanent Exhibits
Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park
Ongoing
Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park is an educational and national heritage site that highlights African American maritime history. Come and share with us as we chronicle the saga of Frederick Douglass’ life in Baltimore as an enslaved child and young man. We also take a look at the life of Isaac Myers, a free born African American who became a national leader. As a vistor, you will also learn about the founding of the Chesapeake Marine Railway and Dry Dock Company and the establishment of the African American Community in Baltimore during the 1800’s.
The National Great Blacks In Wax Museum
- Permanent Exhibits
The National Great Blacks In Wax Museum
Ongoing
The National Great Blacks In Wax Museum is among the nations most dynamic cultural and educational institutions. Because it is a wax museum committed solely to the study and preservation of African American history, it is also among the most unique. Primarily, the presentation of life-size, life-like wax figures highlighting historical and contemporary personalities of African ancestry defines its uniqueness.
For Whom It Stands: The Flag and the American People
Reginald F. Lewis Museum
Through February 28, 2015
This exhibition chronicles the communities and individuals who pointedly have asked the question: For Whom Does the Flag Stand? From pride to protest, the flag of the United States has been used to express the views of the nation's people. Most recently, people of diverse backgrounds have rallied around the slogan that “Black Lives Matter.” In these demonstrations and protests, the U.S. flag has once again emerged as an icon for expressing the anger, turmoil, and even despair that accumulates with each new incident of injustice. This resurgence of flag-based images challenges the contention that there is “liberty and justice for all.” In this exhibition, more than 100 works of flag-based art, artifacts, documents, and photographs reflect the breadth of American experiences towards the U.S. flag. www.rflewismuseum.org
The Visionary Experience: Saint Francis to Finster
American Visionary Art Museum
Through August 30, 2015
AVAM's 20th original exhibition celebrates the great dreamers and doers throughout history, exploring the astonishing visions of Hildegard von Bingen and Leonardo da Vinci to Nikola Tesla and Philip K. Dick and pays tribute to the ecstatic “Aha!” and “Eureka!” moments that propel discovery, leaps in consciousness and cultural renewal. The exhibition features never-before-exhibited cosmic drawings by Jimi Hendrix and examines the human impulse to forge a path out of darkness into illumination, as well as the duality and complexity of vision, from radical clarity to unfettered delusion, and the legacy of visionary experiences throughout time. www.avam.org
One Night in Miami…
Center Stage
Through February 8, 2015
February 25, 1964. Twenty-two-year-old Cassius Clay has just won the world heavyweight boxing title. Instead of hitting the town, Clay chooses to celebrate in a Miami hotel room with three close friends – activist Malcolm X, singer Sam Cooke and football star Jim Brown. This fictional account of a real night imagines what might have happened in that tiny hotel room. As the Civil Rights movement stirs outside, and the melody of “A Change is Gonna Come” hangs in the air, four men will emerge from that one night ready to define a new world. www.centerstage.org
A Stirring Song Sung Heroic: African Americans from Slavery to Freedom, 1619 to 1865, Photographs by William Earle Williams
UMBC
Through March 25, 2015
The history of American slavery is considered in A Stirring Song Sung Heroic, an exhibition of 80 black and white silver gelatin prints by photographer William Earle Williams. These images document mostly anonymous, unheralded, and uncelebrated places in the New World—from the Caribbean to North America—where Americans black and white determined the meaning of freedom. Archives of prints, newspapers, and other ephemera related to the struggle accompany the work. The presentation of this exhibition marks the 150th anniversary of the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which abolished slavery nationwide following the conclusion of the American Civil War. www.my.umbc.edu
Celebrate Black History Month at the B&O: Proudly presented by AMTRAK®
The B&O Railroad Museum
February 1–28, 2015
The B&O Railroad Museum opens a new African American exhibit that celebrates the contributions of African Americans to the railroad industry. Learn about these men and women who filled vital jobs along the B&O Railroad's line and understand how significant social issues, such as segregation, affected railroading. New exhibits focus on African American passenger travel during segregation and chefs and waiters who worked on B&O dining cars. www.borail.org
Ruined
Everyman Theatre
February 4 – March 8, 2015
Based on real interviews conducted by Lynn Nottage (“By the Way, Meet Vera Stark”), “Ruined” transports you into the Congo where the shrewd and savvy matriarch-turned-businesswoman Mama Nadi struggles to hold on to her one safe refuse – a brothel – as the world around her disintegrates into war, with women's bodies too often as the battleground. www.everymantheatre.org
Freedom’s Diaries: Diaries of Free African Americans from the Antebellum and Civil War Eras
Reginald F. Lewis Museum
February 7, 2015
Diaries by African Americans from the Antebellum and Civil War periods are extremely rare. That they would survive to present day is even more remarkable. Join for a unique chance to hear about the everyday life of free African Americans during that time, thanks to the survival of two diaries from the Mid-Atlantic region. Karsonya Whitehead’s Notes from a Colored Girl: The Civil War Pocket Diaries of Emilie Frances Davis uncovers the story of a woman in Philadelphia’s vibrant free black community through the prism of identity, race and class. Myra Y. Armstead’s Freedom’s Gardener: James F. Brown, Horticulture and the Hudson Valley in Antebellum America traces the life of an escaped slave from Maryland who became a master gardener and kept a diary for over three decades. www.rflewismuseum.org
Hometown Teams
Banneker-Douglass Museum
February 7 - March 28, 2015
Untold Stories: Athletes of Maryland’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) is an exhibition celebrating the stellar achievements set forth by athletes who helped shape the face of black college sports and the prowess of athletes who excelled in football, basketball, track, tennis, bowling, and lacrosse. The exhibition is produced in partnership with the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) and runs through October 2015. Hometown Teams, a Smithsonian Institution exhibition celebrating America's love for sports, will run at the Banneker-Douglass Museum from February 7 to March 28. www.mdstories.com
The Griot’s Eye Youth Film and Culture Festival
Reginald F. Lewis Museum
February 14, 2015
Celebrate Black History Month with Baltimore area youth as they showcase cultural heritage and creative expression in film, theater, music, dance, and poetry. This annual festival showcases the various arts and educational programs that are positively engaging the youth in the community’s revitalization. The Griot’s Eye is an arts-based youth leadership and community-development program that equips urban youth with technical and cultural skills to produce compelling social media programs that address relevant issues in their lives. Special admission $5. www.rflewismuseum.org
African American Art: An Intro for Kids
Reginald F. Lewis Museum
February 21, 2015
Explore African American art with teaching artist, Culture Queen. Families will see a short children’s video about African American artists, take a mini gallery tour, and create their own artwork inspired by an artist. www.rflewismuseum.org
Legends & Legacies Heritage Bus Tour
Citywide
February 21 & 28, 2015
In honor of the founder of Black History Month and historian Carter G. Woodson, this year’s theme is “Celebrating a Century of Black Life, History, and Culture.” Baltimore invites visitors to engage in the first-ever Legends & Legacies Heritage Bus Tour. This special event is an immersive experience featuring Baltimore’s three signature African-American museums: The Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture, the National Great Blacks In Wax Museum, and the Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park Museum. During the special bus tours, visitors will enjoy rich history, a personal tour guide, appearances by period actors, special “shoe box lunch,” giveaways and more. Please note that bus tour seating is limited. For more information on the Legends & Legacies Heritage Bus Tour and to reserve your space, visit www.baltimore.org or call 410-244-8861.
Open House 2015
Reginald F. Lewis Museum
February 28, 2015
Celebrate Black History Month with an open house at the museum. Join friends, neighbors, community innovators and business leaders for a day full of interactive tours, activities and entertainment. Sponsored by Verizon. Free. www.rflewismuseum.org
Click here to download a pdf of the 2014 Visit Baltimore Multicultural Guide "A Heritage Guide - Dream Baltimore".
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