Black History Month 2024

Join Pikes Peak Library District in celebrating Black History Month! Black History Month is a time to celebrate the contributions and achievements of African Americans throughout history. This month-long observance is an opportunity to recognize the impact that Black Americans have made on our society. Browse this page to explore Library resources and links to other websites where you can explore this history in-depth. 

Virtual Author Visit

Join us for a Virtual Author Visit with award-winning author Jason Mott about his recent novel Hell of a Book on Tue., Feb. 20 at 2 p.m. This magnificent work of fiction is deeply honest, at times electrically funny, and is a book that goes to the heart of racism, police violence, and the hidden costs exacted upon Black Americans and America as a whole. Register to get the link.

• Online: Tue., Feb. 20 at 2 p.m.

Virtual Genealogy Class: Researching African American Ancestors

Researching your African American ancestors can be a challenging, yet rewarding, process. In addition to research strategies, this class will cover how to use both traditional and unique resources to explore your family tree. Register for the access link.

• Online: Tue., Feb. 13, 7 - 8:30 p.m.

Resources

• Hoopla Audiobooks
• Hoopla Resources
• 50 Songs to Honor Black History Month - Freegal 

Education Resources

• The Shivers African American Historical Cultural Collection
  • Explore the Shivers African American Historical Cultural Collection to find a wide variety of materials for all ages that celebrate African American culture.
• Biography in Context 
• National Archives: African American Heritage 
• Reading Rockets: Celebrating and Learning about Black History and Culture 
• ProQuest: Black Freedom Struggle in the United States 
   

Regional History & Genealogy Resources

• The Invisible People of the Pikes PeakRegion: an Afro-American Chronical by John Stokes Holley 
• Everybody Welcome: a Memoir of Fannie Mae Duncan and the Cotton Club by Fannie Mae Duncan 
• Negro Historical Association Newsletters and Yearbooks (available in Special Collections reference stacks) 
• African Americans in Colorado Springs in PPLD Digital Collections 
• Lew Tilley Photographs in PPLD Digital Collections 
• Black History Scrapbooks (Archival collection MSS 0387, available in Special Collections) 
• Colorado Springs Branch National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) (Archival collection MSS 0256, available in Special Collections) 
• African American Historical and Genealogical Society of Colorado Springs 
   

Websites

• Biography in Context 
• National Archives: African American Heritage 
• Black History Month 
• Black History Month - History Channel 
• ProQuest: Black Freedom Struggle in the United States 
• Celebrate African American History Month – Library Of Congress 
• National Museum of African American History and Culture 
• Black History Month – National Parks Service