Pritzker Military Museum & Library Honors Black Veterans for Black History Month
On February 1st, we are excited and proud to highlight the Black stories of service in our collection in honor of Black History Month.
We have combed through our archives and shelves to ensure we commemorate and feature these brave Citizen Soldiers. Throughout the month, on our social media channels, we will share with you these stories of service and sacrifice. We are honored so many have chosen to entrust their history and legacy with us at the Pritzker Military Museum & Library.
We hope you will explore these resources and learn more about the journeys of Black soldiers throughout military history.
Coleman T. Holt, Air Cadet, for whom our Oral History Program was named, donated his personal archive to the Pritzker Military Museum & Library. The Coleman T. Holt Collection contains documents related to Holt's training at the Tuskegee Institute during World War II. Learn more about what is in the collection from this finding aide.
Black Veterans have chosen to personally share their words and memories with us, as part of the Holt Oral History Program and our exhibits. The below links are just a few from our collection:
- Timuel Black, Activist, Historian, WWII veteran
- James Capers Jr., Major
- Edwin J. Fizer, JR, Sergeant, Montford Point Marines
- Curtis Morrow, Private 1st Class
- Alice Phillips, WAC
Our “Pritzker Military Presents” programs work to also exalt the stories of Black soldiers and regiments. Below is some of our past programming from which you can watch and learn about these narratives:
- Jeffrey Sammons & John Morrow, Jr., Harlem's Rattlers and the Great War: The Undaunted 369th Regiment and the African American Quest for Equality
- Dr. Krewasky Salter: The African American Experience in WWII
- Overlooked Aspects of the Battle of the Bulge with 2019 Pritzker Literature Award Recipient Dr. John Morrow, Jr.
If you are looking for a book that will help tell the story of Black History in the military, our Library team has compiled a list that will highlight that journey and struggle.
- A More Unbending Battle: The Harlem Hellfighters' Struggle For Freedom In WWI And Equality At Home, by Peter Nelson
- The Hellfighters Of Harlem: African-American Soldiers Who Fought For The Right To Fight For Their Country, by Bill Harris
- The Marines of Montford Point: America's First Black Marines
- The First Black United States Marines: The Men Of Montford Point, 1942-1946, by Ronald Culp
- The Tuskegee airmen: an illustrated history, 1939-1949, by Joseph Caver
- The Tuskegee Airmen, by Lynn M. Homan
- Freedom flyers: the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II, by J. Todd Moye
- Benjamin O. Davis, Jr.: Air Force general & Tuskegee Airmen leader, by Sari Earl
- Great Black War Fighters: Profiles In Service, by Ben L. Walton
- Black American Military Leaders: A Biographical Dictionary, by Walter L. Hawkins
- Daniel "Chappy" James: The First African American Four Star General, by Earnest N. Bracey
- Into the Tiger's Jaw: America's First Black Marine Aviator, by Frank E. Petersen
- Buffalo Soldier: What My Country Did For Me by Ollen Hunt
- Black heroes of the American Revolution, by Burke Davis
- African American Recipients of The Medal Of Honor: A Biographical Dictionary, Civil War Through Vietnam War by Charles W. Hanna
- New Mexico's Buffalo Soldiers, 1866-1900 by Monroe Lee Billington
- The Unknown Soldiers: African-American Troops In World War I by Arthur E. Barbeau
- Brotherhood in Combat: How African Americans Found Equality In Korea And Vietnam by Jeremy P. Maxwell
- War and Race: The Black Officer In The American Military, 1915-1941 by Gerald W. Patton
Military posters and artwork, designed to invite Black men and women into service, were created to highlight the heroic nature of those to who served and the dedication of those back home to the cause. Please note, some of these pieces are from WWI and WWII and use language not appropriate for this era.
