Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Black History Month

Black History Month, or African American History Month, has been celebrated since 1926. It was started in February 1926 by historian Carter G. Woodson. He and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (now known as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History) chose the month of February because it contained the birthday of Abraham Lincoln (2/12/1809), responsible for the Emancipation Proclamation, and abolitionist and orator Frederick Douglass (birthdate in February 1818 not certain).

We'll see many students in the library this month working on class projects for Black History Month. We recommend these online sources for information:

1. ELM, the Electronic Library for Minnesota, http://www.elm4you.org/ - select "Biographies" to search for notable individuals. If asked for your library card number, enter it without spaces.

2. Biography.com - quizzes, biographies, interactive timeline, and more from the Biography channel

3. History.com - photos, videos from the History channel

4. Smithsonian Education - check out the virtual tour and the "Educator Resources"

5. Library of Congress collection

Barbara Misselt, Director

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