This article explores the reasons African Americans left the South and migrated north both before and after the Civil War, and many aspects of what their lives were like.

A site that chronicles through documents the accomplishments of African-Americans, both slave and free, from colonial times through the Civil War.

Three late-eighteenth-century petitions to state legislatures and one to Congress by enslaved or free African Americans seeking civil liberties. These four petitions, called "memorials", present a range of origins, goals, and outcomes.

From the Library of Congress, this resource documents the course of post-Civil War, post-slavery life for black Americans. Topics include education, constitutional amendments, voting rights and the many challenges African Americans faced...

This page from Afgen.com contains the life history of Richard Allen. Richard was the founding bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

Interviews with and narratives from former slaves who became free and letters from former slaves reflecting on their freedom.

Two nineteenth century depictions of the emotional brutality of slave auctions-by an enslaved (formerly free) black man and by former slaves-and several recollections of being sold by former slaves recorded during Depression era...

This several page article recounts the black legislators in the Texas Congress and their attempts to address many issues affecting the African Americans in the state. Read about the Ku Klux Klan, convict leases, and segregation on railroads

This website describes the life of Benjamin Banneker, a free and educated black man from Baltimore, Maryland. It describes his many accomplishments.

Four documents establishing black mutual assistance and self-help organizations from the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries. A link to each document is provided.

[Free Registration/Login Required] Using primary sources, students will form their own conclusions as to why African-Americans moved north in large numbers during the early 1900's. Included in this lesson plan is a PowerPoint to use for...

This website describes the life of Lucy Terry Prince, first female African American poet. She obtained her freedom by marrying a wealthy free black man who purchased her freedom.

Elias Mayes was was an African American legislator in Texas during Reconstruction. Read about the committees he served on, his view on segregation, and some of the problems he faced.

Read about George T. Ruby, an African American politician from Texas during Reconstruction.

The most difficult task confronting many Southerners during Reconstruction was devising a new system of labor to replace the shattered world of slavery. Learn how plantation owners and freed slaves adapted to this massive shift in the...

In spite of racial discrimination and segregation in the military and in civilian life, the overwhelming majority of black Americans participated wholeheartedly in the fight against the Axis powers. This site explores the posters,...

[Free Registration/Login Required] Historian-authored three-part overview looks at the history of voting rights in America, touching on all the critical moments in American history when voting rights were first denied then granted to...

This site from The History Place provides an account of the history of Dred Scott, an African-American slave, who took his suit for his freedom to the Supreme Court. The information is somewhat brief, but worthwhile.

This is the full text of the short story "By the Bayou St. John" by Alice Dunbar, an African American poet, journalist and political activist. Among the first generation born free in the South after the Civil War.

A brief encyclopedia article about William Whipper, businessman and abolitionist.

For this lesson, students examine the impact Nat Turner's Rebellion had on how enslaved and free African Americans were treated in Virginia.

Meet the standout soldiers, spies and homefront forces who fought for America, from the Revolution to World War II. During the American Revolution, thousands of Black Americans fought -- on both sides of the conflict. As America's Civil...

A good description of the beginnings of the Republican Party before the Civil War, and the transformation to Radical Republicanism during Reconstruction as they attempted to guarantee equal rights for African Americans. Information is...

A learning module that begins with the biography "The Story of Ida B. Wells" by Shannon Moreau, accompanied by guided reading questions, assessment questions, and discussion questions. The text can be printed as a PDF or assigned online...