The Afro Archives

Black gold on Malcolm X Boulevard

It’s the most prestigious research library in the United States that focuses on African Americans, the African Diaspora, and the African experience, with about ten million items in its several collections. If you expect this venerable institution to be intimidating or stuffy, you’re in for a surprise.

Doors to The Schomburg Center open on a contemporary space. A genial staff is eager to assist – whether you’re a scholar of Harlem Renaissance art, a student writing an essay on Marcus Garvey, a Motown enthusiast, or a curious visitor. Galleries, reading rooms, and research resources are open to all. The more you explore, the more astonished you’ll be at the treasures you have access to.

In 1926, the collection of African-American material belonging to black Puerto Rican scholar Arturo Schomburg was donated to a Harlem branch library, and named the Division of Negro Literature, History, and Prints. As its research reputation grew, other significant local, national, and international African-American collections were added. It was designated one of the NY Public Library’s four main research libraries in 1972, renamed to honor its original donor, and moved to its present site in 1980.

Five remarkable sub-collections – Research & Reference; Manuscript, Archives & Rare Books; Art & Artifacts; Photographs & Prints; and Moving Image & Recorded Sound – enable you to read the original manuscript of Richard Wright’s Native Son, preserved slave diaries, and congressional records. You can view art from Benin to Brooklyn, hear the voice of Malcolm X or Etta James, or read a Kenyan newspaper from your ergonomically-designed reading room chair.

It’s also a vibrant community center. With museum-worthy changing exhibits on thought-provoking (and fun) themes and talks, workshops, performances, screenings, and social gatherings for young and old, Schomburg’s is an uptown goldmine.

Address 515 Malcolm X Boulevard (between West 135th and 136th Street), New York 10037, +1 917.275.6975, www.nypl.org/locations/schomburg | Getting there

Subway: 135 St (2, 3); bus: M 1, M 2, M 7, M 102 | Hours Mon – Sat 10am – 6pm | Tip

Across the street, Harlem Hospital’s Mural Pavilion displays restored murals historically depicting the life and work of black people. Painted in 1936, they were the first Works Progress Administration (WPA) commission for black artists in the US.