In 1964, Dr. Charles H. Wright, a Black obstetrician in Detroit, found himself in Denmark to get help in the recruitment of physicians and dentists who could work in African villages. While there he visited the Freedom Museum, dedicated to World War II veterans. When he returned home, he wondered: why weren’t there places in the United States commemorating the rich triumphs and stories of Black history? So, in 1965, he founded one of the first museums chronicling the stories of African Americans, and then spent the rest of his life building it.
Building a Black History Museum
As a doctor, Dr. Wright delivered thousands of babies, and through the museum he hoped to ensure that those children could grow up understanding the truth about Black history, and challenge stereotypes and false narratives about Black communities. Dr. Wright began his work during the Civil Rights Movement and saw firsthand the courage of Black Americans who fought against segregation, voter suppression, and other racist attitudes of the time. As a lifelong member of the NAACP, Dr. Wright served as an attending physician at the march in Selma on March 7, 1965, known as “Bloody Sunday” for the violence that ensued at the hands of the police.
As the Civil Rights Movement brought legislation that ended Jim Crow segregation and forced a nationwide reckoning with our country’s history of racism, Dr. Wright began collecting objects related to African American history in his home. "I was committed to what I defined as 'one of the most important tasks of our times,” he later said, “ensuring that generations, especially young African Americans, are made aware of and take pride in the history of their forebears and their remarkable struggle for freedom." Soon community members were donating their own artifacts, and the collection had become large enough that a dedicated space was needed. So Dr. Wright opened the International Afro-American Museum in a small building on Detroit’s West Grand Boulevard. Early exhibitions spotlighted inventions by African Americans, such as the first traffic signal, invented by Garrett Morgan; items collected from Rosa Parks, Frederick Douglass, Malcolm X, and other Civil Rights activists; and African art and instruments, some of which had been collected by Dr. Wright while he was conducting medical research in West Africa.
Understanding the impact the museum could have beyond Detroit, Dr. Wright took to the road, converting a mobile home into a traveling exhibition space, to educate people of various backgrounds about African American history and culture in communities across Michigan.
Preserving History: A Collaborative Effort
The Civil Rights Movement saw many members of the Black community embracing Black pride, taking steps to reclaim their history and celebrate cultural contributions that had long gone under recognized by white Americans. Dr. Wright was not alone in his pursuit—historically Black colleges and universities were growing their own collections, and other independent museums were beginning to be built, including the DuSable Museum of African American History in Chicago.
In the late 1960s, Dr. Wright joined hands with Dr. Margaret Burroughs, founder of the DuSable Museum, to initiate a series of conferences for African American museums to share ideas and discuss their efforts. These convenings would lead to the official founding of the Association of African American Museums in 1978, which continues to uplift African American museums today.
By 1978, Dr. Wright’s museum needed a larger space. Community members came together to fundraise for a new building in Detroit’s Cultural Center, a historic district home to many of the Motor City’s most prominent cultural institutions. Detroiters of all ages worked together to fund the new building’s construction. A “Buy a Brick” campaign organized by Detroit Public School students raised $80,000 and a student-led penny drive raised nearly $20,000.
The new museum opened in 1987, with a new name to match: the Museum of African American History. The museum continued to host concerts, lectures, and other programming, with exhibitions including Black Migration to Detroit: 1910-1950, Black Women: Achievements Against the Odds, and 200 Years of Black Art: A Symposium.
The museum soon became a glamorous cultural destination for Black people across the country. Not only did it present beautiful exhibitions that centered Black experiences, but it also hosted film screenings and meet-and-greets with some of the biggest names in Black Hollywood at the time, including Angela Bassett, Ossie Davis, and Ruby Dee.
During this period, the museum also took over the beloved African World Festival, an annual outdoor celebration, featuring music, vendors, and more. Last year marked the 40th anniversary of the African World Festival, and it continues to be a highlight that Detroiters look forward to each summer, celebrating the breadth of cultural expression from across the African diaspora.
In 1997, through the leadership of Mayor Coleman Young, it eventually moved into its current location,Detroit’s Cultural Center. The over 125,000-square-foot building was designed by two Black architects– Howard Sims and Harold Varner – who incorporated elements from African architecture to represent an African village in the building’s rotunda. It was upon this milestone that the museum was ultimately renamed the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History and became known as one of the largest African American museums in the world.
Telling Black History Today
Dr. Wright wanted to ensure that young people understood the breadth of Black history, including joys and triumphs — rather than beginning with slavery, as mainstream storytelling often does, the museum’s permanent exhibition And Still We Rise begins with ancient and early modern African history, then traces the Middle Passage and follows stories from the Underground Railroad. Today, the museum houses over 35,000 artifacts and archival materials and offers hundreds of programs and events annually. Membership to the museum has become seen as a key indicator in support of Black history, continuing this tradition for future generations.
Exhibitions currently on view include Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design, featuring costumes designed by Carter—the first Black woman to win multiple Oscars—for iconic films such as Black Panther, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Malcolm X, Do The Right Thing, and more. The Wright has also just unveiled a new gallery as part of And Still We Rise, honoring the life and legacy of Judge Damon J. Keith, the Detroit native known as one of the longest-serving federal judges and a “civil rights legend.”
Dr. Wright passed away in 2002, and in his obituary, the Los Angeles Times described him as “the father of the national movement to establish African American museums.” The museum’s rotunda hosted funeral visitations for Dr. Wright, and nearly 10,000 people paid their respects. Several other Black leaders have since laid in state under The Wright’s iconic dome, such as Rosa Parks, Aretha Franklin, and Judge Damon Keith.
Next year will mark the 60th anniversary of the museum’s founding. Despite its impact, the museum’s founding story often goes untold, but it’s because of Dr. Wright that so many stories are preserved and remembered. Dr. Wright’s dream lives on in his museum, as well as in the many museums that have been modeled after it.
Stay up-to-date with the politics team. Sign up for the Teen Vogue Take
