William Dorsey and the construction of an African American history archive. (2nd January 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Gonzalez, Aston
• Is Part Of: Social dynamics. Volume 45:Number 1(2019)
• Page Start: 138
• Page End: 155
• Publication Date: 2019-01-02
• Subjects: African American history -- archive -- memory -- education -- print culture -- commemoration; Africa -- Culture -- Periodicals; African literature -- Periodicals; Developing countries -- Politics and government -- Periodicals; 960.05
• DOI: 10.1080/02533952.2019.1589323
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0253-3952

Abstract

ABSTRACT: This article investigates the collecting philosophies and practices of William Henry Dorsey, a nineteenth-century African American collector and archivist in Philadelphia. Over many decades, Dorsey created an archive that documented black professional, artistic, and political accomplishments in order to preserve these histories, influence public perception of African Americans, and enable future research on historical black figures. In doing so, he established and strengthened networks between individuals and associations that shared the goal of celebrating and preserving black history. This article focuses on how Dorsey's archive enabled forms of sociability among the many individuals and groups that used the materials in Dorsey's collection. In focusing on the role that Dorsey played in collating, editing, and disseminating information about black achievements and contributions to world history, this article argues that Dorsey preserved – and therefore helped create – black histories that could be remembered, studied, and shared to refute the illusion of white supremacy.