Arizona’s first African American history museum opened last month as a solution to an issue discovered by a 7-year-old Tucson student while working on a school project — there was no museum in Arizona to learn about the accomplishments of Black Arizonans.
“Where is the museum here where I can go to and find African American people that look like me,” Beverely Elliott recalled her grandson, now 9 years old, asking her.
Although she was part of the African American Cultural Historical Museum of Washtenaw County in Michigan, and loved going to museums, she did not know if there was a Black history museum in Arizona.
After searching for one and asking people who might know, she did not find any.
She told her grandson, who was upset and incredulous, but he had an idea.
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‘I knew I was going to need a lot of help’
“I think you should start a museum and I’ll help you,” he said.
Elliott, a retired educator, noted that she has no background in museum design, curation or even running an organization, but decided to give it a try. She felt it was something she should do, even if it was going to be a challenge.
“I knew I was going to need a lot of help,” she said.
Fast forward to Jan. 21, Elliott’s grandson cut the ribbon at the opening ceremony and crowded into the large room that makes up the museum. The opening was a roaring success.
Elliott said over 350 people stood in line to wait to get into the museum. People came from all over southern Arizona and even Phoenix to witness the opening.
“Our expectation was about 80 or 90 (attendees),” Elliott said. When quadruple the number of visitors she expected lined up in front of the museum, she was happily surprised.
Elliott said most of the items in the museum are donations by community members.
Museum to be a ‘beacon for social justice’
Walking around the room, she pointed out a replica of a slave code quilt which acted as a “GPS for enslaved people who were runaways,” she said.
The museum also has an exhibit dedicated to buffalo soldiers and Sgt. Benjamin Brown, a buffalo soldier who received the Medal of Honor for military valor.
Another exhibit highlights Fred Snowden, the first African American coach in the U.S. that was hired at a major college, the University of Arizona.
The museum also has monitors showcasing stories of other well-known African Americans connected to Tucson like Ernie McCray, the first African American basketball player to graduate from the University of Arizona, among others.
For students, the museum has activities geared toward youth grades K-12 allowing them to interact with the exhibits, Elliott said.
The goal of the museum is not only to educate but also to engage with social causes.
Elliott noted that the museum will be a “beacon for social justice.”
“We have to, based on what we’re doing,” she said.
One such social justice-oriented exhibit teaches visitors about the Crown Act, a law that prohibits discrimination based on hairstyle and hair texture. The museum is working to provide visitors with a QR code to sign a petition in support of the Crown Act and get it passed in the state.
Run by a 10-person board including Elliott and her husband, the museum aims to “preserve African American and Black life, culture, and history in southern Arizona to benefit the community,” as stated on their website.
Although the museum only recently opened, it began one year earlier as a website.
Launching the website helped get the word out about the museum and led to Elliott receiving many calls from community members wanting to donate their historical memorabilia.
So many items were donated, more than can fit in the one-room museum, that Elliott hopes to feature new exhibits every six months.
How to visit
Even before the physical museum opened, she started receiving calls from schools all over the state that wanted to schedule visits.
At the time of the interview with Elliott on Jan. 23, Elliott had received around 40 requests from schools around the state and University of Arizona departments and sports teams to schedule visits.
As a nonprofit, the museum receives grant funding, donations and hosts fundraisers often collaborating with other local groups and nonprofits to fund its efforts.
Elliott sees the museum growing and adding virtual and digital features including online and virtual exhibits. She hopes to raise enough funding to hire an executive director and staff to take over the running of the museum.
“We want to make sure this place is around for perpetuity. I want my grandson to come back in 50 years and come back and say, ‘I remember my grandparents and I were starting this up,’” Elliott said.
The museum is located in room 244 at the University of Arizona’s Student Union Memorial Center.
According to a university news release, those interested in visiting the African American Museum of Southern Arizona can make an appointment by emailing aamuseumofsouthernaz@gmail.com. The museum will establish regular hours at a later date. Admission is free.
Coverage of southern Arizona on azcentral.com and in The Arizona Republic is funded by the nonprofit Report for America in association with The Republic.
Reach the reporter at sarah.lapidus@gannett.com.
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