Written by Clarity Amrein, Community Content Coordinator, Downtown Main Library
Cincinnati’s National Underground Railroad Freedom Center is currently featuring The Negro Motorist Green Book, opens a new window exhibit until October 13, 2024.
“The Negro Motorist Green Book offers an immersive look at the reality of travel for African Americans in mid-century America and the annual guide that served as an indispensable resource for the nation’s rising African American middle class. The exhibition includes artifacts from business signs and postcards to historic footage, images and firsthand accounts.”
To enhance your visit to The Negro Motorist Green Book exhibit, be sure to view the digitized versions of the real Negro Motorist Green Book as part of the CHPL collection on our Digital Library.
Preserving Oral History through the Catherine C. and Thomas E. Huenefeld Story Center
In partnership with The Negro Motorist Green Book exhibit, the Library's Catherine C. and Thomas E. Huenefeld Story Center attended the “Vacationing with the Green Book” panel on August 15, 2024, where three participants shared their stories of travel, vacation, migration, and family.
Story Center staff collected the oral histories of these prominent Cincinnati panelists: Reverend Damon Lynch, Jr., Sherry Glover Thompson, and Dr. Angenita Brown.
Record Your Own Green Book Oral History
Did your family use the “Green Book” as a guide to find hotels, restaurants, and salons while traveling? Do you remember vacationing on beaches, visiting resorts, or attending a summer camp during the era of institutionalized segregation?
The Freedom Center is collecting oral histories and personal memories in partnership with CHPL onsite at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center on Saturday, September 21, 2024.
This community oral history project is inspired by the Negro Motorist Green Book exhibit, and you’re invited to share your family stories of traveling in the U.S. from the mid-1930s to the mid-1960s. Your story will be recorded on video and will be archived with the Freedom Center and the Library's Catherine C. and Thomas E. Huenefeld Story Center for future generations.
This program is free with museum admission. Registration is encouraged, but walk-ins are welcome. Interviews will last approximately 30-45 minutes.
Sign up for your interview time here on the NURFC website. Not able to attend on September 21? Contact the Library at 513-369-6909 to schedule an oral history interview at the Catherine C. and Thomas E. Huenefeld Story Center at the Downtown Main Library.
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