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Ball and Chain at the Portsmouth Community Colored Library Museum
Photo of a ball and chain that was used to keep slaves immobile.
Ball and Chain description at the Portsmouth Community Colored Library Museum
Text: Try lifting the iron ball to feel the weight of this object used to keep enslaved people immobile. Enslaved people were considered valuable property. Balls and chains kept them from running away.
"Forever Free" signage at the Portsmouth Community Colored Library Museum
Text: FOREVER FREE: Portsmouth stories of African American Strivings and Successes
Slave iron headdress description and photo
Text: This iron headdress made moving through the woods problematic. Vines and branches often twisted and became entwined around the tops of the headdress entangling and trapping the person on whose head it had been fastened and who had atempted to…
Children's books on display at the Portsmouth Community Colored Library Museum-photos
Various children's books with an African or African-American characters as the main subject.
How black and white library staffs worked together-photo
Text: Portsmouth black and white library staffs worked together to satisfy the reading needs of black readers. Mrs. Bertha Edwards would take requests for books that were not in the Community Library's collection. She would then send a young man to…
How Portsmouth Black and White libraries were different-photo
Text: How were the black and white public libraries different? Portsmouth Community Library (Open to blacks) Portsmouth Public Library (Open to whites) Staff: 2 people/7 people Collection: 9,500 volumes/22,00 volumes Budget: $14,000/$24,000 City…
Bertha Edwards scrapbook entry of Marian Anderson performance-photo
Bertha Edwards included this photo of Marian Anderson in her scrapbook, and added the following note: "I spent a quiet evening with Miss Anderson".
Marian Anderson Program 1940-photo
Program from a 1940 performance of Marian Anderson at Ogden Hall, located on the campus of Hampton Institute (now Hampton University). The program is contained in the scrapbook of Bertha Edwards.
Bertha Mae Winborne (Bertha Edwards) Scrapbook info-photo
Text: During a time when many African Americans lived their lives without electricity, indoor bathrooms and running water, Bertha Mae Winborne, an honor graduate of I.C. Norcom High School, was enrolled as a student at Hampton Institute. Winborne…