Chicago Defender unprocessed records

Descriptive Summary

Title
Chicago Defender unprocessed records
Identifier
BMRC.DEFENDER.UNPROCESSED
Repository
Chicago Defender
Chicago Defender
200 S. Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60604
Language
English
Size
546.0 Linear feet
Dates
1932-2004
Creator
Chicago Defender

Acknowledgements and Access

This collection was part of the BMRC Survey Initiative, 2009-2011.

Access to the collection is unknown. For current information about the collection and its status, please contact the Chicago Defender at: copyright@chicagodefender.com

Historical note

Founded by Robert S. Abbott in 1905, the Chicago Defender is one of America's longest-running African American newspapers. The Defender is best known for having spurred the Great Migration of African Americans from the southern United States to the nation's urban centers in the north—especially Chicago—during the first decades of the 20th century. The Defender also paved the way for the modernization of the Black press, given its capital resources; advanced printing technologies; national and international distribution networks; and multi-cultural, transnational readership.

Scope and Contents note

The unprocessed records of the Chicago Defender consist of a broad range of materials, most of which fall into one of the following general categories:

  • Incomplete paper and microfilm runs of the Chicago Defender newspaper;
  • Institutional records from the 1980s and 1990s pertaining primarily to Chicago Defender Charities's sponsorship of the annual Bud Billiken Parade and Picnic;
  • Subject/photograph files pertaining to Chicago churches and religious leaders;
  • Press kits from the 1980 and 1990s received by Arts and Entertainment editor Earl Calloway;
  • Additions to the Photographic Individual Files and Organizations Files dating from the 1990 to the 2000s

Processing Information note

This collection was surveyed as part of the Black Metropolis Research Consortium's Survey Initiative on 2010 November 8 by Lisa Calahan Andrew Steadham.

Related Archival Materials note

Within this repository: Chicago Defender Organizations Files; Chicago Defender Individuals Files

Indexed Terms