Alice Browning Papers

Descriptive Summary

Title: Alice Browning Papers
Identifier: BMRC.HARSH.BROWNING
Dates: 1936-1998
Predominant Dates: 1942-1985
Size: 8 linear feet, 12 archival boxes
Repository: Chicago Public Library, Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection, Woodson Regional library

Chicago Public Library

Carter G. Woodson Regional Library

Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection of Afro-American History and Literature

9525 S Halsted St

Chicago, IL 60628
Language: English
Creator: Browning, Alice C., 1907-1985
Abstract: Alice Browning (née Crolley) was born in 1907 at Provident Hospital in Chicago, the oldest of three siblings. She was an educator and writer, eventually publishing her short stories in newspapers and magazines and founding or co-founding several publications related to African American authors and writing. Browning's papers include correspondence, manuscripts, serials, newsletters, photographs, newspaper clippings, pamphlets and memorabilia.

Indexed Terms

Provenance

Gift of Barbara Cordell, 2000.

Access

No restrictions

Citation

When quoting material from this collection the preferred citation is:

Browning, Alice Papers, [Box #, Folder #], Chicago Public Library, Carter G. Woodson Regional Library, Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection of Afro-American History and Literature

Biographical Note

Alice Browning (née Crolley) was born in 1907 at Provident Hospital in Chicago, the first of three children of Liattah Marshall Crolley and Richard A. Crolley. The family was active at St. Mark's M.E. Church at 50th Street and Wabash Avenue, where Richard Crolley was Sunday School superintendent and a trustee. In an autobiographical sketch, Alice Browning writes that she was married at age 16, presumably to George Franklin (Alice Browning's teaching certificate gives her name as Alice Franklin). Franklin was a sociologist who would later contribute to the study that became Black Metropolis. The couple had one daughter, Barbara (who married WVON radio disc jockey Lucky Cordell). Alice took courses at Chicago Normal College before earning a B.Phil. from University of Chicago in 1931. While it is not clear how her marriage to George Franklin dissolved, it was at the University of Chicago that Barbara met classmate and fellow philosophy student Charles Patrick Browning. They married in 1936, while Charles was employed as the Illinois state director of the National Youth Administration. Charles would spend the rest of his career at the Chicago Defender, serving as vice president and director of advertising. In 1925, Alice suffered the first of several tragedies when her mother Liattah took her life; her father, Richard, died suddenly in 1938. Charles Browning died in 1954 after being struck in the head with a plane propeller in Little Rock, Arkansas, while on a visit to the Hot Springs Baptist Bath House, where he had assumed the post of manager.

Alice Browning received her Illinois teaching certificate in 1930 and taught at Forrestville Elementary School in the Chicago Public Schools until she retired in 1973. In 1941, Browning took a sabbatical year to complete course work for an MA in English from Columbia University. While there, she wrote her thesis on the African American novel before 1900 with eminent scholar Vernon Loggins. Browning also took courses at Northwestern University and the Social Services Administration at University of Chicago, but she never completed her MA.

Though she later professed an interest in writing beginning at the age of 7, it was while a student at Columbia that Browning began writing short stories for publication. That year, she sent a story entitled "Tomorrow" to Esquire magazine, only to have it rejected. She had better success with the Pittsburgh Courier with a story called "New Years Eve: 1942." Nevertheless, Alice's experience with Esquire inspired her to create an outlet for African American writers to publish their short fiction. Her first attempt appeared in 1942, a journal called N.Y.P.S. (Negro Youth Photo Script). But it wasn't until 1944 that she would hit upon a success, teaming up with her friend Fern Gayden, a social worker who had been involved with the South Side Writers Group in the late 1930s. With the help of Gayden and Parkway Community House director Horace Cayton, Browning gained permission from Richard Wright to reprint his story "Almos' a Man," which had appeared in Harper's Bazaar in January 1940. Borrowing $200 from her husband Charles, Browning launched Negro Story from her home at 4019 Vincennes Avenue.

Negro Story ran from 1944-1946, publishing a total of nine issues featuring nearly every prominent African American writer of the time, including Ralph Ellison, Chester Himes, Langston Hughes, Frank Marshall Davis, Margaret Burroughs, Richard Wright, Gwendolyn Brooks, and Owen Dodson. Browning published one of her own stories in nearly every issue under the pseudonym Richard Bentley. It was around this time that Browning completed the first draft of a novel, Chicago Girl, which she would continue to revise throughout her life.

When Fern Gayden stepped down as co-editor for the December 1944/January 1945 issue, citing her heavy case load, Alice Browning began to pursue ever more ambitious projects under the auspices of the new Negro Story Press. These included a children's magazine modeled after the Chicago Defender's "Bud Billiken" page entitled Child's Play, the sole issue of which appeared in 1945. Lionel Hampton's Swing Book, a guide to the contemporary music scene, featured biographical sketches and photographs of such key figures as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and, of course, Lionel Hampton. Now extremely rare, it is considered a key text for understanding the influence of black popular music in the 1940s.

In 1953 Browning launched a new publication endeavor, The Browning Letter, which for three years ran feature articles and society gossip. Contributors included Frederick H. Robb (Hammurabi), a Pan-Africanist and famed street corner speaker, actress Louise Pruitt, who wrote a theater column, and novelist Chester Himes. In May 1954 The Browning Letter began including a section called "Zip" to celebrate "Zip girls," one of whom was Browning's own daughter Barbara Cordell. In 1963 Browning repackaged Zip as its own monthly magazine.

In 1970, nearing retirement from teaching at Forrestville, Browning met with fellow leaders in the African American community, including Judge Sidney Jones, Roma Jones, Leo Sparks, Marian Stevenson, Ilena Crushon and June Perryman, at the Washington Park Community Fieldhouse to plan the first annual International Black Writers Conference. Over the next decade the conference would grow into a three-day affair attended by such prominent writers as Lerone Bennett, Herman Gilbert, Lu Palmer, Oscar Brown, Jr., Henry Blakely, Gwendolyn Brooks, Sam Greenlee, Alex Haley, Vernon Jarrett, Haki Madhubuti, Dudley Randall, Margaret Walker Alexander, and John Oliver Killens. Browning organized the conference until her health began to fail in 1984. She died October 15, 1985 at Crestwood Nursing Home in Chicago.

Bibliography

Sources

Bone, Robert. "Richard Wright and the Chicago Renaissance." Callaloo. 28 (Summer 1986) 446-468.
Mullen, Bill. Popular Fronts: Chicago and African-American Cultural Politics, 1935-1946. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1999.

Scope and Content Note

The Alice Browning Papers consist chiefly in manuscripts, serials, pamphlets, photographs, and ephemera from throughout Browning's life, concentrated largely from 1968-1985, the years when she was organizing the International Black Writers Conference. The collection has been divided into 8 series: Manuscripts, Biographical, Clippings, Organizations, Booklets, Serials, Publicity and Memorabilia, and Photographs and Audiovisual material. A single folder of correspondence, including a six-page letter about housing concerns signed "The Block Clubs of the South Side" and sent to President Jimmy Carter, is filed at the end of the Manuscripts series in Box 2.

The Manuscripts series is divided into manuscripts by Alice Browning and manuscripts by other authors. Included in the manuscripts by Browning are drafts of several short stories, essays, and poetry, as well as a complete draft of her novel Chicago Girl and a typescript draft and mock-up of her cartoon book, "It's No Fun to Be Black" (the manuscript is titled "It's No Fun to Be a Negro"). The section of manuscripts by other authors predominantly consists in play scripts by Robert M. Morris, who led sessions on drama at the International Black Writers Conference. Browning's daughter Barbara Cordell starred in a production of Morris's play Teacher Night Out. Also included in this section is a manuscript of Gwendolyn Brooks's poem tribute to Browning, which Brooks read at Browning's funeral in 1985.

The Biographical series includes a brief autobiographical sketch by Browning, her Chicago teaching and retirement certificates, and obituaries and Browning's funeral program. It also includes a copy of Charles Browning's funeral program and materials about George Franklin, Barbara Cordell's father, and William West Franklin, her uncle.

The Clippings series is divided into clippings by Alice Browning, clippings about Alice Browning, clippings about the International Black Writers' Conference, and other clippings. For other articles by Alice Browning, see Serials.

The Organizations series includes material from Negro Story Press and the International Black Writers Conference. The material relating to Negro Story Press comprises solely a letter from the United States Copyright Office with instructions for applying for the copyright for Lionel Hampton's Swing Book and publicity materials for Lionel Hampton's Swing Book. Material for the International Black Writers Conference is organized by year and includes a program for nearly every year of the conference from 1970-1985 and then more sporadically through 1994. The file for the 15th anniversary conference in 1985 is particularly extensive. Some material from other conferences is included at the end of the IBWC subseries.

The Booklets series predominantly comprises poetry chapbooks that Browning collected throughout the 1970s. Most of these are quite rare.

The Serials series includes nearly-complete runs of the magazines Browning edited: Negro Story, The Browning Letter, Zip, Black Writers News, and The Black Writer, as well as single issues of Child's Play and Travel News. All nine issues of Negro Story are included. Researchers should note the irregular dating and numbering of The Browning Letter and Black Writers News. Browning's review of Gwendolyn Brooks's Report from Part One appears in the Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History Newsletter; her article "Sciffle Music and the Jazz Era" appears in the single issue of Villager.

Miscellaneous Publicity materials appear to relate to performers contracted for the International Black Writers Conference. Memorabilia includes several award certificates given to Alice Browning. A pair of checks from the Douglas National Bank, Chicago's first black-owned bank, appear to have been given to Barbara Cordell as souvenirs in return for a donation to St. Mark's M.E. Church (see the Correspondence in Box 2, Folder 14 for the letter that accompanied the checks).

The majority of the Photographs date from the International Black Writers Conferences of 1974, 1976, and 1978. Figures represented include Gwendolyn Brooks, Sam Greenlee, Vernon Jarrett, Glennette Turner, Haki Madhubuti, and Val Gray Ward. Audiovisual material comprises two VHS tapes of IBWC proceedings in 1985 and 1986.

Related Archival Materials note

Fern Gayden Papers - Chicago Public Library - Carter G. Woodson Regional Library

Processing Information note

This collection was surveyed as part of the Black Metropolis Research Consortium's Survey Initiative on 2010 September 7 by Bergis Jules.

Full collection processing was completed in June 2008 by Melissa Barton as part of the Mapping the Stacks project at the University of Chicago.

Inventory

Series 1: Manuscripts, circa 1946-1985

1946-1985

Scope and Content

The Manuscripts series is divided into manuscripts by Alice Browning, arranged alphabetically by title, and manuscripts by others, arranged alphabetically by author's last name.

Manuscripts by Alice Browning

Box 1

Folder 1

Note: "Analysis of the Business at Hand," notes
Dates: 1955

Box 1

Folder 2

Note: "A Box Seat at the Harlem Riots," ms.
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 3

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 1, ms.
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 4

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 2, ms.
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 5

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 3, ms.
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 6

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 4
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 7

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 5
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 8

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 6
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 9

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 7
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 10

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 8
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 11

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 9
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 12

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 10
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 13

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 11
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 14

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 12
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 15

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 13
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 16

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 14
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 17

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 15
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 18

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 16
Dates: ca. 1946

Box 1

Folder 19

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 17
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 20

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 18
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 21

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 19
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 22

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 20
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 23

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 21
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 24

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 22
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 25

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 23
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 26

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 24
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 27

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 25
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 28

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 26
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 29

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 27
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 30

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 28
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 31

Note: Chicago Girl, Chapter 29
Dates: circa 1946

Box 1

Folder 32

Note: Essay, Untitled, on Sex Education (fragment)
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 33

Note: "The Exorcism of America"
Dates: 1974

Box 1

Folder 34

Note: "Good Time Harry," play script
Dates: 1979

Box 1

Folder 35

Note: "I Am Black" (fragment)
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 36

Note: "Introduction," draft article about IBWC
Dates: 1979

Box 1

Folder 37

Note: "It's No Fun to Be a Negro," ms.
Dates: 1968 [?]

Box 1

Folder 38

Note: "Let There Be An Anti-Prejudice Day"
Dates: 1974

Box 1

Folder 39

Note: Life Plans (notes)
Dates: 1956, 1978

Box 1

Folder 40

Note: "Memories of St. Mark's M.E. Church"
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 41

Note: New Voices in Black Poetry, galley
Dates: 1973

Box 1

Folder 42

Note: Notebook on the Bible
Dates: 1978

Box 1

Folder 43

Note: Notes, untitled
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 44

Note: "The Place in Chicago"
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 45

Note: Poetry, unpublished mss
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 46

Note: Poetry, unpublished mss
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 47

Note: "The Reason Black Johnny Cannot Read"
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 48

Note: "The Riot"
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 49

Note: Short Story, untitled (fragment)
Dates: undated

Box 1

Folder 50

Note: Speech, draft
Dates: 1990

Box 1

Folder 51

Note: "Why Are Hurricanes Named for Women" (fragment)
Dates: undated

Manuscripts by Others

Box 2

Folder 1

Note: S. Brandi Barnes, "Dedicated to the Children of Atlanta and Survivors"
Dates: 1981

Box 2

Folder 2

Note: Gwendolyn Brooks, "Alice Browning"
Dates: 1985

Box 2

Folder 3

Note: Alice Chase, "Grandma"
Dates: undated

Box 2

Folder 4

Note: Allen D. Jackson, "Theme: We Walk with Martin Luther King"
Dates: 1985

Box 2

Folder 5

Note: Mildred D. Johnson, "Alice Browning's Blackness"

Box 2

Folder 6

Note: Robert M. Morris, "African American Writers: The New Horizon for Playwrights"
Dates: undated

Box 2

Folder 7

Note: Robert M. Morris, "Character," "The New Black," "African-American," "Conflict"
Dates: undated

Box 2

Folder 8

Note: Robert M. Morris, "Eulogy for Two"
Dates: undated

Box 2

Folder 9

Note: Robert M. Morris, "IBWC Dialogue Workshop"
Dates: undated

Box 2

Folder 10

Note: Robert M. Morris, "IBWC Radio Writing Workshop"
Dates: undated

Box 2

Folder 11

Note: Robert M. Morris, "Teacher Night Out"
Dates: undated

Box 2

Folder 12

Note: Robert M. Morris, "Teacher Night Out" [2nd copy]
Dates: undated

Box 2

Folder 13

Note: Portia Nelson, Poems
Dates: n.d.

Box 2

Folder 14

Note: Correspondence
Dates: 1961-1995

Series 2: Biographical, 1939-1988

Scope and Content

Biographical material relating to Alice Browning is followed by material about Charles Browning, Barbara Cordell's father George Andrew Franklin, and her uncle William West Franklin.

Box 2

Folder 15

Note: Chicago Teaching Certificate
Dates: 1939

Box 2

Folder 16

Note: Autobiographical Sketch
Dates: 1961

Box 2

Folder 17

Note: Tribute to Alice Browning
Dates: 1973

Box 2

Folder 18

Note: Retirement Certificate
Dates: 1973

Box 2

Folder 19

Note: Course Certificate
Dates: 1973

Box 2

Folder 20

Note: Alice Browning Testimonial materials
Dates: 1978

Box 2

Folder 21

Note: City Council Resolution
Dates: 1985

Box 2

Folder 22

Note: Tribute by Barbara Cordell
Dates: 1985

Box 2

Folder 23

Note: Obituaries
Dates: 1985

Box 2

Folder 24

Note: Alice Browning's Funeral Program
Dates: 1985

Box 2

Folder 25

Note: Information about Alzheimer's disease
Dates: 1988

Box 2

Folder 26

Note: Charles P. Browning Funeral Program
Dates: 1954

Box 2

Folder 27

Note: George Andrew Franklin biographical materials
Dates: 1973

Box 2

Folder 28

Note: William West Franklin, Jr. biographical materials
Dates: 1978

Series 3: Clippings, 1936-1998

Box 2

Folder 29

Note: Clippings by Alice Browning
Dates: 1961-1981

Box 2

Folder 30

Note: Clippings about Alice Browning
Dates: 1936-1982

Box 2

Folder 31

Note: Other clippings-IBWC
Dates: 1977, 1987

Box 2

Folder 32

Note: Other clippings-people
Dates: circa 1953-1998

Series 4: Organizations, 1946-1994

Scope and Content

Negro Story Press

Box 2

Folder 33

Note: Copyright application for Lionel Hampton's Swing Book
Dates: 1946

Box 2

Folder 34

Note: General Information on Copyright
Dates: 1963

Box 2

Folder 35

Note: Lionel Hampton's Swing Book Publicity
Dates: circa 1946
Note: International Black Writers' Conference

Box 2

Folder 36

Note: IBWC-1970
Dates: 1970

Box 2

Folder 37

Note: IBWC-1971
Dates: 1971

Box 2

Folder 38

Note: IBWC-1972
Dates: 1972

Box 2

Folder 39

Note: IBWC-1973
Dates: 1973

Box 2

Folder 40

Note: IBWC-1974
Dates: 1974

Box 2

Folder 41

Note: IBWC-1975
Dates: 1975

Box 2

Folder 42

Note: IBWC-1976
Dates: 1976

Box 2

Folder 43

Note: IBWC-1977
Dates: 1977

Box 2

Folder 44

Note: IBWC-1978
Dates: 1978

Box 2

Folder 45

Note: IBWC-1979
Dates: 1979

Box 2

Folder 46

Note: IBWC-1980
Dates: 1980

Box 2

Folder 47

Note: IBWC-1982
Dates: 1982

Box 2

Folder 48

Note: IBWC-1983
Dates: 1983

Box 2

Folder 49

Note: IBWC-1985
Dates: 1985

Box 2

Folder 50

Note: IBWC-1986
Dates: 1986

Box 3

Folder 1

Note: IBWC-1990
Dates: 1990

Box 3

Folder 2

Note: IBWC-1991
Dates: 1991

Box 3

Folder 3

Note: IBWC-1993
Dates: 1993

Box 3

Folder 4

Note: IBWC-1994
Dates: 1994

Box 3

Folder 5

Note: IBWC undated materials
Dates: undated

Box 3

Folder 6

Note: International Black Songwriters Luncheon
Dates: 1981

Box 3

Folder 7

Note: Black Writers Conference, Pittsburgh, PA
Dates: 1991

Series 5: Booklets, 1946-1985

Box 3

Folder 8

Note: Alameen, Stephany Inua. Loveflame.
Dates: 1981

Box 3

Folder 9

Note: Armstrong, Naomi Young. A Child's Easter.
Dates: 1971

Box 3

Folder 10

Note: Armstrong, Naomi Young. Expression I.
Dates: 1973

Box 3

Folder 11

Note: Atkins, Cheryl. Voices from My Heart.
Dates: 1981

Box 3

Folder 12

Note: Battle, Corey McQueen. Poems I.
Dates: 1971

Box 3

Folder 13

Note: Beach, Marion "Tumbleweed." Come Ride With Me.
Dates: 1970

Box 3

Folder 14

Note: Ben-Izreal, Rahzahn [Ronald H. Johnson]. Poems, Short Stories, and Rhythms.
Dates: 1979

Box 3

Folder 15

Note: Birch, McLane. The Kandi Man.
Dates: 1970

Box 3

Folder 16

Note: Browning, Alice. Black 'n' Blue.
Dates: 1973

Box 3

Folder 17

Note: Browning, Alice. It's Fun to Be Black.
Dates: 1973

Box 3

Folder 18

Note: Browning, Alice. It's No Fun to Be Black.
Dates: 1972

Box 3

Folder 19

Note: Browning, Alice. Fragment, Lionel Hampton's Swing Book.
Dates: 1946

Box 3

Folder 20

Note: Browning, Alice. Lionel Hampton's Swing Book.
Dates: 1946

Box 3

Folder 21

Note: Bruin, John. Thoughts Abroad.
Dates: 1970

Box 3

Folder 22

Note: Cage, Albert P. The Nothingness of War.
Dates: 1947

Box 3

Folder 23

Note: Caplan, Ron. Said A Meant.
Dates: 1967

Box 3

Folder 24

Note: Chicago Renaissance I.
Dates: 1975

Box 3

Folder 25

Note: Clemmons, Vincent. Sketches by Vince.
Dates: 1973

Box 3

Folder 26

Note: Cristen, Fatma. Poems of Blackness.
Dates: 1970

Box 4

Folder 1

Note: Dalton, Betty. 1973 Easter Anthology of Prayer Poems.
Dates: 1973

Box 4

Folder 2

Note: Danner, Margaret. Impression of African Art Forms.
Dates: 1960

Box 4

Folder 3

Note: Dean, Barbara Julian. The Key.
Dates: 1970

Box 4

Folder 4

Note: Demus, Myles. Poems to Ponder.
Dates: 1976

Box 4

Folder 5

Note: Diggs, Alfred. Naturally Black.
Dates: 1968

Box 4

Folder 6

Note: Dinwiddie, Faye Love. Song of the Mute.
Dates: 1970

Box 4

Folder 7

Note: Dominique, Otis G. I Know Why the River Cries.
Dates: 1976

Box 4

Folder 8

Note: DuSable Museum of African American History Publications Catalogue.
Dates: circa 1969

Box 4

Folder 9

Note: G'Ra [George Hines]. Inside Head Out.
Dates: 1976

Box 4

Folder 10

Note: Glascoe, Melvin Marcus. Man Born of a Dark Woman.
Dates: 1971

Box 4

Folder 11

Note: Graham, J. Rodney. Nation.
Dates: undated

Box 4

Folder 12

Note: Griffin, Peggy Ann. Liberation Lyrics.
Dates: 1984

Box 4

Folder 13

Note: Hair Trigger III: A Story Workshop Anthology.
Dates: 1979

Box 4

Folder 14

Note: Hannah, Clayton L. A Collection: My Inner-Most Thoughts.
Dates: undated

Box 4

Folder 15

Note: Harris, Glenethel. Thoughts to Share.
Dates: 1972

Box 4

Folder 16

Note: Happel, Edward John. Sword Dance.
Dates: 1981

Box 4

Folder 17

Note: Harper, Robert V. J. A Gift of Love.
Dates: 1974

Box 4

Folder 18

Note: Hayes, C.L. Feel Me.
Dates: 1972

Box 4

Folder 19

Note: Hayes, Walter T. Casing Some Niggars.
Dates: 1973

Box 4

Folder 20

Note: Henderson, Samuel C. From Unfathomable Depths to Unreachable Heights.
Dates: 1974 [?]

Box 4

Folder 21

Note: Henighan, Eleanor J. The All Seeing Eye and the Hands that Pray
Dates: 1974

Box 4

Folder 22

Note: Hernandez, David. Waking Up: Despertando
Dates: 1971

Box 5

Folder 1

Note: Jackson, Spencer. Black Survival.
Dates: undated

Box 5

Folder 2

Note: Jamila-Ra [Maxine Hall Elliston]. The Good Book.
Dates: 1971

Box 5

Folder 3

Note: Jamila-Ra [Maxine Hall Elliston]. The Look at Yourself Book.
Dates: 1977

Box 5

Folder 4

Note: Kamau, H.B. When Men Gather.
Dates: 1982

Box 5

Folder 5

Note: Kilgore, James C. A Time of Black Devotion.
Dates: 1971

Box 5

Folder 6

Note: Kwasikpui, Doris B. A World of Their Own.
Dates: 1973

Box 5

Folder 7

Note: Lee, Don L. Think Black!
Dates: 1969

Box 5

Folder 8

Note: Lewis, Luevester. Jackie.
Dates: 1970

Box 5

Folder 9

Note: Luden, C.K. Coast to Coast.
Dates: 1976

Box 5

Folder 10

Note: LuTour, Lou. I Dreamed a Dream.
Dates: 1969

Box 5

Folder 11

Note: Macklin, Jacqueline. Falling Leaves.
Dates: 1973

Box 5

Folder 12

Note: Maida. Help! Somebody Save Me.
Dates: 1973

Box 5

Folder 13

Note: Marsh, Clifton E. Journey to Shamara.
Dates: 1974

Box 5

Folder 14

Note: Matanah. [Dorothy June Watkins]. Bits and Pieces.
Dates: 1973

Box 5

Folder 15

Note: McLaurin, Irma. Poems I.
Dates: 1971

Box 5

Folder 16

Note: McElroy, Njoki. Black Journey.
Dates: 1975

Box 5

Folder 17

Note: McGee, Pearl. Nigger I Love You.
Dates: 1973

Box 5

Folder 18

Note: McGee, Pearl. Twenty-Two Years on Welfare.
Dates: 1972

Box 5

Folder 19

Note: Mitchell, Joe H. Black Odyssey.
Dates: 1975

Box 6

Folder 1

Note: Mitchell, Joe H. Lovin' You.
Dates: 1974

Box 6

Folder 2

Note: Mitchell, Joe H. Nature's Child.
Dates: 1974

Box 6

Folder 3

Note: Mitchell, Joe H. fragment, O Woman.
Dates: 1974

Box 6

Folder 4

Note: Mitchell Joe H. O Woman.
Dates: 1974

Box 6

Folder 5

Note: Mitchell, Joe H. One Room Shack.
Dates: 1973

Box 6

Folder 6

Note: Mitchell, Joe H. Vignettes
Dates: 1974

Box 6

Folder 7

Note: Owens, Anne. Mike and Adrean.
Dates: 1974

Box 6

Folder 8

Note: Owens, Don Benn. The Most Controversial American and Why the Negro Race Lacks Unity.
Dates: 1963

Box 6

Folder 9

Note: Pahl, Stewart V. Humanism is Now!
Dates: 1972

Box 6

Folder 10

Note: Patterson, Lucille J. fragment, Sapphire.
Dates: 1972

Box 6

Folder 11

Note: Penny, Rob. Black Tones of Truth.
Dates: 1968

Box 6

Folder 12

Note: Perkins, Eugene. Black Expressions: An Anthology of New Black Poets.
Dates: 1967

Box 6

Folder 13

Note: Perkins, Eugene. Silhouette.
Dates: 1970

Box 6

Folder 14

Note: Pugh, Charles and Barbara. Dream of the Mask and Spear.
Dates: 1975

Box 6

Folder 15

Note: Randolph, Jeremy. Poems I.
Dates: 1971

Box 6

Folder 16

Note: Randolph, Jeremy. Poems II.
Dates: 1971

Box 6

Folder 17

Note: Rawls, Eugenia. A Certain Light.
Dates: 1971

Box 6

Folder 18

Note: Richardson, Nola. When One Loves.
Dates: 1974

Box 7

Folder 1

Note: Richardson, Sy. How to Survive in Hollywood.
Dates: 1982

Box 7

Folder 2

Note: Roby, June. My Soul.
Dates: 1974

Box 7

Folder 3

Note: Ruff, Robert. Accents on New Grass.
Dates: 1970

Box 7

Folder 4

Note: Salaam, Tayari kwa. Working Together We Can Make a Change.
Dates: 1981

Box 7

Folder 5

Note: Scott, Lewis E. The Coming of Lewis E. Scott.
Dates: 1972

Box 7

Folder 6

Note: Seals, Howard E. After 'Yuh Mamma'
Dates: 1972

Box 7

Folder 7

Note: Shah, Kimmah. The Giving of Love.
Dates: 1979

Box 7

Folder 8

Note: Simington, Ann Bowman. Love Is…
Dates: 1970

Box 7

Folder 9

Note: Smith, Dee. A Black Story: 8 Poems
Dates: 1973

Box 7

Folder 10

Note: Smith, Dee. Loving and Living.
Dates: 1973

Box 7

Folder 11

Note: Soul Session (poetry anthology)
Dates: 1969

Box 7

Folder 12

Note: Taylor, Rockie. Drum Song.
Dates: 1969

Box 7

Folder 13

Note: Tillman, Lise M. Of Violets and Blues.
Dates: 1974

Box 7

Folder 14

Note: Motley, Willard. Fragment, The Diaries of Willard Motley.
Dates: 1979

Box 7

Folder 15

Note: Muhammad, Elijah. Sayings of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad.
Dates: undated

Box 7

Folder 16

Note: New Voices in Black Poetry, 1972
Dates: 1972

Box 7

Folder 17

Note: New Expressions in Black Poetry, 1974
Dates: 1974

Box 7

Folder 18

Note: Trussell, Jake. After Hours Poetry.
Dates: 1964

Box 7

Folder 19

Note: Trussell, Jake. Collected Poems.
Dates: 1957

Box 7

Folder 20

Note: Urban Voices
Dates: 1985

Box 7

Folder 21

Note: Warner. M.W.S. The Missing Link.
Dates: undated

Box 7

Folder 22

Note: Whitaker, Hilda. With Foot in Mouth.
Dates: 1973

Box 7

Folder 23

Note: Whitaker, T. J. The Empty Road.
Dates: 1971

Box 7

Folder 24

Note: Williams, Jr., Edward. Liturgy of Edd.
Dates: 1973

Box 7

Folder 25

Note: Windham, Revish. Shades of Anger.
Dates: 1972

Box 7

Folder 26

Note: Windham, Revish. Shades of Black.
Dates: 1970

Box 7

Folder 27

Note: Zubena, Sister. Om Black.
Dates: undated

Series 6: Serials, 1944-1991

Scope and Content

Serials are arranged alphabetically by title. Note that issues of The Browning Letter and Zip are in Oversize Box 12.

Box 8

Folder 1

Note: African American Publishers, Booksellers, and Writers Assoc. Newsletter
Dates: 1991

Box 8

Folder 2

Note: Aim
Dates: 1981

Box 8

Folder 3

Note: Assoc. for Study of Afro-American Life and History Newsletter
Dates: 1973

Box 8

Folder 4

Note: Black Family
Dates: 1981

Box 8

Folder 5

Note: Black Writers News
Dates: 1971-1972

Box 8

Folder 6

Note: Black Writers News
Dates: 1972

Box 8

Folder 7

Note: Black Writers News
Dates: 1973-1975

Box 8

Folder 8

Note: Black Writer, The
Dates: 1980

Box 8

Folder 9

Note: Black Writer, The
Dates: 1981

Box 8

Folder 10

Note: Black Writer, The
Dates: 1982

Box 8

Folder 11

Note: Black Writer, The
Dates: 1983

Box 8

Folder 12

Note: Black Writer, The
Dates: 1985

Box 8

Folder 13

Note: Black Writer, The
Dates: 1986

Box 8

Folder 14

Note: Child Play
Dates: 1945, 1971

Box 8

Folder 15

Note: Connection
Dates: 1970

Box 8

Folder 16

Note: Garland Court Review
Dates: 1969

Box 8

Folder 17

Note: Green's Magazine
Dates: 1973

Box 9

Folder 1

Note: Negro Story
Dates: 1944

Box 9

Folder 2

Note: Negro Story
Dates: 1945

Box 9

Folder 3

Note: Negro Story
Dates: 1946

Box 9

Folder 4

Note: New Infinity Review
Dates: 1974

Box 9

Folder 5

Note: New Writers
Dates: 1974

Box 9

Folder 6

Note: Poetry
Dates: 1973

Box 9

Folder 7

Note: Protector, The
Dates: 1949

Box 9

Folder 8

Note: Soul Teleguide
Dates: 1971

Box 9

Folder 9

Note: Travel News
Dates: 1969

Box 9

Folder 10

Note: Villager, The
Dates: 1961

Box 9

Folder 11

Note: What's Happening
Dates: 1978-1979

Box 9

Folder 12

Note: Business Materials for Serials
Dates: 1949-1984

Box 9

Note: Note: see Oversize Box 12 for issues of The Browning Letter and Zip

Series 7: Publicity and Memorabilia, 1959-1983

Box 9

Folder 14

Note: Publicity Materials
Dates: 1977-1982

Box 9

Folder 15

Note: Flyer, "How's Your Sex Life" (play by Alice Browning)
Dates: n.d.

Box 9

Folder 16

Note: Memorabilia
Dates: 1959-1983

Box 9

Folder 17

Note: Chino and Los Flamencos materials
Dates: 1983

Series 8: Photographs and Audiovisual, 1953-1990

For audiovisual material, see Oversize box 12.

Box 10

Folder 001

Note: A. Browning at IBWC, photo by J. Guidry
Dates: 1973

Box 10

Folder 002

Note: Alice Browning
Dates: 1953

Box 10

Folder 003

Note: A. Browning at Career Seminar at Malcolm X College
Dates: 1974

Box 10

Folder 004

Note: Alice Browning and unidentified at IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Note: (Note: for a photocopy of the album from which photographs 004-044 were removed, see Oversize Box 12)

Box 10

Folder 005

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 006

Note: Barbara Cordell at IBWC, from IBWC Album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 007

Note: Alice Browning, Dorothy Donnegan, and unidentified at IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 008

Note: Alice Browning, Dorothy Donegan, and unidentified at IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 009

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: 1974

Box 10

Folder 010

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: 1974 [?]

Box 10

Folder 011

Note: Dean Monti, Kim Kyp, Ed Happel, Alice Browning, from IBWC Album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 012

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: 1974 [?]

Box 10

Folder 013

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 014

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 015

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 016

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 017

Note: Alice Browning and unidentified, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 018

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 019

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 020

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 021

Note: Barbara Julian Dean, unidentified, and Alice Browning, Washington D.C., from IBWC album
Dates: 1971

Box 10

Folder 022

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 023

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 024

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 025

Note: Sam Greenlee at IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 026

Note: Gwendolyn Brooks, from IBWC Album, photograph by Ruby Dee
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 027

Note: from IBWC album, photograph by Ruby Dee
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 028

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 029

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 030

Note: Alice Browning and unidentified, from IBWC album
Dates: 1968

Box 10

Folder 031

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 032

Note: Al Duckett, Alice Browning, Sam Greenlee, Sidney Jones, Connie Hedgepath, Barbara Julian Dean, Spencer Jackson, and Alice Browning, from IBWC Album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 033

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 034

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 035

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 036

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 037

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 038

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 039

Note: IBWC, from IBWC album
Dates: circa 1970s

Box 10

Folder 040

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 041

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 042

Note: from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 043

Note: Shirley Graham, from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 044

Note: Alice Browning and unidentified, from IBWC album
Dates: undated

Box 10

Folder 045

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC, photograph by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 046

Note: Darwin Walton at IBWC, photograph by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 047

Note: Glennette Turner (Children's Literature) at IBWC, photograph by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 048

Note: IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 049

Note: IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 050

Note: Haki Madhubuti at IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 051

Note: Orlando White (Producer for WGN) at IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 052

Note: Reginald Hayes (Public Relations Dir., Ebony Magazine) at IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 053

Note: Kala Akbar (Assoc. Ed., Black Journalism Review) at IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 054

Note: IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 055

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC, photograph by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 056

Note: Madelyne Blunt (Coordinator ASALH) at IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 057

Note: Madelyne Blunt (Coordinator ASALH) at IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 058

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC, photograph by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 059

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC, photograph by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 060

Note: IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 061

Note: Naomi Millender at IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 062

Note: Frances Ward (L.A. Times reporter, founder of Kumba workshop) at IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 063

Note: Val Gray Ward (Founder, Kumba Workshop), at IBWC, photo by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 064

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC, photograph by Robert Williams
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 065

Note: cover of 1976 IBWC album
Dates: 1976

Box 10

Folder 066

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 067

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 068

Note: Ivan vanSertima at IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 069

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 070

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 071

Note: Eugene Redmond at IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 072

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 073

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 074

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 075

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 076

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 077

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 078

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 079

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 080

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 081

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Folder 082

Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 10

Note: 082a:
Note: IBWC
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 083

Note: Eugene Winslow at IBWC, photograph by Barbara Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 084

Note: Alice Browning, unidentified, and Vernon Jarrett at IBWC, photo by Barbara Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 085

Note: IBWC dinner, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 086

Note: IBWC dinner, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 087

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC dinner, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 088

Note: IBWC dinner, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 089

Note: IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 090

Note: IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 091

Note: Gwendolyn Brooks and Nora Brooks at IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 092

Note: Nora Brooks at IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 093

Note: Sam Greenlee at IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 094

Note: IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 095

Note: Vernon Jarrett at IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 096

Note: IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 097

Note: Jesse Evans and unidentified at IBWC dinner, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 098

Note: IBWC dinner, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 099

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC dinner, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 100

Note: Sam Greenlee and Alice Browning at IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 101

Note: Sam Greenlee and Alice Browning at IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 102

Note: Gwendolyn Brooks at IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 103

Note: Glennette Turner at IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 104

Note: IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 105

Note: IBWC, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 106

Note: Lake Shore Drive from McCormick Place, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 107

Note: Lake Shore Drive from McCormick Place, photo by B. Cordell [?]
Dates: 1978

Box 11

Folder 108

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 109

Note: Alice Browning at IBWC, photo by Ruby Dee [?]
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 110

Note: IBWC
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 111

Note: IBWC
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 112

Note: IBWC
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 113

Note: Glennette Turner and Mildred Johnson at IBWC
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 114

Note: IBWC
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 115

Note: unidentified funeral
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 116

Note: unidentified funeral
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 117

Note: unidentified funeral
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 118

Note: negatives from unidentified funeral
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 119

Note: negatives from unidentified funeral
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 120

Note: unidentified funeral
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 121

Note: negative from unidentified funeral
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 122

Note: negative from unidentified funeral
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 123

Note: Colostine Boatwright
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 124

Note: Colostine Boatwright
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 125

Note: Colostine Boatwright
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 126

Note: Colostine Boatwright
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 127

Note: Colostine Boatwright
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 128

Note: Colostine Boatwright
Dates: undated

Box 11

Folder 129

Note: Harsh Collection Exhibit: Chicago's Black Writers and Publishers

Box 11

Folder 130

Note: Harsh Collection Exhibit: Chicago's Black Writers and Publishers

Box 11

Folder 131

Note: Harsh Collection Exhibit: Chicago's Black Writers and Publishers

Box 11

Folder 132

Note: Harsh Collection Exhibit: Chicago's Black Writers and Publishers

Box 11

Folder 133

Note: Harsh Collection Exhibit: Chicago's Black Writers and Publishers

Box 11

Folder 134

Note: Michael Flug at desk of Harsh Collection

Box 11

Folder 135

Note: Harsh Collection Exhibit: Chicago's Black Writers and Publishers

Oversize

Box 12

Note: VHS tape, Tribute to Alice Browning IBWC 1986
Dates: 1986

Box 12

Note: VHS tape, IBWC 15th anniversary, July 1, 1985
Dates: 1985

Box 12

Folder 1

Note: The Browning Letter
Dates: 1953

Box 12

Folder 2

Note: The Browning Letter
Dates: 1954

Box 12

Folder 3

Note: The Browning Letter
Dates: 1955

Box 12

Folder 4

Note: Zip
Dates: 1963

Box 12

Folder 5

Note: Zip
Dates: 1964

Box 12

Folder 6

Note: Browning Letter fragments
Dates: n.d.

Contents

Collection Access

Alice Browning Papers

Descriptive Summary

Indexed Terms

Provenance

Access

Citation

Biographical Note

Bibliography

Scope and Content Note

Related Archival Materials note

Processing Information note

Inventory