7 Cities to Celebrate Black History All Year
Learning about Black history shouldn’t be regulated to celebrating one month out of the year. Curious LGBTQ travelers have several opportunities to immerse themselves in a number of unique African-American experiences in the U.S.
Vacationer Magazine has a list of must-see historical African-American landmarks, new Black art installations, palate-pleasing culinary experiences, and numerous ways you can honor and support Black-owned businesses in seven U.S. cities from Greensboro, North Carolina to San Antonio, Texas.
Carolina Core, North Carolina
The Carolina Core, the region encompassing cities such as Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and High Point has played a major role in Black history. Greensboro is the home of the Civil Rights Sit-in and the Historic Magnolia House, one of only four Green Book sites in North Carolina. The Magnolia House served as a safe retreat for some of our nation’s most well-known African Americans during the segregated Jim Crow Era including Ray Charles, Jackie Robinson, Ike and Tina Turner, and James Baldwin. The house then moved on to operate as a living museum following a restoration in 1996, and now, the Magnolia House has reopened to serve as a hotel after more than 50 years. Owner, Natalie Miller took on the family legacy to restore the house to a modernized replica of its heyday. It includes four second-floor guest rooms, a concierge lounge, and an on-site restaurant featuring the hotel’s signature Sunday Brunch and “shoebox lunches”—a tribute to the packed meals Black travelers would travel with when on the road. Additionally, the Magnolia House hosts live music events throughout the year. Also while in Greensboro, visitors can learn about the famous Civil Rights Sit-In at the Woolworth’s Lunch Counter.
Just 30-minutes away in Winston-Salem, visit the Old Salem Museums & Gardens, one of America’s most comprehensive history attractions where travelers can learn about the city’s history and contributions of Black Moravians. If you’re a fan of photography, the first exhibition dedicated to the pioneering photographer, Kwame Brathwaite will be on display at the Reynolda House Museum of American Art through March 8, 2022. Locals and visitors can also support local actors by attending the 17th Biennial National Black Theatre Festival (NBTF) from August 1 – 6. The festival will transform North Carolina’s city of arts and innovation into a mega-performing arts center with over 130 performances in several venues in the city.
Cincinnati, Ohio
Although Cincinnati’s history with African Americans is rooted in the dark past of slavery, this city served as a light for enslaved Africans in search of freedom. The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center is a museum that sits on the banks of the Ohio River, the great natural barrier that separated the slave states of the South from the free states of the North.
Today, Cincinnati continues to serve as a place where African-Americans can thrive and it offers nationally recognized programs to help grow and expand economic opportunities for minority business owners through programs such as MORTAR Startup Accelerator and Cincinnati Music Accelerator.
Did you know Cincinnati is the seventh most influential music city in the U.S.? We can thank James Brown for helping put the city on the map! Learn more about Cincy’s roots in funk and soul music at the new Black Music Walk of Fame which will launch in late July. This new destination will recognize and celebrate influential Black musicians from southwest Ohio in a star-studded walkway from the entrance of the ICON Music Center to Paul Brown Stadium. Inaugural inductees include Otis Williams, The Isley Brothers, Bootsy Collins, and gospel pioneer Dr. Charles Fold. Music lovers can also head to the Paul Brown Stadium for the Cincinnati Music Festival (July 22-23). It’s back in full force after being canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic. The originally-announced, star-studded line-up from 2020 returns with headliners including Janet Jackson, Snoop Dog, Charlie Wilson, and The O’Jays. Accompanied by a street festival dubbed Festival 513, the Cincinnati Music Festival draws over 50,000 people annually from all around the country. For a place to stay, check out Six Acres Bed & Breakfast. Founder Kristin Kitchen rebuilt this former safe house that had been part of the Underground Railroad with the intent of preserving its ultimate goal from the beginning, which was to provide food and shelter to weary travelers.
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville has always celebrated the big impact of African-Americans’ contribution to the city’s history, heritage, and culture. The Unfiltered Truth Collection allows visitors to journey back in time, look toward the future and explore the stories of some extraordinary people that built the Louisville experience as we know it today. Eight local attractions share perspectives and histories that most have never heard before. Among Louisville’s Black Cultural Exhibits and Museums, The Roots 101 African – American Museum is the newest attraction dedicated to telling the story of the African-American journey from Africa and all ports in between.
In February and March, some of these attractions will be offering free experiential tours, as well as special promotions. Visitors can visit the Louisville locations and places that helped shape Muhammad Ali’s life and career in a Footsteps of Greatness tour. The Muhammad Ali Center is a vision of the Ali family, a six-story multicultural center and award-winning museum that celebrates the life and legacy of the world-class boxer and global humanitarian; his childhood home, the gym where he learned to box (Columbia Gym), and Cave Hill Cemetery, the final resting place of Louisville’s native son.
Nachand Trabue unites local Black-owned businesses and gives them an outlet through pop-up markets at the Melannaire Marketplace, Louisville’s first permanent market and Black-owned marketplace featuring Black artisans. She has amassed hundreds of local businesses who sell at the market each week, with a second location, 4th Street Live, once a month. The goal is to make the marketplace permanent, taking inspiration from the organizer of Artists and Fleas, the trendy market in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood.
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is a city rich with African American history that visitors and residents alike can celebrate year-round. The City’s Black Heritage Trail allows for a self-guided tour experience across 21 famous historical sites including Norman Film Studios, where all-Black casts depicted stories free of racial stereotypes typical of the silent screen era, and the Eartha M.M. White Museum, which honors mother Clara White and daughter Eartha White in the trailblazing humanitarian and civil rights work they did in Jacksonville. Edward Waters University, Florida’s oldest independent institution of higher learning and first historically Black university, is another stop along the trail.
On the coast lies American Beach, established during the Jim Crow era as an oceanfront resort where African Americans could enjoy recreation and relaxation without harassment and frequented by visitors including Ray Charles, James Brown, Hank Aaron, and Zora Neale Hurston, who lived in Jacksonville for over 10 years. The accompanying museum, American Beach Museum, celebrates the legacy of the beach with exciting research, multimedia exhibitions, and educational programs all year long.
Throughout Jacksonville, there are various murals created by local Black artists to capture the city’s African American heritage and to honor Black culture and historic Black figures. The City also offers events and programming that highlights and uplifts Black culture, such as the Black History Month Parade & Melanin Market on February 19th, the Fat Tuesday Bayou Bash at Art Walk on March 2nd, and the Jacksonville Jazz Fest, scheduled May 26th-29th.
San Antonio, Texas
February marks Black History Month, but San Antonio is a place where Black travelers will feel welcomed. Martin Luther King Park is home to a new statue called “Spheres of Reflection,” designed by local artist Kaldric Dow. The work features words used repeatedly by the late Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. San Antonio is home to the nation’s largest MLK Day parade every January. The Witte Museum is the oldest museum in Texas and the only museum to focus on Texas’s unique history and natural environment all in one place. Its new Black Cowboys: An American Story exhibit opened in November 2021. The one-of-a-kind collection of artifacts uncovers the all-too-often hidden Black history of the Wild West. The exhibit will continue at the Witte through April 22, 2022. Smaller galleries around town, like the newly opened In the Eye of the Beholder, are also dedicating wall space to Black artists and underrepresented voices.
Throughout the year, there are touchstones for travelers to experience Black culture in the city. The San Antonio African American Community Archive and Museum is a hub of activity and events located just above the River Walk at La Villita. As a UNESCO City of Creative Gastronomy, San Antonio sees Black food culture on display in the kitchen. Head to Tony G’s Soul Food on the Eastside, for example, to see how locals in our city do soul food. San Antonio also has a vibrant art scene. For example, famed artists Deborah Roberts and Benny Andrews will be at The McNay Museum later in 2022 for a special exhibit. Roberts’ work has recently been spotted in the popular HBO show And Just Like That, helping broaden her audiences.
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis doesn’t just promote, but celebrates its Black-owned businesses and heritage, offering travelers more than a few ways to support local Black entrepreneurs. For the history buffs, visit the stars of notable African American figures such as Maya Angelou, Tina Turner, and Chuck Berry, on the Delmar Loop’s St. Louis Walk of Fame. Visits to the Scott Joplin House or the National Blues Museum will bring the sounds of some of the nation’s most iconic Black musicians to life. Take a stroll through the George Washington Carver Garden at the Missouri Botanical Garden, an inspirational area that honors the life and accomplishments of the famous scientist who influenced agriculture and education. The Missouri History Museum added a Black History walking tour of The Ville, as well as a memorial for Tuskegee Airmen that discusses the impact of the first Black military aviators in the U. S Army Air Corps, and a Virtual Learning and Homeschool Day to inform visitors about the artistic and cultural contributions of St. Louis African-Americans. Check out the St. Louis County Public Library’s website for the 2022 Black History Celebration Enriching Culture with Hope and Healing, including a variety of online educational and inspirational events throughout February and beyond.
For foodies, Gourmet Soul Restaurant is reinventing traditional soul food in fun innovative ways, while places like Turn are putting a healthy spin on comfort food. Pharaohs Donuts and La Patisserie Chouquette bring the sweetness with both local favorites and fancier pastries, offering curbside orders and – in Pharaoh’s case – the occasional free afternoon giveaway. Prime 55’s Orlando Watson and Tony Davis, co-owners and childhood friends, offer some of the best steaks in town.
In St. Louis, hospitality icons like Central West End Bed and Breakfast allow visitors to support Black-owned accommodations. A bit of yoga The Collective STL or art-based mindfulness at Shine In All Shades provides unique escapes all run by locals who are African-American. Retail therapy is still a thing, supporting local businesses like the jewelry makers on display at Diversity Gallery or the authors sold at EyeSeeMe Bookstore, one of the most famous Black-owned bookshops in the country.
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Listed as one of CNN’s Best Places to Visit in 2022, Tulsa is a “must-do” if you want another authentic Black cultural experience. In the iconic Greenwood Historical District also known as Black Wall Street, stop by the Greenwood Rising, opened in August 2021, for a state-of-the-art history immersive experience that honors the legacy of Black Wall Street before and after the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921.
From May 28 to June 19, the Legacy Festival is a series of events, dedications, and programs highlighting the anniversary of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and culminating with Juneteenth festivities.
Later this year, from August 12-13, enjoy the Okmulgee’s Invitational Rodeo which is the nation’s oldest African-American rodeo (est. 1956) and one of the largest African-American sporting events in the nation. The rodeo also features a festival and parade.
