4 The Record marks Black History Month in Pittsburgh
Host Sheldon Ingram learns about the history of the annual celebration
WELCOME TO. FOR THE RECORD, I’M SHELDON INGRAM AND TODAY, A CELEBRATION OF BLACK HISTORY HERE IN PITTSBURGH. LATER THIS HALF HOUR, I WILL SPEAK WITH CHARLENE BARNETT FROM THE CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF ART TO DISCUSS THE LEGACY OF PHOTOGRAPHER CHARLES TEENIE HARRIS. BUT FIRST, MY SIT DOWN WITH THE DIRECTOR OF THE MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY AT THE HEINZ HISTORY CENTER. SO WE’RE JOINED BY SAM BLACK, WHO IS WITH THE HEINZ HISTORY CENTER. AND YOU’RE THE DIRECTOR OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY PORTION OF THE HEINZ HISTORY CENTER, CORRECT? YES, DIRECTOR OF THE MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY. BUT YOU DO A NEW PROJECT WE’RE WORKING ON. SO LET’S DEAL WITH THE GENESIS OF WHY WE HERE IS BLACK HISTORY MONTH. AND LET’S ANSWER THE QUESTION OF WHY. WHY IS BLACK HISTORY MONTH CELEBRATED? WELL, BLACK HISTORY MONTH IS ACTUALLY 100 YEARS OLD THIS YEAR. THIS FEBRUARY, IT WAS FOUNDED BY DOCTOR CARTER G. WOODSON, WHO WAS PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER OF THE ASSOCIATION FOR THE STUDY OF NEGRO LIFE AND HISTORY IN 1926, AND HE CHOSE FEBRUARY AS THE SECOND WEEK OF FEBRUARY, ACTUALLY, AS THE TIME TO CELEBRATE BLACK HISTORY, BECAUSE THAT’S THE BIRTH MONTH OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. THAT WAS THE BIRTH MONTH OF FREDERICK DOUGLASS. AND SO IT JUST WENT OFF FROM THERE. IN 1976, THE ASSOCIATION AND RECOGNITION OF THE BICENTENNIAL YEAR FOR THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA DECIDED TO BUMP IT UP FROM NEGRO HISTORY WEEK TO BLACK HISTORY MONTH. SO THAT’S THE SORT OF GENESIS OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH. BUT THE REASON BEHIND IT IS, YOU KNOW, IT WAS RELEVANT THEN AND IT IS RELEVANT NOW, 100 YEARS LATER. AND THAT BLACK HISTORY IS NOT TAUGHT OR EXPLAINED IN SCHOOLS AS THOROUGHLY AS IT SHOULD BE. YOU KNOW, CARTER G. WOODSON WAS A HARVARD TRAINED HISTORIAN, AND HE RECOGNIZED THE FACT THAT THE HISTORY OF BLACK AMERICANS WAS BEING LEFT OUT OF THE STORY OF AMERICA, AND HE WANTED TO RIGHT THAT WRONG. AND SO HE FOCUSED A LOT OF WHAT BECAME NEGRO HISTORY WEEK. HE ACTUALLY STARTED A JOURNAL CALLED THE JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY IN 1915. AND THEN IT ALSO IN 19 IN THE MID 1920S, HE STARTED WHAT WAS CALLED THE NEGRO HISTORY BULLETIN, WHICH WAS A MAGAZINE FOR TEACHERS TO TEACH THEM HOW TO TEACH BLACK HISTORY. SO IT’S ALWAYS BEEN THE FOCUS OF MAKING SURE THAT THIS PORTION OF AMERICAN HISTORY, THE EXPERIENCES OF AFRICAN AMERICANS, IS ALWAYS INCLUDED IN THE STORY. YEAH. HENCE THE THE NOTION THAT BLACK HISTORY IS AMERICAN HISTORY BECAUSE OF ALL THE NOTABLE CONTRIBUTIONS OF BLACKS FROM THE 1700S ON UP UNTIL TODAY. AND, YOU KNOW, THERE’S A WHOLE LIST THERE. WE YOU KNOW, WE’RE TALKING ABOUT GARRETT MORGAN LEE, WHO INVITED WHO INVENTED THE THE THE TRAFFIC LIGHT IN TERMS OF GREEN, RED AND YELLOW. THE MODERN DAY TRAFFIC LIGHT WAS BIRTHED OUT OF HIS INVENTION. AND AND YOU JUST WORK WITH GRANVILLE, GRANVILLE WOODS, OR I ACTUALLY WORKED ON GARRETT MORGAN GARRETT. I WAS A CURATOR FOR HIS COLLECTION AT A PREVIOUS PLACE I WORKED AT IN CLEVELAND, AT THE WESTERN RESERVE HISTORICAL SOCIETY THAT HOUSES HIS PAPERS. A LOT OF HIS SCHEMATICS FROM HIS CREATION OF NOT ONLY THE TRICOLOR TRAFFIC SIGNAL, BUT ALSO THE GAS MASK THAT HE INVENTED IN 1915. SO WHEN YOU COME TO THE HEINZ HISTORY CENTER, YOU’RE FOCUSED ON THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF BLACK PITTSBURGH’S BLACK PITTSBURGHERS IN THE EARLY SETTLEMENT SETTLEMENT YEARS. WHY DON’T YOU SPEAK ON A COUPLE OF THEM? WE KNOW ABOUT JOHN VACHON. WELL, OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, JOHN VACHON WAS A SORT OF ANTEBELLUM PERIOD ACTIVIST. HE WAS A VETERAN OF THE WAR OF 1812. HE MOVED TO PITTSBURGH IN THE 1820S AND RAISED HIS FAMILY HERE. HIS SON BECAME REALLY THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN ATTORNEY TO BE ACCREDITED TO ARGUE CASES AT THE US SUPREME COURT. ALTHOUGH HE WAS NOT ADMITTED TO THE ALLEGHENY COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION, HE LATER BECAME PRESIDENT AT ALCORN STATE UNIVERSITY IN MISSISSIPPI. THERE ARE SO MANY OTHERS. MARTIN DELANY, WHO CAME TO PITTSBURGH IN THE 1830S, AROUND 1831, YOU KNOW, LED THE NATIONAL IMMIGRATION CONVENTION IN 1854, WAS A LEADER HERE IN PITTSBURGH. AND I KIND OF FEEL THAT DELANY WAS THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN POLICE OFFICER IN PITTSBURGH WHEN HE WAS DEPUTIZED IN 1839 TO PROTECT AGAINST A WHITE MOB, PROTECT THE BLACK COMMUNITY IN THE LOWER HILL DISTRICT. THE SHERIFF, WHO DOUBLED AS THE MAYOR OF PITTSBURGH AT THE TIME, MARTIN DELANY. SO HE REALLY BECAME THE FIRST BLACK POLICE OFFICER IN PITTSBURGH AS WELL. THERE IS DOCTOR GEORGE, WHO WAS REGISTERED DOCTOR, THE FIRST REGISTERED DOCTOR IN ALLEGHENY COUNTY, I BELIEVE, IN THE EARLY 1900S. AND THEN BENJAMIN BIG DADDY RICHARDS BACK IN THE 1700S. YES. BEFORE DELANY, THOSE GUYS GOT HERE. HE WAS A WELL-KNOWN BUTCHER WHO SOLD CATTLE TO THE UNITED STATES MILITARY. YES. HE WAS VERY PROFITABLE IN THAT. AND SO GOING BACK TO THE FIRST QUESTION I ASKED YOU, I ASKED EARLIER, THE FIRST POINT I BROUGHT UP EARLIER IS THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS KIND OF HISTORY BEING INCLUDED IN CLASSROOMS. AND, YOU KNOW, THERE’S NOT JUST PITTSBURGH OR PENNSYLVANIA, BUT ACROSS THE COUNTRY. YOU KNOW, THERE’S AN ISSUE. THERE HAVE BEEN OUTSPOKEN SENTIMENTS ABOUT BLACK HISTORY BEING IGNORED. SOME PEOPLE WILL SAY WHITEWASHED IN DIFFERENT SCHOOL SYSTEMS AROUND THE COUNTRY. HOW IMPORTANT IS IT FOR THIS PART OF HISTORY TO BE INCLUDED IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS? BECAUSE YOU CAN’T. IF I CAN TAKE SOMETHING FROM GEORGE H.W. BUSH, YOU CAN’T LEAVE ANYBODY BEHIND. YOU CAN’T LEAVE A CHILD BEHIND. IN TERMS OF THE EDUCATION OF AMERICANS. IF YOU WANT TO REALLY KNOW AND UNDERSTAND THIS COUNTRY AND THE HISTORY OF THIS COUNTRY, YOU CAN’T LEAVE OUT PEOPLE. AND SO TO BE ABLE TO LEAVE OUT BLACK HISTORY IS WHAT CARTER G. WOODSON WAS TRYING TO CORRECT. HE KNEW THE STORY OF AMERICA, AND HE KNEW THAT THERE WERE CERTAIN ASPECTS OF AMERICAN HISTORY THAT WERE BEING SORT OF AVOIDED AND NOT TALKED ABOUT AND NOT APPRECIATED THAT, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE SEE NOW IN TERMS OF PITTSBURGH’S 8990 NEIGHBORHOODS IS VERY INTERESTING. PEOPLE WHO MOVED TO PITTSBURGH, YOU KNOW, THEY PARTICULARLY LIKE US IN THE 60S, 70S, 80S AND 90S, DIFFERENT NEIGHBORHOODS WERE IDENTIFIED BY THEIR ETHNIC PRESENCE, IF YOU WILL. AND SO THE LOWER HILL WAS DIVERSE AT THE TURN OF THE CENTURY, 1800S GOING TO 1900S. CAN YOU EXPLAIN HOW IT FORMED ITS IDENTITY TODAY? YEAH, IT’S REALLY INTERESTING. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE THE HILL DISTRICT BECAUSE AS YOU MENTIONED, IT WAS A VERY DIVERSE COMMUNITY. NOT ONLY AFRICAN AMERICANS LIVED THERE FROM THE EARLY YEARS OF THE THE HILL DISTRICT, BUT ALSO MIDDLE EASTERNERS LIKE LEBANESE SYRIANS LIVED THERE. ITALIANS LIVED THERE, JEWISH FAMILIES LIVED THERE, YOU KNOW, SO IT WAS A VERY DIVERSE COMMUNITY. IT WASN’T REALLY UNTIL THE EARLY 1950S WHEN THE DECISION WAS MADE TO LEVEL THE LOWER HILL DISTRICT AS PART OF THE PITTSBURGH RENAISSANCE. THAT INCLUDED THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE POINT, AS WELL AS THE HILL DISTRICT, AND TO ERECT WHAT BECAME THE CIVIC ARENA. THERE, THAT YOU REALLY KIND OF DESTROYED THAT DIVERSITY THAT EXISTED THERE. SO IT KIND OF DISPLACED THESE ETHNIC COMMUNITIES IN DIFFERENT AREAS OF THE REGION. AND AFRICAN AMERICANS MOVED EITHER FURTHER UP THE HILL OR TO HOMEWOOD OR TO EAST LIBERTY AND OTHER AREAS OF THE CITY, YOU KNOW, SO IT KIND OF CHANGED THE DEMOGRAPHICS OF PITTSBURGH. SO WHAT WE SEE TODAY IS REALLY THE RESULT OF THE DESTRUCTION OF THE LOWER HILL DISTRICT. YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT A REGION THAT HAD ABOUT 8000 PEOPLE WHO LIVED THERE, BUT NOT ONLY PEOPLE. YOU HAD BUSINESSES, YOU HAD AGENCIES, YOU HAD RECREATION CENTERS, FOR INSTANCE. THERE WERE CHURCHES, YOU KNOW, IT WAS A REAL COMMUNITY. AND SO THAT WAS PRETTY MUCH WIPED OFF THE MAP AND KIND OF DISPERSED PEOPLE IN DIFFERENT AREAS OF PITTSBURGH. SO WHAT WE SEE TODAY IS PITTSBURGH HAS SINCE THE 1950S, HAS BEEN TRYING TO SORT OF RECUPERATE FROM WHAT HAPPENED IN THE HILL DISTRICT AND IN SOME AREAS THERE HAS BEEN SOME VERY POSITIVE THINGS AND SOME NOT SO POSITIVE IN TERMS OF THAT. LASTLY, WHAT IS THE MESSAGE THAT YOU WANT TO SHARE WITH THE HEINZ HISTORY CENTER WITH REGARDS TO BLACK HISTORY MONTH MOVING FORWARD FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS? WELL, YOU KNOW, BLACK HISTORY FOR A LONG TIME I’VE BEEN AT THE HISTORY CENTER SINCE 2002, AND WE RECOGNIZED BLACK HISTORY AS SOMETHING WE DO ALL YEAR LONG, NOT JUST IN FEBRUARY FOR BLACK HISTORY MONTH, BUT WE WANTED TO SORT OF SIGNIFY, AND THIS IS WHAT CARTER G. WOODSON WAS TALKING ABOUT. HE WASN’T SAYING ONLY STUDY AND RECOGNIZE BLACK HISTORY IN FEBRUARY. HE’S SAYING THAT WE’RE GOING TO PICK THIS TIME TO SORT OF ACCENTUATE BLACK HISTORY, YOU KNOW, SORT OF PUT A CHERRY ON TOP OF IT. BUT WE RECOGNIZE AND CELEBRATE AND ACKNOWLEDGE AND EDUCATE ABOUT BLACK HISTORY ALL YEAR LONG. AND THAT’S WHAT WE DO AT THE HISTORY CENTER. SO WE HAVE PROGRAMS, EXHIBITIONS, PUBLICATIONS, BLOGS. WE DO IT ALL, YOU KNOW, ALL YEAR LONG ABOUT BLACK HISTORY. STILL AHEAD ON FOR THE RECORD, I LOVE IT ALL. IT’S NOT LIKE WORK AT ALL DOCUMENTING THE LIFE AND THE WORK OF THE LATE CHARLES TEENIE HARRIS. COMING UP, THE LEGACY OF A MAN WHO CAPTURED BLACK LIFE IN PITTSBURGH FOR DECADES THROUGH THE LENS OF HIS CAMERA. WELCOME BACK TO FOR THE RECORD, AS WE CONTINUE TO LOOK AT BLACK HISTORY IN PITTSBURGH, WE TAKE A CLOSE LOOK AT THE WORK OF CHARLES TEENIE HARRIS THROUGH THE ARCHIVIST, WHO HAS BEEN DOCUMENTING HIS PHOTOGRAPHS AT THE CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF ART. TEENIE HARRIS, AS WE KNOW IT, CAPTURED THE ESSENCE OF ALL OF THIS BLACK LIFE IN THE VARIOUS COMMUNITIES. WHAT MADE HIS WORK SO INTRIGUING? TEENIE HAD A WAY OF CAPTURING PEOPLE IN EVERYDAY MOMENTS, AND EVEN IF IT WERE A CELEBRITY OR A MAJOR PERSON IN POLITICS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, HE STILL CAUGHT THEM IN A WAY THAT MADE THEM SEEM SO REALISTIC AND SO APPROACHABLE. I THINK THAT’S ONE OF THE KEYS TO HOW SUCCESSFUL HE WAS, AS OPPOSED TO OTHER PHOTOGRAPHERS, HE NOT ONLY DEPICTED OUR EVERYDAY LIFE, BUT THE BIG MOMENTS THAT HAPPENED IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY AND THE BIG NAMES LIKE DOCTOR MARTIN LUTHER KING JR, CELEBRITIES LIKE LENA HORNE, AND JUST ON AND ON AND ON. SO NOW THE CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF ART FOUND IT NECESSARY TO CREATE A CHARLES TEENIE HARRIS GALLERY. WHY? WELL, WE WERE VERY FORTUNATE. IN 2001, THE TEENIE HIMSELF HAD DECIDED HE WANTED HIS COLLECTION TO GO TO THE THE MUSEUM OF ART. AND WHAT HE DID WAS HE MADE SURE THAT WE GOT EVERYTHING THAT HE HAD. SO ANY NEGATIVES THAT HE HAD, WHICH IS ABOUT 75,000 OR MORE, IF YOU CAN BELIEVE, THAT CAME TO THE MUSEUM AND WE SET ABOUT TRYING TO IDENTIFY WHAT WE CAN SEE IN THE PHOTOS, BECAUSE HE DIDN’T SPEND A LOT OF TIME DOING IDENTIFICATIONS. AND IT’S IMPORTANT THAT THIS IS UTILIZED BECAUSE NOT ONLY DID TEENIE WANT THAT, BUT IT’S RICH HISTORY, IMPORTANT HISTORY IN AMERICAN HISTORY. IT’S IT’S IMPORTANT THAT PEOPLE USE IT AND SEE IT AND SHARE IT. THAT’S WHAT HE WANTED. SO SO THIS GALLERY AT THE CARNEGIE MUSEUM OF ART. DESCRIBE IT FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT SEEN IT. DESCRIBE WHAT THIS GALLERY IS LIKE AND WHAT THE EXPERIENCE IS LIKE GOING IN. IT’S A BEAUTIFUL SPACE. WE OPENED IT ABOUT A YEAR AND THREE MONTHS AGO, AND IT HAS A COMPILATION OF ALL THE MATERIALS WE HAVE IN THE ARCHIVE. WE HAVE MOVING PICTURES AND STILL PHOTOGRAPHY, ORAL HISTORIES, ABOUT 60 SPEAKERS OF ORAL HISTORY WORK. SO. SO, YOU KNOW, YOU SAY ORAL HISTORY. NOW LET I’LL BE TRANSPARENT FOR OUR VIEWERS. I DID A SPECIAL REPORT ON THE CHARLES HARRIS GALLERY LAST YEAR. YES, I’VE BEEN INSIDE. I KNOW WHAT IT’S LIKE. BUT WHEN YOU SAY ORAL HISTORY, EXPLAIN HOW THAT IS TRANSMITTED TO THE VISITOR IN RECORDINGS, IN DEVICES THAT WE HAVE THAT ARE HANDHELD IN THE GALLERY SPACE, WHAT WE DID, THESE ORAL HISTORIES ARE SO IMPORTANT BECAUSE THEY’RE THE BRACKET OF THE INFORMATION WE NEEDED TO FIND OUT THE WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN AND WHY OF WHAT’S GOING ON IN ALL THESE PHOTOGRAPHS. AND SO THEY ARE AS IMPORTANT AS THE PHOTOS THEMSELVES, BECAUSE WE DON’T KNOW EVERYTHING THAT’S GOING ON IN THEM. WE’VE BEEN DOING THIS NOW FOR 26 YEARS. SO WE HAVE A VAST AMOUNT OF INFORMATION NOW, AND WE ARE VERY GRATEFUL TO THE COMMUNITY AT LARGE THAT HAS OFFERED THIS INFORMATION AND WORKED WITH US, AND WE’RE CONTINUING TO WANT TO INTERVIEW PEOPLE ABOUT WHAT THEY KNOW ABOUT THE IMAGES. SOMETIMES THEY SEE THEMSELVES, SOMETIMES THEY SEE FAMILY MEMBERS OR FRIENDS, OR SOMETIMES THEY SEE MOMENTS IN HISTORY OR JUST EVERYDAY LIFE THAT THEY ARE VERY MUCH DRAWN TO. TEENIE HAD A UNIQUE EYE AND HE WAS REALLY GOOD AT DOING THINGS THAT WERE DIFFERENT THAN THE OTHER PHOTOGRAPHERS. THAT’S WHY MARY LAWRENCE NICKNAMED HIM ONE SHOT. NOT ONLY WAS HE DIFFERENT, BUT HE TOOK IT DIFFERENTLY AND QUICKLY. AND SO HE HAD A LOT OF DIFFERENT NICKNAMES. BUT THE END RESULT IS HE WAS AN AMAZING MAN AND I’M VERY GRATEFUL THAT MY ENTIRE FAMILY HISTORY FROM MY THREE MONTH OLD PHOTOS UNTIL I WAS IN MY 20S, ALL OUR FAMILY WEDDINGS, ALL OUR EVENTS AND OUR DOCUMENTED IN THE ARCHIVE, WHICH IS HOW I KIND OF CAME TO THE MUSEUM AND STARTED WORKING WITH THE MUSEUM. AND THERE ARE MANY OTHERS LIKE ME, WHO HAVE ALL OF THEIR PERSONAL AND BROAD BLACK LIFE INFORMATION IN THIS ARCHIVE. SO TEENIE CAPTURED POLITICAL EVENTS. HE CAPTURED SPORTING EVENTS AND SPORTING FIGURES. HE CAPTURED. SOCIAL EVENTS. ENTERTAINMENT. YEAH. SOCIAL MOVEMENT ACTIVITIES IN THE HILL DISTRICT AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE. SO YOU HAVE PICTURES THERE ALSO. YOU HAVE STILL PICTURES AND THEN YOU HAVE WHAT YOU GUYS CALL MOVING PICTURES OR LIVING PICTURES. DESCRIBE TO OUR VIEWERS WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. WELL, TEENIE TOOK HOME MOVIES OR, YOU KNOW, MOVIES. HE HAD A CAMERA THAT WAS A MOVIE CAMERA, AND HE HAS PEOPLE DOING ALL SORTS OF THINGS. IT’S ALMOST LIKE HE WAS JUST TAKING IT FOR A PERSONAL USE. BUT IT HAS BECOME SUCH A PART OF OUR TREASURE TROVE. AND SO THIS IS THE FIRST TIME WE’VE BEEN ABLE TO UTILIZE IT IN A SPACE, BECAUSE WE HAVE A LARGE SPACE, WE HAVE A SPEED GRAPHIC CAMERA, WHICH WAS THE MAJOR CAMERA HE USED. WE HAVE INFORMATION ON THINGS THAT HE PHOTOGRAPHED. VISITORS SEE THIS, THEY SEE ALL OF THIS AND THEY SEE A TIMELINE WALL, WHICH IS IT’S NOT A LINEAR TIMELINE, BUT IT’S WHAT WE CALL KIND OF A A HODGEPODGE. I’LL SAY THAT KIND OF A MOSAIC OF HIS WHOLE STORY AND JUST HITS OF THINGS THAT HE TOOK AND HOW HE DID IT. NOW, REMEMBER, THIS IS NOT DIGITAL ON A CELL PHONE. HE HAD TO PROCESS ALL OF THIS FILM. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT HE DID BEST WAS TO PROCESS IT FOR BLACK AND BROWN SKIN TONES, BECAUSE THE FILM, NONE OF THE FILM COMPANIES WERE DESIGNED TO USE BLACK AND BROWN SKIN TONES CORRECTLY. AND THAT HAPPENS EVEN TODAY. BUT HE HAD TO DO SOME JOSTLING WHEN HE WAS MAKING SURE THAT THE PHOTOS CAME OUT CORRECTLY, AND HE HAD TO BALANCE WHAT WAS HAPPENING. BECAUSE WE COME IN AN ARRAY OF COLORS AND AND HUES AND COMPLEXIONS, AND EVERYONE, IN HIS OPINION, AS HE SAID, DESERVED TO LOOK LIKE THEY ACTUALLY LOOKED AND TO HAVE THE DIGNITY OF HAVING THEIR EAR OR A CURL OR THE FEATURES THAT THEY HAD BE TRUE TO LIFE. AND SO THAT TOOK HIS ACTUALLY PUTTING HIS HANDS IN SOME OF THE PROCESSING SOLUTIONS AS HE DEVELOPED THE FILM. SO AGAIN, THE EXPERIENCE INSIDE THE TEENIE HARRIS CHARLES TEENIE HARRIS GALLERY IS NOT JUST A MOMENT OF, OOH! AND IN AMAZEMENT AT WHAT HE CAPTURED, BUT IT’S ALSO A CORRECT? EXACTLY. EXPLAIN. WE’VE BEEN VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE THIS SPACE, THIS MUCH SPACE. IT’S A VERY LARGE GALLERY IN THE MUSEUM, AND WE DID THIS INTENTIONALLY SO THAT WE HAVE A LOT OF DESKS AND CHAIRS, AND WE DO PROGRAMING IN THAT SPOT. WE CHANGE OUT SOME OF THE FILM REELS FOR SPECIFIC SUBJECTS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. WE WORKED WITH SCHOOL GROUPS AND VISITORS WHO WANT SPECIFIC CONTENT. SO IT’S NOT LIKE YOUR USUAL MUSEUM GALLERY. IT’S VERY LIVELY, VERY LOTS OF TALKING AND OOH AND OH MY GOD. AND, YOU KNOW, THINGS LIKE THAT. AND YOU SEE A LOT OF THINGS THAT WE DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT WHEN I WAS GROWING UP. LIKE THE AMBULANCE, THE BLACK AMBULANCE, FREEDOM HOUSE GROUP, FREEDOM HOUSE AND EVERYTHING THEY’VE DONE, VISITORS WHO’VE COME TO THE CITY LIKE ROSA PARKS AND THURGOOD MARSHALL, THEY WERE ACTUALLY IN MY DAD’S PULPIT IN HIS CHURCH, AND IT’S IT’S JUST IT’S HE HAS EVERYTHING. BUT SOME OF HIS BEST STUFF IS JUST ARTISTICALLY INTERESTING, LIKE WATER RUNNING DOWN THE STREET OR KIDS PLAYING, OR HE LOVED ANIMALS. HE LOVED DOGS. AND SO IN BETWEEN ALL OF THIS ICONIC PHOTOGRAPHY OF, YOU KNOW, DOCTOR KING AND, AND JESSE JACKSON AND ALL OF THESE PEOPLE, YOU HAVE SOMEBODY LIKE MYSELF, YOU AND I COULD BE PLAYING AS LITTLE KIDS IN ONE OF HIS PHOTOGRAPHS. SO IT’S JUST I LOVE IT ALL. IT’S NOT LIKE WORK AT ALL. YOU’RE WATCHING, FOR THE RECORD, WE’RE BACK RIGHT AFTER THIS. BEFORE WE GO THIS MORNING, A LOOK AT ANOTHER PIECE OF BLACK HISTORY IN PITTSBURGH AS I SPEAK WITH ASHLEY JOHNSON FROM THE NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER. IT WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1907. AND THEN IN 1906, ROBERT LEE VANN BECAME THE EDITOR AND PUBLISHER. AND THAT’S WHEN IT REALLY STARTED TO SHAPE AND MOLD INTO WHAT IT IS, HAS BECOME. AND THEN IN THE LATE 1960S, ROBERTSON STACK TOOK IT OVER, AND THAT’S WHEN WE BECAME THE NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER. AND THAT IS WHAT WE’VE BEEN SINCE LONG. HISTORY OF TELLING STORIES THAT OFTEN HAVE GONE UNTOLD. BEING A CHAMPION FOR THE BLACK COMMUNITY, A VOICE FOR THE BLACK COMMUNITY, AND BEING AN ADVOCATE FOR THE BLACK COMMUNITY. AND YOU CAN SEE MORE OF MY INTERVIEW WITH ASHLEY JOHNSON FROM THE NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER. AS WE CONTINUE TO CELEBRATE BLACK HISTORY MONTH DURING PITTSBURGH’S ACTION NEWS FOUR AT NOON. BUT FOR NOW, THAT’S ALL FOR THIS WEEK’S. FOR THE RECORD, WE’LL SEE YOU NEXT SUNDAY MORNING AT 11 A.M.
4 The Record marks Black History Month in Pittsburgh
Host Sheldon Ingram learns about the history of the annual celebration
Updated: 11:00 AM EST Feb 22, 2026
On Sunday morning, 4 The Record host Sheldon Ingram marked Black History Month with interviews focused on the annual celebration.Ingram spoke with Sam Black, director of the museum of African American History at the Heinz History Center.”Black History Month is actually 100 years old this year, this February,” said Black. “It was founded by Dr. Carter G. Woodson, who was president and founder of the Association for the Study of Negro Life in History in 1926. And he chose February, the second week of February, actually, as the time to celebrate Black history, because that’s the birth month of Abraham Lincoln.”In 1976, what was once a single-week celebration in February became Black History Month, as recognized at the time by President Gerald Ford. Ten years later, Congress enacted a resolution designating February as Black History Month.During Sunday’s show, Ingram also spoke with Charlene Foggie-Barnett, an archivist at the Carnegie Museum of Art, about the legacy of a Black photographer, Charles “Teenie” Harris, in Pittsburgh.”Teenie had a way of capturing people in everyday moments,” said Foggie-Burnett. “And even if it were a celebrity or a major person in politics or anything like that, he still caught them in a way that made them seem so realistic and so approachable. I think that’s one of the keys to how successful he was, as opposed to other photographers, is he not only depicted our everyday life, but the big moments that happened in the Black community. And the big names like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and celebrities like Lena Horne.”WATCH THE FULL EPISODE IN THE VIDEO PLAYER ABOVE
PITTSBURGH —
On Sunday morning, 4 The Record host Sheldon Ingram marked Black History Month with interviews focused on the annual celebration.
Ingram spoke with Sam Black, director of the museum of African American History at the Heinz History Center.
“Black History Month is actually 100 years old this year, this February,” said Black. “It was founded by Dr. Carter G. Woodson, who was president and founder of the Association for the Study of Negro Life in History in 1926. And he chose February, the second week of February, actually, as the time to celebrate Black history, because that’s the birth month of Abraham Lincoln.”
In 1976, what was once a single-week celebration in February became Black History Month, as recognized at the time by President Gerald Ford.
Ten years later, Congress enacted a resolution designating February as Black History Month.
During Sunday’s show, Ingram also spoke with Charlene Foggie-Barnett, an archivist at the Carnegie Museum of Art, about the legacy of a Black photographer, Charles “Teenie” Harris, in Pittsburgh.
“Teenie had a way of capturing people in everyday moments,” said Foggie-Burnett. “And even if it were a celebrity or a major person in politics or anything like that, he still caught them in a way that made them seem so realistic and so approachable. I think that’s one of the keys to how successful he was, as opposed to other photographers, is he not only depicted our everyday life, but the big moments that happened in the Black community. And the big names like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and celebrities like Lena Horne.”
WATCH THE FULL EPISODE IN THE VIDEO PLAYER ABOVE