AAHRC
African American Historical Research and Consulting
It all begins here! AAHRC - African American Historical Research and Consulting is here to provide you with the administrative and planning assistance needed to develop African American family histories, oral histories, exhibits, digital humanities projects, grants for nonprofit organizations, virtual tours for historic sites, historic African American landscapes surveys, structure reports, historical markers, National Register survey projects, and historic structure reports. We also provide Acting and Interim Executive Director Services for organizations and museums that represent African American history and culture. Fill out the form below to get started.
About Us
At African American Historical Research and Consulting, LLC (AAHRC), we are dedicated to uncovering, preserving, and sharing the rich and interconnected histories of people of African descent worldwide. Our work aims to span the African diaspora, embracing the stories of African Americans, Africans, and those from the Caribbean, South America, and Britain. By showcasing these global connections, we illuminate the profound impact of African heritage on culture, politics, and society across the world.
As the 2024 Consulting Award recipients from the National Council on Public History, AAHRC is recognized for its excellence and innovation in advancing public history through impactful research and consulting. This prestigious honor underscores our commitment to preserving the legacies of the African diaspora with integrity, scholarship, and passion. Additionally, as a certified minority business supplier, we take pride in fostering diversity and equity in every project we undertake.
Our mission is to provide expert research, consulting, and educational services to bring untold stories to light, deepen understanding of shared histories, and celebrate the resilience and achievements of the African diaspora. Whether tracing genealogies, documenting historical narratives, curating exhibitions, or developing public history initiatives, we connect the past with the present to inspire future generations.
We partner with academic institutions, cultural organizations, museums, and individuals globally to create projects that honor the legacies of those who paved the way. From preserving African American church histories to exploring the transatlantic connections of enslaved people and their descendants, we ensure these narratives are preserved and shared widely.
Through our work, AAHRC strengthens the collective understanding of African and African-descended peoples’ contributions worldwide while empowering communities to honor and preserve their heritage.
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Current Clients
Decatur Scottsboro Boys
Civil Rights Museum
Acting Executive Director Services
AAHRC is pleased to offer professional services as Acting Executive Director for the Decatur Scottsboro Boys Civil Rights Museum in Alabama. AAHRC was founded with the intent of helping African American organizations and museums demonstrate stability during periods of transition and unexpected interruptions in leadership. We have the experience, knowledge, and skills needed to fill the void and ensure operations continue to run smoothly, and the Decatur Scottsboro Boys Civil Rights Museum remains compliant with federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and executive orders authorizing historic preservation.
Fisk University Galleries
3D Virtual Tours
From October 6, 2022 to February 12, 2023, Fisk University Galleries presented "African Modernism in America, 1947 - 1967" as the first major traveling exhibition to examine the complex connections between modern African artists and American patrons, artists, and cultural organizations amid the interlocking histories of civil rights, decolonization, and the Cold War. AAHRC captured and preserved the exhibit as a 3D virtual tour before its departure. We are still working with the gallery to add labels, comments, and interactive media but the exhibit is online and available for patrons to visit, browse, and enjoy now!
Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church and Parsonage Museum
3D Virtual Tours - Valued Client
The Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church and Parsonage in Montgomery, Alabama, appear as they did when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. served as pastor from 1954-1960. AAHRC worked with church leaders to create 3D virtual tours for the interpretive center, church, and parsonage. This project allowed the church’s tourism ministry to not only survive, but thrive amid the COVID-19 pandemic. AAHRC continues to host, maintain, and update the virtual tour to offer researchers, teachers, and students a self-guided virtual experience of the Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church, Interpretive Center, and Parsonage. The virtual tour is featured on both SouthernLiving.com and CivilRightsTrail.com.
AAHRC EXPERIENCE
Bold 4 Christ Ministries, Original Church of God, & L. M. Swanson's Nursing Home in Gallatin, Sumner County, Tennessee
Historical Markers
Bold 4 Christ Ministries hired AAHRC to write the text, provide the references, and recommend placement of a state historical marker for the Original Church of God or Sanctified Church and L. M. Swanson's Nursing Home in Gallatin, Sumner County, Tennessee. On behalf of Bold 4 Christ Ministries, AAHRC worked with the current pastor, church members, and the Tennessee Historical Commission to successfully navigate the competitive process and meet the specific requirements and timeframe for state approval of a historical marker. The historical marker dedication ceremony was held for the Gallatin Original Church of God's Homecoming on Sunday, August 27, 2023.
Tennessee State Museum
Consulting Services
The Tennessee State Museum received a grant from the Civil War National Heritage Area to develop a new traveling trunk in their hands-on "Tennessee Traveling Trunk" program for 8th grade students with a focus on the history of Black Tennesseans during the Reconstruction period. We were hired as consultants to provide guidance on the proper interpretation and to bring fresh ideas to the forefront on new stories to tell.
Ransom Temple Cumberland Presbyterian Church
Church Histories
Ransom Temple Cumberland Presbyterian Church needed a thorough investigation of its past through primary and secondary sources to present an engaging yet accurate account of the historical phenomenon involved with the evolution and development of the church.
Client Testimonial
The family of the late Rev. Ralph David and Juanita Abernathy
Genealogical Research and Historical Video Presentation
As a close friend and mentor of Martin Luther King, Jr., Rev. Ralph David Abernathy played a key role in the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the modern civil rights movement.
AAHRC conducted genealogical research for the Abernathy family and created a historical video presentation in honor of Rev. Abernathy for the family's reunion prior to the passing of its matriarch Juanita Abernathy in 2019.
"The value of preserving my family's history is priceless. Thank you AAHRC for researching, recording, preserving, and sharing my family's roots, plus celebrating both my father and mother's legacy!"
- Kwame L. Abernathy, J.D.
Rev. Ralph D. Abernathy: Ain't Nobody Gonna Turn Me Around (1)
Are you interested in learning more about us?
Address:
1718 Church Street, #331332, Nashville, Tennessee 37203-9998
Email:
Phone:
615-942-0890
