Since the mid-1970’s, every American president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. This annual celebration honors the achievements, contributions, culture and history of African Americans and recognizes their central role in U.S. history.
Origins of Black History Month
The story of Black History Month begins in 1915, half a century after the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in the United States.
That September, the Harvard-trained historian Carter G. Woodson and the prominent minister Jesse E. Moorland founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), an organization dedicated to researching and promoting achievements by Black Americans and other peoples of African descent.
Known today as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), the group sponsored a national Negro History Week in 1926, choosing the second week of February to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. The event inspired schools and communities nationwide to organize local celebrations, establish history clubs and host performances and lectures. (via the History Channel).
Events around Nashville
Nashville Public Library
The Nashville Public Library Main Branch, located downtown, has a Civil Rights room that you and your family should visit. It is a space for education and exploration of the Civil Rights Collection. The materials exhibited here capture the drama of a time when thousands of African-American citizens in Nashville sparked a nonviolent challenge to racial segregation in the city and across the South.
In February 1960, a group of students from the city’s four black colleges—American Baptist, Fisk, Meharry, and Tennessee A&I—set out to confront segregation at lunch counters, movie theaters, and other places of public accommodation. The Civil Rights Room overlooks the intersection of Church Street and Seventh Avenue North, where nonviolent protests against segregated lunch counters took place.
The Civil Rights Collection contains various forms of information that pertain to Nashville’s involvement in the Civil Rights Movement.
Also be sure to check out other events throughout the libraries in town, featuring new literature by African Americans, and spotlighted this month.
The National Museum of African American Music
Located downtown, adjacent to Fifth and Broad and across from the Ryman, this museum allows guests to discover the central role that African Americans played in shaping and creating all genres of music throughout history.
Want a totally immersive experience? For an additional dollar, guests can receive an RFID bracelet to register with your email address. As you move through the museum, hold your RFID bracelet over each interactive station’s sensors to save playlists, videos, and more. Download your media when you get home and enjoy your museum visit all over again!
Tennessee State Museum
The Tennessee State Museum is a great educational resource for all events in Tennessee history, and admission is completely free! The Museum is hosting a free day of fun and historical activities for homeschool families on February 10th, 2026. The Homeschool Day event series is designed to meet the unique needs and structure of homeschool students and their field trips. Participants of all ages will experience the Museum’s living history presentations, hands-on learning programs and Children’s Gallery crafts. These educator-led programs will be on rotation every half hour starting at 10:30 a.m. No registration is required.
In February, this free event will focus on Black History Month with gallery tours and interpreters in the Museum’s exhibitions. Join us to learn more about the unique history of Tennessee and the Museum’s many educational resources for homeschool families!
Visitors can also learn about the lives of the African Americans in Early Tennessee and the fight for Civil Rights in the state, from early fighters like Ida B. Wells, to heroic figures of the 60s.
United Street Tours
United Street Tours offers a series of 5-star rated, historical Nashville walking tours that are led and curated by locals. The Nashville walking tours embrace those pieces of black history in Nashville that have been ripped apart and buried beneath the bricks of the mainstream. They will unearth the fragments and piece them together with extraordinary stories that leave you more educated and inspired to become bridge builders in your community.
Nashville History on Tour
Owner, tour guide, historian, and 9th generation Nashvillian, David Ewing, offers several different tours focusing on the unique history of Nashville and how it connects to today. He offers two tours that focus on the history of African Americans here in Nashville and the role they played in leading the Civil Right Movement, shaping the culture and making their mark in the community.
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater at TPAC
Alvin Ailey was a pioneer in the performing arts world through the better part of the 20th century. He transformed the face of modern dance and dedicated his career to uplifting the African American experience and transcending racial barriers. Ailey founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 1958 and continues to remain one of the foremost dance schools in the United States today.
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater returns to TPAC bringing its signature blend of power, grace, and soul-stirring storytelling to the stage. Celebrate the beauty, strength, and spirit of the human experience through movement and artistry that continue to inspire audiences around the world.
Black History Month Expo
The Annual Black History Month Expo takes place on February 28th-March 1st at Nashville Fairgrounds! Over a 100+ Black Owned Businesses, Food Trucks, Games, Installations, Live Music, Vendors + More!
Jefferson Street Sound Museum
The Jefferson Street Sound Museum celebrates the legacy of Jefferson Street’s rhythm & blues scene, which began in the 1930s. The museum not only showcases the musical contributions of the African American community but also preserves the stories and artifacts from an era when Jefferson Street was a bustling hub of creativity and cultural exchange. Visitors can explore exhibits ranging from vintage photographs and instruments to personal memorabilia of legendary musicians like Little Richard, Ruth Brown, Nat King Cole, Duke Ellington, and Ella Fitzgerald. (via VisitMusicCity.com).
Nashville Jazz Workshop
The Nashville Jazz Workshop has come to serve as a gathering place for musicians, students, and jazz fans, offering world-class jazz education and performance in supportive and creative environments. Artists have developed at the Jazz Workshop, recorded CDs, and have become favorites on the local jazz scene. Student groups have emerged from the Workshop and found performance venues, adding to the availability and diversity of jazz in the community. (via VisitMusicCity.com). Check out their community events page for a list of upcoming gatherings for jazz enthusiasts of all ages!
Interesting Facts
- Nashville is home to four Historically Black Colleges & Universities that gave educational opportunities for many African Americans who were once legally denied an education – American Baptist College, Fisk University, Meharry Medical College, and Tennessee State University.
- Fisk Jubilee Singers- Fisk treasurer George Leonard White assembled a group of nine members in 1871 and booked a tour to raise money for the school. It introduced the world to music Black Americans made for themselves. They had raised $50,000 for the university and with it, they constructed Jubilee Hall, the South’s first permanent structure built for the education of Black students, the Fisk Memorial Chapel, completed in 1892, and more. A century and a half later, the group still survives, rejuvenating itself with new student members each year. After hearing the Fisk Jubilee Singers perform at a show in Great Britain in 1873, Queen Victoria coined the title “Music City.”
- In 1951, Nashville lawyers Z. Alexander Looby and Robert Lillard were the first African Americans to be elected to the city council since 1911. Looby also represented the students arrested during the Nashville sit-ins.
- Jefferson Street was the heart of Nashville’s African-American community. From the 1940s to 1960s, Jefferson Street attracted musical artists from all over. Artists like Jimi Hendrix and Ray Charles played at the clubs Del Morocco, Club Baron and Club Steal-Away. And just over on Charlotte, Etta James recorded a live album at New Era Club.
- In 1893, Dr. Georgia E. Lee Patton became the first African American woman to graduate from Meharry Medical College, making her the first African American woman to become a licensed surgeon and physician in Tennessee.
- The first Nashville sit-in took place at Harvey’s Department Store — formerly located at Sixth and Church — and was led by civil rights activist James Lawson.
- On May 10, 1960, Nashville became the first city in the segregated South to desegregate its lunch counters, thanks to the many efforts of civil rights activists like Diane Nash.
- In January of 1794 an enslaved man, Robert “Black Bob” Renfro, was permitted to sell liquor, making him Nashville’s first African American entrepreneur. He would remain legally enslaved until Nov. 10, 1801.
- While in high school, Oprah Winfrey received a full scholarship to Tennessee State University after winning an oratory contest. She began working in the local media and became the youngest and first African American female news anchor on Nashville’s WLAC-TV — now WTVF-TV.
- In 1992, Jesse Russell received a patent for his work in the area of digital cellular base station design, inventing the digital cellphone.
Ways to Get Kids Involved (via the Boys & Girls Club)
Black History Month Activities for Toddlers and Younger Children
- Incorporate great books on Black history into your reading time – for toddlers, they don’t need to be history-related, but look to add books to your shelf that showcase the everyday lived experiences of Black kids and families.
- Lots of museums, libraries and authors also offer readings of children’s books locally and on YouTube.
Black History Month Activities for Elementary Students and Middle Schoolers
- Make a “Who Am I?” bulletin board featuring photos of historic Black Americans that open or flip to information about each person – shoutout to Boys & Girls Clubs of West-Central Wisconsin for this great idea!
- Get kids moving with this quick YouTube intro to beginner step. Step dance or stepping originates from African dance and can get active learners on their feet.
- Have students make colorful mosaics inspired by artist Alma Thomas.
Black History Month Activities for High School Students
- Have teens select a historic poem, song or speech by a Black icon and rewrite it for modern day.
- Watch a film that highlights the vital role of Black Americans in history – such as “Hidden Figures” – and have a discussion afterward.
- Black history evokes the fight for human rights and voting rights. Teach young people about the importance of casting their ballot and planning to register to vote when they turn 18.
- Research local community plans for celebrating Black History Month and see how your teen can help support efforts.
