Mahalia Jackson singing in church

Mahalia Jackson singing in church. Paul Henderson. MdHS, HEN.01.10-016.

Gospel singer Mahalia Jackson (1911-1972) became involved with the Civil Rights movement during her friendship with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. She sang at the Prayer for Pilgrimage for Freedom civil rights rally in 1957 on the third anniversary of Brown v. Board decision, and just before Dr. King’s “I Have A Dream” speech in 1963.

Image information:

Mahalia Jackson singing in church
Baltimore, Maryland
February 1949
4 in. x 5 in. acetate negative
Paul Henderson Photograph Collection, HEN.01.10-016
Maryland Historical Society

Who or Where? Do you know the name of the Baltimore church in this photograph? If so, please fill out the online Henderson Collection ID Survey.

Sewing, cleaning, and pressing class at Carver Vocational School

Sewing, cleaning, and pressing class at Carver Vocational School. Paul Henderson. MdHS, HEN.01.05-025.

Established circa 1925, George Washington Carver Vocational [Technical] High School was the first vocational center established in Baltimore that was open to Black students.

Image information:

Sewing, cleaning, and pressing class at Carver Vocational School
1200-1216 West Lafayette Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland
October 1949
Paul Henderson, 1899-1988
4 in. x 5 in. acetate negative
Paul Henderson Photograph Collection, HEN.01.05-025
Maryland Historical Society

1200 West Lafayette Avenue via Google Maps:

Bayard Rustin

Mrs. Bowen Jackson and Bayard Rustin protesting Ford’s Theatre. Paul Henderson. MdHS, HEN.00.A2-155.

Henderson photographed Bayard Rustin when he was in Baltimore protesting the Jim Crow admission policy at Ford’s Theatre. The protest lasted five years and attracted Civil Rights advocates such as Rustin and Paul Robeson, as seen in other Henderson photographs.

Bayard is mostly recognized for organizing the 1963 March on Washington and being a close advisor to Martin Luther King, Jr. Not only was Rustin fighting for his rights as an African American in America, but he was also fighting for his right to live an openly gay lifestyle. To find out more about Rustin, visit the site of a documentary on Rustin at Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin at rustin.org. There is a great trailer for the documentary on the home page.

A cropped version of Henderson’s photograph ran in the Afro-American newspaper on October 29, 1949 with the following caption:
Bayard Rustin, who spent 22 days on the North Carolina chain gang for refusal to obey the jim crow travel laws, is shown as he joined the NAACP picket line at Ford’s Theatre, last week, in protest of its policy of segregation. This is the fourth season of the NAACP’s picketing in Baltimore. Shown left to right, are Mrs. Bowen Jackson and Mr. Rustin. 

The FBI investigated Rustin for his alleged ties to the Communist Party. The documents can be viewed through the FBI Records Vault. FBI documents on other Civil Rights activists can also be viewed.