Langston Heritage Group Collection

The Langston Heritage Group Collection documents African American history in Johnson City, Tennessee, and greater Washington County. It features materials pertaining to African American churches including Bethel Baptist Church, Friendship Baptist Church, Thankful Baptist Church, and St. Paul African Episcopal Zion Church; materials pertaining to schools, such as Langston School and Dunbar School; and community organizations, including Prospect Lodge No. 54 of the Prince Hall Freemasonry fraternity, Pony/Colt League, Progress-Together (Pro-To) Club, Pro-To-ettes, and the Washington County Commission on Alcohol and Drugs (C.A.D.A). Additionally, along with materials related to the West Lawn Cemetery Board of Trustees, photocopies of plats of the cemetery are included.

Of particular note are photographs from Thankful Baptist Church; The Echo, The Langston Voice, and The Langston Spectator yearbooks; the Langston High School record book for faculty meetings; and the Prospect Lodge No. 54 record book. There are also transcripts and field notes (and, in two cases, audio or moving image recordings) for fourteen oral history interviews conducted between 1998-2001 that focus on African-American history in Johnson City. Some of the interviews were conducted in conjunction with the Historic African American Site Preservation Society (HASP).

The collection consists of annuals and yearbooks, correspondence, contracts and deeds, memoranda, financial records, programs, pamphlets and publications, news clippings, photographs, audio and video recordings, maps, letterhead, and realia.