Where to Travel for Black History

Black History may get a whole month, but you can actually learn about Black History all year and traveling is a great way to do that. I’ve learned so much by just doing things I normally do on vacation: enjoying art, architecture, fashion, and food. 

If you’re looking to specifically learn about Black History when you travel, there are great places to do so. 

Atlanta, Georgia – There are lots of things to do in Atlanta, including eat delicious food and walking along the river, but the city also played a large part in both the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement. Auburn Avenue and Peachtree Street are famous streets in the city and you can find the majority of landmarks there. Auburn Avenue, famous for Black enterprise, has been called “the richest Negro street in the world.” APEX Museum gives you a look at Black contributions throughout America, Auburn Avenue Research Library is the first in the SE with research dedicated to the study or African-American culture and history, hit up the visitor center of Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Park before venturing out to explore, and The King Center not only houses the tombs of Dr. King and Coretta Scott King, but exhibits about Dr. King. Take a tour down the street at the birth home of MLK, Jr.

Charleston, South Carolina – Once America’s largest slave port now is an exciting city with tons of history. The International African American Museum just opened last summer. It sits on the former Gadsen’s Wharf, where almost half of enslaved people entered this country, and has been turned into a memorial garden. While you’re in the city, plan to visit McLeod Plantation that is a Gullah-Geechee heritage site, the house of blacksmith Phillip Simmons, Charleston City Market, Cabbage Row – where freed slaves lived, and Old City Jail, the slave jail known as “Work House”.

Indianapolis, Indiana – Though you wouldn’t think of them first, Indianapolis has a rich history of early Black settlements, stops along the Underground Railroad, and those that helped make the city what it is today. They are still making their mark on the city through murals, restaurants, and even this Black woman-owned vegan winery. Head to Indiana Avenue, a historically Black neighborhood, which at one time was home to 33 jazz clubs, where jazz greats like Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald and Nat King Cole performed.

New Orleans, Louisiana -  The Big Easy is steeped in Black history, both past and present. You’ll find a long list of Black-owned restaurants run by some of the best chefs in the country. Visit the Louisiana Civil Rights Museum, take a historical walking tour, learn about Mardi Gras culture at Mardi Gras Indians, House of Dance and Feathers, and the Backstreet Cultural Museum, view Black art at The McKenna Museum, and check out Le Musée de f.p.c., a house museum dedicated to the legacy of free people of color. Visit Congo Square on a Sunday and enjoy some live music, and walk along the Mississippi to read markers regarding the slave trade and prominent Black New Orleanians. 

Washington, DC – I never really thought about our Nation’s capital around the time we became an actual nation, but in 1800 just about a quarter of the residents were enslaved Africans, and by the year 1830, most of them were free people. As you stroll the National Mall, you’ll find a ton of historical buildings and museums, but don’t skip seeing the carousel, as it was one of the first places to get rid of segregation, which just so happened to coincide with King’s I Have a Dream speech. His speech took place in front of the Lincoln Memorial, but you’ll also find great places to learn about other Black history at the National Museum of African American History and Culture and The African American Civil War Museum, both of which offer free entry.

This is by no means a full list of places to visit on your travels, but some prominent cities where you can view a lot of important places in a few days or throughout a longer trip. Keep an eye on my Facebook and Instagram for more travel suggestions during the rest of Black History Month. 

Share your favorite city or cities for history, of all kinds, from your travels in the comments.

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