About
Why This Archive Exists
History is not neutral. Every archive reflects choices about what to preserve, what to amplify, and whose story is worth telling. This one is explicit about its choices.
Our Mission
To Restore the Full Record
The Black History Vault exists because the standard historical record is incomplete. The contributions, resistance, and intellectual traditions of African and African-descended peoples have been systematically minimized, distorted, or erased from mainstream historical education — not by accident, but by design.
Our mission is to restore that record. We publish long-form articles, historical timelines, and biographical profiles that center Black agency, Black thought, and Black achievement across five millennia of documented history — from the ancient civilizations of the Nile Valley to the independence movements of the twentieth century to the ongoing struggles of the present day.
We write for a general audience, but we do not simplify. We believe that readers of all ages and backgrounds are capable of engaging with complex history, and we refuse to condescend. Every article is written to the standard we would want applied to our own ancestors: with rigor, with care, and with the full weight of their humanity intact.
What We Stand For
Our Principles
Primary Sources First
We prioritize firsthand accounts, original documents, and the words of historical actors themselves. When we quote, we quote accurately and in context.
Scholarly Rigor
Our articles draw on peer-reviewed scholarship, archival research, and the work of historians who have dedicated their careers to these subjects.
Global Scope
Black history is not American history. Our archive spans the African continent, the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe, and the broader diaspora.
Accessible to All
We write for the curious general reader — not for specialists. No prior knowledge is assumed. Every article stands on its own.
Editorial Standards
How We Work
We cite our sources
Every factual claim in our articles is traceable to a credible source. We name the historians, the archives, and the primary documents we rely on. We do not publish unsourced assertions.
We acknowledge uncertainty
History is contested. Dates are disputed. Interpretations differ. When scholars disagree, we say so. We do not present one interpretation as settled fact when the record is genuinely ambiguous.
We correct errors
When we get something wrong — and we will — we correct it promptly and transparently. Corrections are noted in the article with the date of the change.
We do not sensationalize
The history we cover is already extraordinary. We do not need to exaggerate, dramatize, or distort it. We let the record speak for itself.
We center Black voices
Where possible, we prioritize the scholarship of Black historians, the testimony of Black witnesses, and the words of Black historical actors. This is not a limitation — it is a correction of a long-standing imbalance.
Key Sources
The Scholarship We Build On
The Black History Vault draws on a rich tradition of African and African-American scholarship. The following represent some of the foundational works and institutions that inform our editorial approach.
Foundational Texts
W.E.B. Du Bois, The Souls of Black Folk (1903) and Black Reconstruction in America (1935); C.L.R. James, The Black Jacobins (1938); Cheikh Anta Diop, The African Origin of Civilization (1974); John Henrik Clarke, African World Revolution (1991)
Modern Scholarship
Henry Louis Gates Jr., The African Americans (2013); Ibram X. Kendi, Stamped from the Beginning (2016); Saidiya Hartman, Lose Your Mother (2007); Robin D.G. Kelley, Freedom Dreams (2002)
Archives & Institutions
The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture (New York); The National Museum of African American History and Culture (Washington, D.C.); The British Library African Collections; The African Studies Library at Boston University
Journals
The Journal of African History; The Journal of Black Studies; Transition Magazine; African Affairs; The Black Scholar
The Archive Is Growing
New articles, timelines, and profiles are added regularly. Every addition is reviewed against the editorial standards above before publication.
Explore the Archive