GHS BLACK HERITAGE EXHIBIT
Wins 2024 AASLH Leadership in History Award of Excellence
NASHVILLE, TN—July 2024—The American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) proudly announces that the Glencoe Historical Society is the recipient of a 2024 Leadership in History Award of Excellence for its current exhibit on Glencoe’s Black Heritage.
This award celebrates the extraordinary effort of the all-volunteer Glencoe Historical Society (GHS), which spent five years diligently working to uncover and document the little-known Black history of the small village of Glencoe, Illinois. The research revealed a remarkable 142-year story of the good, the bad, and the ugly realities of Black life in a predominantly white affluent Chicago suburb.
With the goal of educating residents and developing a greater understanding of how racial diversity impacted Glencoe’s development, GHS unveiled this story in an innovative exhibit opened in September 2022. It spans two buildings and begins with an exploration of factors that drew Blacks to Glencoe as early as 1882. It tells inspiring stories of first families and underscores how Glencoe became an integrated and culturally active community in the early 1900s. It then chronicles the increase in racial tension following World War I which led to the formation of a local syndicate that used an intricate scheme of restrictive covenants and public eminent domain powers to reduce the Black population by more than half and effectively prevent future revitalization for many decades to come.
Other highlights of the exhibit include a presentation about exceptional Black residents who helped break the military color barrier in World War II; a gallery replicating the interior of the local Black church that traces the poignant resilience of its 140-year history; and a special display of oral histories providing first-hand accounts of growing up Black in Glencoe.
The AASLH Awards program, now in its 79th year, is the most prestigious recognition for achievement in the preservation and interpretation of state and local history. This year, AASLH conferred 47 national awards honoring people, projects, exhibits, and publications. The winners represent the best in the field and provide leadership for the future of state and local history. There were only three winners in Illinois. In addition to the small, all-volunteer Glencoe Historical Society, awards were given to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum and the Illinois State Museum.
The AASLH awards program was initiated in 1945 to establish and encourage standards of excellence in the collection, preservation, and interpretation of state and local history throughout the United States. The AASLH Leadership in History Awards not only honor significant achievement in the field of state and local history, but also bring public recognition of the opportunities for small and large organizations, institutions, and programs to make contributions in this arena.