18 Black Museums To Visit Across The U.S.

By Keyaira Boone ·April 30, 2021April 30, 2021

Black Museums are a great place to connect with your history, discover different cultures, and fall in love with works of art.

In addition to featuring pieces created by famed artists and curators like Lorna Simpson, Ashley James, and Bisa Butler, museums also give a platform to emerging artists.

Black Museums also provide access to rare archival materials that establish a cultural legacy specific to unique regions, movements, and time periods.

Whether you’re looking to learn about obscured legacies or simply kill a Saturday afternoon they’re a great place to visit.

See 18 Black Museums you can hit across the country today below.

01National Museum of African American MusicThis museum is dedicated to preserving and celebrating the many music genres created, influenced, and inspired by African Americans.

Learn More 02National Underground Railroad Freedom CenterThis Harlem jewel has over 1000 collections and is part of the New York Public Library system.

Learn More 03Schomburg Center for Research in Black CultureThis Harlem jewel has over 1000 collections and is part of the New York Public Library system.

04Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & CultureThis museum offers 82,000 square feet of Maryland history.

Learn More 05The Whitney Plantation MuseumThis is the only plantation tour in Louisiana dedicated to centering the personal histories and experiences of enslaved people.

Learn More 06The Whitney Plantation MuseumThis is the only plantation tour in Louisiana dedicated to centering the personal histories and experiences of enslaved people.

Learn More 07The National Great Blacks In Wax MuseumThis unique option presents life-like Black historical figures.

Learn More 08APEX Museum This museum of Black history is located on Atlanta’s historic Auburn Avenue.

Learn More 09DuSable Museum of African American HistoryOriginally named the Ebony Museum of Negro History and Art, this cultural institution has been serving the Chicago area for more than 60 years.

Learn More 10The African American Museum in PhiladelphiaThis Smithsonian affiliated Institution houses four distinct galleries of Black art and history.

Learn More 11Museum Of The African DiasporaThis San Francisco museum exhibits contemporary art from artists across the African diaspora.

Learn More 12The Charles H. Wright Museum Of African American HistoryThis Midwestern museum is home to 35,000 artifacts including rare documents that reflect the role Black people played in Detroit’s labor movement.

Learn More 13Trap MuseumGet in touch with the culture that supplied your farmer’s market playlist at the Miami or Atlanta location of the Trap Music Museum.

Learn More 14Black History Museum And Cultural Center of VirginiaThe Black History Museum & Cultural Center celebrates the accomplishments and legacies of Black Virginians.

Learn More 15New Orleans African American MuseumThis museum is located in the heart of the Southern city’s Treme district.

Learn More 16Studio Museum in HarlemThis staple of Harlem’s cultural scene was founded in 1969.

Learn More 17National Museum of African American History and CultureDubbed the “Blacksonian,” this D.C. museum attempts to successfully display the “past, present, and future” of Black Americans.