Administrative Information
Acquisition Information
The records of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) were given to the Library of Congress by the NAACP in 1964. Supplements were given by the association and others between 1964 and 2023.
Processing History
Part I of the records of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People was arranged and described in 1972. When processing began, records were arranged according to date groupings (Group I, 1919-1939; Group II, 1940-1955; Group III, 1956-1965, Group IV: 1966-) and therein by series. Over the years as new material was accessioned it was interfiled into these groups. In 1992 this practice was abandoned. The groups were left intact, but changed to “parts” prior to the processing of Part V. The finding aid published in 1972 describing Part I was significantly revised in 2003. Additions to the collection were arranged and described as separate parts between 1988 and 2008. Revisions were made to Parts II and III in 2008.
Parts I through IX of the records were arranged and described by Joseph K. Brooks, Melinda K. Friend, Margaret McAleer, Michael L. Spangler, and Joseph Sullivan with the assistance of Pedro Alvarez, Deloris Butler, Corinne I. Calfee, Connie Cartledge, Trichita M. Chestnut, Paul Colton, Marah deMeule, Pat Doyle, Donna M. Ellis, Nan Thompson Ernst, Angela I. Fritz, Steven G. Fullwood, Alys S. Glaze, Leonard Hawley, Harry G. Heiss, Julie Hunsaker, Laura J. Kells, Patrick M. Kerwin, Steve Larsen, Daniel Lewis, Lisa Madison, Sherralyn McCoy, Brian McGuire, Renée D. McKinney, John R. Monagle, Susie Moody, Sarah Morris, William Parham, Jewel R. Parker, Andrew M. Passett, Christopher A. Peters, Sheri Shepherd, Karen M. Spicher, Marjorie Torney, Pamela Watkins, Tywanna M. Whorley, Lena Wiley, and T. Michael Womack.
Part X of the records were arranged and described in 2023 by Mike Folkerts and Nate Scheible with the assistance of Thomas Bigley, Jake Bozza, Andrea Briggs, Jeffery R. Bryson, Chad Conrady, Queenie Don, Katie Duvall, Maria Farmer, Emily Flint, Chanté Flowers, Colleen Benoit Kim, Elizabeth Livesey, Shandra Morehouse, Kathleen O'Neill, Kimberly Owens, Emilia Schrier, Tammi Taylor, and Rachel Telford.
Digital files were received as part of the NAACP Records on a variety of storage media, each of which was assigned a unique digital ID number. Use the digital ID number to request access copies of the files associated with each media. A description of the standard processes taken on all born digital records can be found in the Processing History Note: Born Digital Collection Material at https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.digital. To recover the data from some optical disks, disk images of these media were created and the files were exported from the disk image. Staff also created disk images of media that were damaged or corrupt and extracted the files from the images. Disk images are retained for preservation purposes and are not available to researchers. Additionally, files for which software was not available were emulated in DOSBox or accessed in the document viewer Quick View Plus to be appraised.
Microfilm from accessions 16,090 and 16,302 has not been integrated into the finding aid. The contents filmed have been retained within the physical folders in the collection and are accessible to researchers.
Some items in the NAACP records have undergone mold remediation.
Transfers
Items have been transferred from the Manuscript Division to other custodial divisions of the Library. Some photographs, broadsides, and posters have been transferred to the Prints and Photographs Division; an inventory of this material is available in their finding aid at https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/eadpnp.pp996001. Audio and video recordings have been transferred to the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center. Some maps have been transferred to the Geography and Map Division; an inventory of this material is available in their finding aid available at https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.gmd/eadgmd.gm021008. Some sheet music has been transferred to the Music Division. Some newsletters, newspapers, and other periodicals have been transferred to the Serial and Government Publications Division. Some books have been transferred to the Rare Book and Special Collections Division and the Library’s general collections. All transfers are identified in these divisions as part of the records of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Patrons are encouraged to contact these divisions in advance of a research visit.
Other Repositories
Given the size and reach of the NAACP, many repositories across the United States house collections related to the NAACP, especially those of local branch chapters and personal papers of notable staff and board members. One of the largest of these collections is the NAACP Region I Records at the Bancroft Library of the University of California, Berkeley.
Related Material
The most notable related collections in the Manuscript Division include the records of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (see https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms015025), and the papers of Herbert Hill (see https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms013130), Arthur B. Spingarn (see https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms997006), and Roy Wilkins (see https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms002001).
Technical Requirements
Digital files were created in a variety of operating systems. The content is primarily text files in .doc, .txt, and .pdf formats, image files in .jpg, .gif, and .tif formats, audio files in .wav and .mp3 formats, video files in .vob and .mpg formats, databases in .db and .mdb formats, and spreadsheets in .xls format.
At the time of processing some text file formats were inaccessible through available software. As a result, these raw versions of the files do not appear as intended in their original hardware and software environments, and often include altered formatting and extraneous characters. Files can be opened with a text editor or with a file viewer tool. Some files require emulation in a DOS environment. This is noted within the container list.
Two computer tapes received with this collection are currently unprocessed due to lack of required hardware and not available for research.
Microfilm
A microfilm edition of part of these papers is available on forty-one reels. Consult reference staff in the Manuscript Division concerning availability for purchase and interlibrary loan. To promote preservation of the originals, researchers are required to consult the microfilm edition.
Online Content
Selected documents from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Records are available on the Library of Congress website at https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms008007.001.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Roman numeral designating the Part followed by a colon and a container, reel, or digital ID number, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Records, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.