NMAAHC: National Museum of African American History and Culture

"I realized the power of this document when I met an elderly black woman in South Africa who asked, 'Do you have your papers?' She was asking me if I carried a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation with me," he said.

For Bunch, an important message is that African Americans have struggled for freedom over a long period of time, with the two anniversaries offering bookends to the continuum between 1863 and 1963.

He is particularly excited that the exhibition will feature a copy of the 13th Amendment, of which only a handful of signed commemorative copies survive. On loan from David Rubenstein, a member of the Smithsonian Board of Regents, this copy was originally given to Speaker of the House of Representatives Schuyler Colfax, Jr., who was a lifelong abolitionist and instrumental in pushing the resolution through Congress. Adopted in December 1865, the 13th Amendment abolished slavery.

Another featured object in the exhibition is a small, palm-sized reading copy of the Emancipation Proclamation, produced en masse in December 1862 for distribution among Union soldiers.

Nancy Bercaw, NMAH curator, described the booklet as "something simple used by an ordinary person and turned into a national treasure."

For her, the exhibition shows a remarkable story of people coming together to push for changes and how freedom in American society moves from the bottom up. A scholar of emancipation studies, she enjoyed choosing, researching, and writing about the objects for the exhibition, her first.

Bunch stressed that while 1863 is the year celebrated for the end of slavery, the Emancipation Proclamation was the result of several years of determined efforts to end slavery. Tens of thousands of enslaved African Americans used the war to escape their bondage. As the Union Army drove into the Confederacy, enslaved people stole away and crossed Union lines. Within two years, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation and made ending slavery government policy.

Complementing the story of the Emancipation Proclamation is the story of the March on Washington and the modern Civil Rights Movement, which reminded Americans of the nation's founding principles of liberty and equality for all. With segregation and discrimination still enforced in some states 100 years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the March on Washington raised awareness that these founding principles remained unfulfilled. Harry Rubenstein, NMAH curator, said the centerpiece for this section is a large projection screen showing images from the March that encapsulates the day. From people arriving early in the day through the national leaders speaking at the Lincoln Memorial and to the final moments, the day's events are captured in this short film.

"Visitors will be able to see in this exhibition the long stretch of events that fostered social justice in America," said Rubenstein. "These pivotal anniversaries show the power of individuals to change American history."

Scheduled to open on December 14, 2012, the exhibition will be on view through September 15, 2013, in the NMAAHC temporary gallery on the second floor of the National Museum of American History. It will be accompanied by a new website and a series of public programs and lectures that invite visitors to examine the social and political currents that shaped these events and to delve more deeply into their meaning to contemporary Americans.

And even though another eight to nine months will pass before the building starts to rise, we can see the work that is being done at our construction site. Construction crews are digging deep into the ground, removing rocks and creating a slurry wall to protect the building from the water of the old Tiber Creek that runs below ground under the National Mall. In early 2013, the steel will start to rise and the landscape will change. And in 2015 we will be opening our doors on our finished building on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. None of this could have been accomplished without all of you — our Charter Members who have supported us throughout this endeavor.

I am often asked to identify my favorite artifact in the NMAAHC collections; my answer is the Butler Medal, the only medal created by the U.S. government to honor African American soldiers. Commissioned by Civil War General Benjamin F. Butler in 1864, this medal was awarded to 200 soldiers who proved their worth on the battlefield. Today, many of their names are unknown, but the National Museum of African American History and Culture will ensure that their story is told.

I invite you to watch the progress of the building through our construction camera (see Construction Update article for more information), and visit our website for new features and updates. What a gift you have given by helping to birth this Museum. Thank you for your unwavering support.

The railroad car is a donation from Pete Claussen, chairman and CEO of Gulf & Ohio Railways and a member of the Smithsonian National Board. An avid amateur historian and train buff, Claussen feels that this railroad car can tell many stories about segregation laws and how railroads interpreted them.

"For more than 30 years, railroads had to understand the laws of every state that their railways passed through, as well as the federal laws, all of which varied greatly," said Claussen. "And even if you — as a black person — could afford a first-class ticket, your accommodations were not always exactly the same as the people traveling in the white compartment."

"This railroad car shows how complex segregation could be," he added.

Because the car weighs 80 tons, the NMAAHC designers and architects are planning to reinforce the gallery floor so the entire railroad car can be displayed in the Museum. Due to its weight and size, it will have to be lowered into place in the very early stage of museum construction.

"We will bring in the car when the floor is finished, but not the walls," said Michèle Gates Moresi, NMAAHC curator of collections. "After we bring the car into the exhibition space, we'll finish the walls and the rest of the Museum."

Funded in part by a $222,128 grant from the National Park Service's Save America's Treasures program, the conservation work will restore the railroad car to how it looked in the early 20th century. When complete, the railroad car will be transported to Washington, D.C., on top of a flatbed truck. NMAAHC is soliciting additional funds required to match the grant and cover the transportation costs.

Claussen, a former member of the National Museum of American History board, has known Director Bunch for many years. Bunch was interested in having a Pullman car as part of the Museum because the Pullman Company was the largest single employer of African American men in the 1920s. From the 1870s through the 1960s, tens of thousands worked for Pullman as sleeping-car porters. Working long hours on the road, porters earned better wages than most African Americans, but degrading working conditions helped lead to the founding of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters in 1925. This union was instrumental in advocating equal employment and civil rights, particularly under the leadership of A. Philip Randolph, one of the organizers of the 1963 March on Washington.

When Bunch contacted Claussen asking if he knew where the museum could find a Pullman porter car, Claussen responded by "telling him that I had something even more interesting than that — an actual car that had been used in the era of segregation."

Bunch and Moresi then visited Claussen to see the railroad car at its current location in the yards of the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and accepted this generous and unique donation for the museum's collections.

The architects' vision for the building not only reaches back in time to use elements from traditional African art and architecture, but it also reaches forward to incorporate sustainable elements that will result in LEED Gold certification. Sustainable elements include hot water panels on the roof and a geothermal groundwater system. When completed, the Museum will demonstrate the best practices in environmental design.

As the building rises, NMAAHC staff members continue to grow our collections, create topical exhibitions, and produce innovative educational programming while also raising the funding necessary to make this a reality. The total amount to build the museum is $500 million with the U.S. federal government providing $250 million. The NMAAHC is responsible for raising the other $250 million from private resources. As of July 2012, we have raised approximately $100 million from corporations, foundations, and private individuals from across the country, with donations ranging from $5 to $1 million and more.

"Since this project occurred in Black History Month, the children had been working on presentations about famous African Americans," said Wright. "And when they realized that the new Museum would also showcase famous African Americans and their contributions to the United States and the world, they decided to create a place in their classroom where everyone could see their presentations and projects."

At the end of the fund-raising drive, Wright counted the dimes — which totaled $175 — and then Stewart and his wife added their contribution for a grand total of $400. The funds, accompanied by a handmade card from the student fund-raisers, arrived at NMAAHC in May 2012.

Wright said that in her 23 years as a teacher, she had never done a project like this. "Every child was so committed and dedicated to bringing in the dimes. I so enjoyed seeing their excitement and their faces light up. They learned so much about themselves and the world."