Library Collection

Our Library Collection

Our library collection contains materials that relate to a broad array of topics in African American studies, as they relate to Houston and the state of Texas. The collection provides access to resources in many formats to support the information needs of scholars and the general public.

Print Materials

The Gregory School collects books about African Americans in Houston, including local organizations, institutions, events or issues. Our collection also includes materials related to the African American experience in America and those that support the library’s archival collections. You can search for books in our collection from HPL’s main library website (https://halan.sdp.sirsi.net/client/en_US/hou/search/advanced?dt=list). Be sure to specify our location (The African American Library at the Gregory School) in your search criteria.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Because we are a special collections library, and not a neighborhood library, our library books do NOT circulate. Patrons cannot take them home, but they can be read in our facility.

Vertical Files

The Gregory School actively maintains Vertical Files of printed resources on an extensive variety of local and regional topics. This ready reference file is a continually growing collection of clippings from newspapers, journals, and magazines relating to the history of African Americans in Houston and Texas. They offer otherwise unavailable ease of access to coverage of local history. The files are divided into four categories: Funeral Programs, Biography, Houston, and Texas. The Texas files include people and events that are native to Texas, but not Houston, such as events taking place in Fort Worth or Dallas.

Newspapers

The majority of our newspapers are on microfilm. These consist of local African American newspapers, such as The Informer and The Forward Times. We also maintain a collection of current newspapers in print form, such as the African-American News & Issues and the Houston Defender.

Journals

Our collection of scholarly journals includes primary sources such as The Journal of Negro History from 1916 and The Negro History Bulletin from 1939.