On September 24th, 2016, the 19th Smithsonian Museum opened its doors. And finally, last week, I visited the National African American Museum of History and Culture (NMAAHC).

My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Location: Italian Lake, Harrisburg, PA. Wearing: Vince Camuto Ruched Sequined Sheath Black Dress, ASOS Oversized Faux Fur Scarf in Chocolate similar here, Metallic Bronze Leather Gloves from Portolano Sample sale similar here, Metallic Heels from Mui Mui sample sale similar here, Chanel Quilted Mini from Fashionphile similar here.

Since my invitation to the dedication ceremony got lost in the mail, I settled for getting museum passes for four people online back in September for December 21st at 12:30 p.m.

Before its opening, the museum distributed 705,000 passes for admission through December 31st. If you haven’t had the chance to go, get ready. On January 4th, 2017, at 9:00 a.m., timed passes will be available for April 2017.

The institution was 100 years in the making. Check out the fantastic timeline below:

Quick Facts on The National African American Museum of History and Culture:

♦  Located on the National Mall near the Washington Monument
♦  The Museum has 85,000 square feet of exhibition space
♦  37,000 Artifacts
♦  100,000 individuals have become charter members
♦  David Adjaye  was the Ghanaian-British lead male designer 
♦  Zena Howard was the African-American female lead architect
♦  The Museum has five floors above ground and four below History Galleries (There was a long line here)
♦  12 Exhibitions
♦  13 different interactive with 17 stations
♦  183 videos housed on five floors
♦   Mobile App Available
♦  Sweet Home Café
♦  Museum Shop

My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The Museum Map.

We started on the upper level at the Culture Galleries since there was at least a 30 to 40-minute wait to get into the History Galleries on the underground levels. The Culture Galleries highlighted “cultural expressions” like hair, clothing, food, dance, and language—as well as visual arts, theater, and lasting musical influences.

My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Ann Lowe, dress designer.

Remember Ann Lowe’s visit to New York City’s Museum at FIT from last week? Above is a picture of  Ann with one of her designs.

My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Another Ann Lowe layout.
My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Chuck Barry’s  1973 red Cadillac El Dorado.
My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Prince, James Brown, and an excellent old turntable for spinning tunes.
My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Opera Singer Marian Anderson’s Orange and Black Gown that she wore to the 1939 Lincoln Memorial Concert.
My First Visit to the National Museum of History and Culture. African American Jazz Singer, Ella Fitzgerald’s Memorabilia.
My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Lady Sings the Blues Ensemble was worn by actress Diana Ross in 1972.
My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Bernadine Anderson was the first African-American make-up artist to gain membership in the Hollywood Labor Union.

As you can see, I spent most of my time in the Cultural Gallery. Perhaps all the childhood memories captivated my attention here. There were so many firsts that I could personally remember.

My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Old Newspaper Press.
My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The Power of the Press.
My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. John H. Johnson publications: Ebony and Jet magazines.
My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The Philadelphia Tribune is the oldest continually publishing African-American newspaper in the United States.

I grew up reading the Philadelphia Tribune.

My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Old Newspaper Press.
My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.   A business owner in Harlem.

Community Galleries: This level focused on how African Americans impacted the community through civic work, sports, and entrepreneurship.  

Explore More Level: There are many interactive stations and the opportunity to explore your family history center. Many people were in this area. I spent the least amount of time on this level.

History Galleries:  We probably should have started at this level, but there was a 30 to 40-minute wait. So, we decided to start at the top level and work our way back down to this level. This area gives a comprehensive story on slavery beginning in the year 1400. From what I saw, a good part of the day must be devoted to going through the entire gallery. I snapped a few sobering photos.

What I didn’t get to see that I heard about:
♣  Black Fashion Museum Collection that includes dress sewn by Rosa Parks 
♣  Emmet Till’s coffin
♣  Michael Jackson’s fedora
♣  Lena Horne’s fur-collared green velvet dress she wore in Stormy Weather.

We sampled the Sweet Home Café on the Concourse floor for light snacks. If one was looking to sample southern comfort food, the restaurant offered many choices to satiate your appetite. 

My first visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture was next to the Washington Monument.

Because our stay was limited to four hours (so we could make our dinner reservations in Little Italy, in Baltimore at Aldo’s), I plan to electronically order timed passes on January 4th for a time in April.

My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Overall, it was an excellent educational experience. I was happy to see all the young, old, black, and white people taking their time going through the museum. I saw people being polite and patient if you were taking a photo or reading the captions.

My First Visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Entrance to the History Galleries examines the beginning of slavery and the journey to its end.

Finally, my visit to the NMAAHC is not complete. I need to return to finish the History Galleries. I hope your 2017 plans include a visit to the newest Smithsonian.

And: