The National Museum of African American History and Culture is the only national museum devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, history, and culture. It was established by an Act of Congress in 2003, following decades of efforts to promote and highlight the contributions of African Americans.

Please be aware that touring the History Galleries in their entirety will take approximately 2 hours, and will require about 1 mile of walking.

Freelon Adjaye Bond/SmithGroupNational Museum of African American History and Culture / Architecture firm Lead designer David Adjaye and lead architect Philip Freelon, together with their architectural team Freelon Adjaye Bond/SmithGroup, won an international competition in April 2009 to design and deliver the museum to the people of the United States.

Established by an Act of Congress on December 16, 2003, after decades of proposals to create a national museum dedicated to African American History and Culture, the museum opened its doors to the public September 24, 2016.

African-American culture, also known as Black American Culture or Black Culture, refers to the cultural expressions of African Americans, either as part of or distinct from mainstream American culture. African-American culture has been influential on American and global worldwide culture as a whole.

the College Museum The first African American museum was the College Museum in Hampton, Virginia, established in 1868. Prior to 1950, there were about 30 museums devoted to African American culture and history in the United States.

Collections. The museum has about 3,000 objects on display from its collection of more than 37,000.

The museum was founded in 1964 by a former Foreign Service officer in Capitol Hill. The collection focused on traditional African art and an educational mission to teach black cultural heritage. To ensure the museum's longevity, the founder lobbied Congress to adopt the museum under the Smithsonian's auspices.

The Black Inventors Hall of Fame Museum is the brainchild of James Howard, a professional industrial designer who has spent more than four decades designing more than 400 commercial products and is listed as an inventor on more than 20 U.S. patents.

African Americans, also known as Afro-Americans or Black Americans, are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from any of the black racial groups of Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of enslaved Africans who are from the United States.

Africa has a rich tradition of arts and crafts. African arts and crafts find expression in a variety of woodcarvings, brass and leather artworks. African arts and crafts also include sculpture, paintings, pottery, ceremonial and religious headgear and dress.

Africa's rich history and culture are so diverse that it varies not only from one country to another but also within regions and countries. The culture of each ethnic group holds together the authentic social fabric of traditional practices and rites, art, music, and oral literature through which identities are built.