African Americana

10 1/2 x 13 1/2 in. silver gelatin photograph on 13 5/8 x 16 1/4 in. mount (some edge wear to mount). A composite portrait of 28 firefighters, each identified in the negative, incl. 4 African American subjects. 

Unlike many other US cities, Danville, IL, had an all African American fire company by the late 1800s. Some of the earliest firefighters of color came from other states to join the Danville Fire Department. Firefighter historians Rev. Ron Ballew and Chuck Milligan were able to locate a number of African Americans that served in Danville between the late 19th-early 20th centuries, incl. 3 of the 4 men pictured here: Dallas Dudley Morris (b. 1878) of Shelby, AL; John Chavis (b. 1861) of Chambersburg, IN; and James Cunningham (b. 1864), of Mansfield, TN. Cunningham worked previously as a police officer, and this experience led him to a roll serving as captain for several years. (Information obtained from History of Black Firefighters website, January 2022.)