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Exhibition Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words

Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words

Exhibition Items

Early Life and Activism

  • Rosa Parks birthplace in Tuskegee, Alabama, ca. 1916. Postcard. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (001.00.00)
  • James McCauley (1886–1962), 1925. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (002.00.00)
  • Anderson McCauley (1849–1917), Rosa Parks’s paternal grandfather, ca. 1900. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (003.00.00)
  • Louisa Collins McCauley (ca. 1875–1941), Rosa Parks’s paternal grandmother. Photograph, ca. 1910. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (004.00.00)
  • Leona Edwards (1887–1979) and Cousin Beatrice Brooks, 1925. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (005.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks. Early Childhood Incidents and Experiences, n.d. Autograph manuscript. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (006.00.00)  
  • Sylvester J. McCauley (1915–1977), Rosa’s brother in WW II, between 1942 and 1946. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (007.00.00)
  • Holy Bible, with a register of family births, marriages, and deaths. C. H. Robinson and Co., 1900. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (008.00.00)
  • Reverend and Mrs. Dominick (Aunt Addie McCauley), ca. 1910. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (009.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks. Rosa Parks recalls childhood encounter with a white boy who threatened to hit her, ca. 1956–1958. Autograph manuscript. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (010.00.00)
  • Galatas to Rosa McCauley, April 3, 1929. Autograph letter. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (011.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks with a friend. Photograph, between 1920 and 1930. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (012.00.00)   
  • Rosa Parks. Account of a near rape, ca. 1956-1958. Autograph manuscript. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (082.00.00, 082.00.01) 
  • Raymond Parks (1903–1977), Montgomery, Alabama, ca. 1947. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (013.00.00)
  • Raymond Parks’s Barber’s License, Montgomery, Alabama, 1957. Printed document. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (014.00.00)  
  • Thomas, photographer. Rosa Parks (1913–2005), ca. 1950. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (015.00.00)
  • Dr. P. A. Stephens to NAACP Secretary Walter White concerning the Scottsboro Boys, April 2, 1931. Autograph letter. NAACP Records, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (016.00.00)  
  • Assorted labor and political buttons, 1937–1947 and undated. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (017.00.00, 017.01.00-017.05.00)
  • Committee for Equal Justice for Mrs. Recy Taylor. A Story of Unequal Justice: The Woman Next Door. . . , ca. 1945.Brochure. NAACP Records, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (018.00.00)  
  • NAACP Montgomery Branch meeting, ca. 1947. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (019.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks to Leona McCauley, July 7, 1948. Autograph letter. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (020.00.00)
  • Ladies Auxiliary to the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. Souvenir Program Honoring Mr. Edgar Daniel Nixon. Monday, February 15, 1954. The Bethel Baptist Church. Rev. H. H. Hubbard, Pastor. Montgomery, Alabama. 8:00 P.M. Program. Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters Records, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (021.00.00)
  • James McCauley to Rosa Parks, May 15, 1950. Autograph letter. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (022.00.00, 022.00.01)  

The Bus Boycott

  • Ida Berman, photographer. Mrs. Septima Clark and Rosa Parks at Highlander Folk School, Monteagle, Tennessee, 1955. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (023.00.00)
  • Emmett Till and his mother, Mamie Till Bradley, ca. 1950. Photograph. NAACP Records, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (024.00.00)
  • Transcript of Rosa Parks’s Trial, December 5, 1955. Document. Frank Johnson Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (025.00.00)
  • W. C. Patton, NAACP Alabama Field Secretary, to NAACP Executive Director Roy Wilkins and Director of Branches Gloster B. Current concerning the Montgomery Bus Situation, December 19, 1956.  Memorandum. NAACP Records, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (087.00.00, 087.00.01)
  • Police Report, December 1, 1955, page 1 and 2; Illustration of bus where Rosa Parks sat; and Fingerprint Card of Rosa Parks; Facsimiles. Civil Case 1147 Browder, et al v. Gayle, et. al; U.S. District Court for Middle District of Alabama, Northern (Montgomery) Division Group 21, Records of the District Court of the United States National Archives and Records Administration-Southeast Region, East Point, Georgia, Courtesy of the National Archives (088.00.00, 088.00.01, 089.00.00, 090.00.00)
  • E. D. Nixon escorting Rosa Parks to the courthouse in Montgomery, Alabama, to attend the trial of Martin Luther King, Jr., March 1956. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (026.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks to “friend” concerning racial segregation in Montgomery, Alabama, between 1955 and 1956. Autograph letter. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (027.00.00)
  • Raymond and Rosa Parks’s 1955 Income Tax Return, 1956. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (028.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks. Reflections on her arrest for refusing to surrender her seat to a white passenger, December 1, 1955, ca 1956–1958. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (029.00.00, 029.00.01, 029.01.02, 029.01.03)
  • Rosa Parks. Instructions to car pool drivers and passengers, 1955–1956. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (030.00.00, 030.00.01)
  • Montgomery Fair date book, 1955–1956. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (031.00.00)
  • Interview of E. D. Nixon by Aubrey Williams, ca. 1956. Typescript annotated by Rosa Parks. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (032.00.00, 032.00.01)
  • Rosa Parks. Montgomery Bus Boycott—Chronology of Events, ca. 1958. Autograph notes. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (033.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks to her mother Leona McCauley, May 19, 1956. Autograph letter. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (034.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks. Notes regarding the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Browder v. Gayle, ca. November 13, 1956. Autograph notes. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (035.00.01)
  • NAACP Atlantic City Branch flyer advertising a lecture by Rosa Parks, November 16, 1956.  NAACP Records, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (036.00.00)
  • Blue geometric pattern dress with center zipper front. Hand sewn dress, n.d. Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (037.00.00)

Detroit 1957 and Beyond

  • Receipt from Howard Van Lines for move to Detroit, August 5, 1957. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (038.00.00)
  • Sylvester and Daisy McCauley’s children, between 1950 and 1965. Shown are Mary (standing), William Patrick (baby), Michael, Shirley, Robert, Deborah, Susan, Elaine, and Rhea. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (039.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks to Raymond Parks concerning employment, October 11, 1957. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (040.00.00, 040.00.01)   
  • Raymond and Rosa Parks’s 1959 income tax return, 1960. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (041.00.00)
  • NAACP Director of Branches Gloster Current to Lasker Smith, president of NAACP River Rouge-Ecorse Branch, November 16, 1960. Typed letter. NAACP Records, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (042.00.00, 042.01.01) 
  • Bob Adelman, photographer. Rosa Parks seated as an honored guest at the March on Washington, 1963. Photograph. Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (043.00.00)
  • Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Rosa Parks’s name badge for Mississippi Freedom Summer Project, 1964. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (044.00.00)  
  • Rosa Parks to Congressman John Conyers, Jr., concerning her request to attend the Coalition of 100 Black Women program, appearance on NBC’s Today show, and receipt of the Eleanor Roosevelt Woman of Courage Award, November 6, 1984. Memorandum. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (045.00.00) 
  • Rosa Parks and U.S. Congressman John Conyers, Jr., picketing in front of General Motors corporate headquarters, Detroit, Michigan, 1986. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (046.00.00)
  • Women’s Public Affairs Committee of 1000, Inc. Tribute Dinner honoring Rosa Lee Parks, April 3, 1965. Printed invitation and ticket. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (047.00.00, 047.01.00)  
  • Edward Roberson, photographer. Rosa Parks, Mrs. Coretta Scott King, and Mrs. Louise Tappes, 1965. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (048.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks to Leona McCauley concerning Jeremiah Reeves, April 7, 1958. Autograph letter. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (081.00.00)   
  • Detroit Women for Peace newsletter, April 1967. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (049.00.00)
  • Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Rosa Parks’s identification card for the Poor People’s Campaign, 1968. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (050.00.00)    
  • Rosa Parks and Honorable Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, ca. 1968. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (051.00.00)
  • Political button for Shirley Chisholm. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (083.00.00)
  • Saint Matthew A.M.E Church bulletin with Rosa Parks autograph notes and prayer, November 26, 1972. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (052.00.00, 052.00.01)
  • Carolyn Moody to Rosa Parks concerning the Wilmington 10 Defense Committee, July 29, 1976. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (053.00.00)
  • Invitation to brunch with Angela Davis, n.d. Printed invitation. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (054.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks practicing yoga at an event, n.d. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (056.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks. Notes on yoga, January 8, 1981. Autograph notes. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (057.00.00)
  • UPI. Black Activist Kwame Toure (left), formerly Known as Stokely Carmichael at the University of Michigan to Discuss Civil Rights at a Forum. Another Civil Rights Leader Rosa Parks (right), has a Lighter Moment with Toure after a Panel Discussion. Photograph, February 14, 1983. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (058.00.00)
  • Jesse Jackson for President Committee. D.C. Women’s Itinerary for Mrs. Rosa Parks, March 31–April 2, 1984.Typescript. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (059.00.00)
  • Shoelaces reading: “Running with Jesse, ’88,” ca. 1988. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (084.00.00)
  • Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development. African Farewell & Celebrity Fashion Show, Monday, August 10, 1992, 7:00 P.M., Detroit Public Library, Main Branch. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (060.00.00)
  • Monica Morgan, Photographer. Rosa Parks and Elaine Steele Sitting with Children Enrolled in the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute “Pathways to Freedom School and Tri-State Day Camp,” ca. 1990. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (060.02.00)
  • Maureen Keating, photographer. Aerial view of marchers on the National Mall during the Million Man March, looking towards the Washington Monument, October 16, 1995. Photograph. CQ Roll Call Photograph Collection, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (061.02.00)
  • Rosa Parks. “The Struggle Continues,” n.d. Autograph manuscript. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (062.00.00, 062.00.01)

A Life of Global Impact

  • Jason Lovette, photographer. Unknown reporter, Rosa Parks, Louise Tappes, and Mary Sims, ca. 1976.  Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (064.00.00)
  • National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Citation for Rosa L. Parks, Sixty-fourth Spingarn Medalist, June 26, 1979.  Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (065.00.00)
  • Wooden plaque made for Rosa Parks by prisoners in the Federal Prison Camp, Boron, California, n.d. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (066.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks with Artis Lane at the reception for the unveiling of Rosa Parks’s bust sculpture, National Portrait Gallery, Washington, D.C., 1991. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (067.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks speaking at award ceremony at Soka University, Hachioji-shi, Japan, ca. May 1994. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (068.00.00)
  • Kurt Pettersson, photographer. Portrait of Rosa Parks with singer Cyndee Peters, 1994. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (069.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks’s certificate for the Presidential Medal of Freedom, 1996. Document. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (070.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks’s Presidential Medal of Freedom, 1996. Medal.  Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (071.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks at the White House with President Bill Clinton after receiving the 1996 Presidential Medal of Freedom, Washington, D.C., 1996. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (072.00.00)
  • Monica Morgan, photographer. Rosa Parks in commencement cap and gown after receiving an honorary doctorate in Humane Letters, from Mount Saint Vincent University, Nova Scotia, 1998. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (073.00.00)
  • Monica Morgan, photographer. Rosa Parks in commencement cap and gown after receiving an honorary doctorate in Humane Letters, from Mount Saint Vincent University, Nova Scotia, 1998. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (073.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks meeting Pope John Paul II, during his visit to St. Louis, Missouri, January 27, 1999. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (074.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks’s Congressional Gold Medal, 1999. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (075.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks posing with her Congressional Gold Medal and Vice President Al Gore, Washington, D.C, 1999. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (076.00.00)
  • Rosa Parks in front of Rosa Parks Middle School, Olney, Maryland, 1993. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (077.00.00)
  • Virginia Durr (left), Rosa Parks, Fred Gray, and Johnnie Carr at the birthday gala for Parks, Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C., 1990. Photograph. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (078.00.00)
  • Sarah N. Saker, Hastings Middle School, Columbus, Ohio, Happy b-day Mrs. Parks!, ca. January 2000. Porous point pen. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (079.00.00)
  • Students from Prairie View Intermediate, Rhome, Texas, Thank you!, ca. February 2000. Collage. Visual Materials from the Rosa Parks Papers, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (080.00.00)
  • Virginia Durr to Rosa Parks concerning their honorary degrees from Mount Holyoke College, June 15, 1981. Typed letter. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (085.00.00)
  • Deepak Chopra to Rosa Parks expressing his admiration, January 21, 1998. Typed letter. Rosa Parks Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (086.00.00, 086.00.01)
  • Amos Paul Kennedy, Jr., artist. Rosa Parks Series, between 2005 and 2019. Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress