Climbing Jacob's ladder : the rise of Black churches in Eastern American cities, 1740-1877 /

Recognizing that black churches have been at the core of the Afro-American experience in the US, Smith, a historian for the Anacostia Museum, Smithsonian Institution, has completed a painstaking and invaluable project. His study of the rise of black churches in northern and southern cities along the Atlantic seaboard from 1740 to 1877 combines a literate historical overview with lively visual displays of photographs and graphic artistic depictions of famous people, church buildings, and religious artifacts. Scholars of black religious history know of the woeful neglect of church records, documents, and other memorabilia by black churches and church leaders in the past. Through this book and the accompanying exhibition at the Anacostia Museum, Smith and his colleagues want to encourage black clergy and laity to collect and to preserve this valuable legacy. This book will be an important aid in teaching black religious history because the visual materials help to make the historical narratives more concrete. With this fine example, one can only hope that Smith will continue his project to cover black churches in other parts of the country. Selected bibliography. Recommended for general audiences as well as for college undergraduates and specialists in the field. -L. H. Mamiya, Vassar College