Carl Westmoreland facts for kids

Carl B. Westmoreland (born March 8, 1937 – died March 10, 2022) was an important American historian and community leader. He worked to protect old buildings and places. He was also a senior historian at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center.

In 1967, Carl Westmoreland helped start the Mount Auburn Good Housing Foundation. This group aimed to improve neighborhoods in Cincinnati. They wanted to help young people find good homes and jobs. This was a way to make communities better and safer.

Carl Westmoreland's Work and Impact

Carl Westmoreland did a lot for African American communities in Cincinnati. He was also the first African American to serve on the National Trust for Historic Preservation. This group works to save historic places across the country.

Historian at the Freedom Center

As a founding staff member and Senior Historian at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Carl Westmoreland studied history deeply. He researched the Internal Slave Trade in America. This was when about one million enslaved Africans were moved from coastal states to places like Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi.

He explored how class, gender, race, and slavery have shaped today's society. He believed that understanding difficult parts of history could help different communities come together.

The Slave Pen Exhibit

Carl Westmoreland was the curator for one of the Freedom Center's biggest exhibits: a slave pen. Slave pens were places where enslaved people were held before being sold or moved. The pen at the Freedom Center is one of the very few still existing today.

Community and Preservation Efforts

Beyond his work at the Freedom Center, Carl Westmoreland helped manage millions of dollars for community projects. He also taught at the University of Cincinnati's Graduate School of Community Planning. He traveled and lectured in many countries, including Poland, Italy, Germany, China, and Mexico.

He spoke to many different groups, from local neighbors to government leaders and business executives. He also wrote for newspapers and reviewed books. A big part of his work was showing leaders of all backgrounds how important it is to save African American Churches.

Saving Historic Black Churches

Carl Westmoreland was a keynote speaker at the 36th anniversary of the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. In the mid-1990s, he successfully convinced the National Trust for Historic Preservation to call Black Churches an "Endangered American Historic Resource." This helped bring attention to their importance.

He also helped Black churches get listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This included the Union Baptist Cemetery in Cincinnati and the Saint James African Methodist Episcopal Church and Cemetery in Havre De Grace, Maryland.

Education

Carl Westmoreland grew up in Lincoln Heights, Ohio. He went to Wyoming High School. He briefly attended Miami University before going to Knoxville College. It was at Knoxville College that he started his work as a community activist. He later earned a master's degree in urban sociology, which is the study of how people live in cities.

Awards and Recognition

Carl Westmoreland received many awards for his important work:

• The Louise DuPont Crowninshield Award, which is America's top award for historic preservation.
• He was nominated for the Rockefeller Foundation Public Service Award.
• He received the Partners for Livable Places Public Service Award in Washington, D.C.
• He won the Underground Railroad Free Press prize for his leadership in the Underground Railroad community.
• He was given the Distinguished Alumni award from Wyoming High School.
• He received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Urbana University.