In his 2000 inaugural address, former mayor Joseph P. Riley Jr. pitched an idea of a world-class museum which would feature the experiences + contributions that Africans brought to America through the city of Charleston. Nearly two decades later, the International African American Museum (IAAM) is coming to fruition– set to open its doors within the next few years.

Here’s what we know so far:

Construction is planned to begin in May.
The museum needs to raise an extra $10 million– in addition to its original fundraising goal of $75 million, which it surpassed last August.
They hope to have doors open to the public in 2021. Mark your calendars.
The Museum’s mission reads: “It is likely that all African Americans can trace an ancestor who arrived through Charleston.” The goal is to educate the public about much of the history of African Americans.
It’ll be located at historic Gadsden’s Wharf, near the South Carolina Aquarium.
One of the main features will be the Center for Family History– which hopes to aid museum-goers in learning about their ancestors. The center will also exhibit examples of family trees already successfully constructed– one including former First Lady Michelle Obama– who can trace her ties back to slavery here in South Carolina.
A Social Justice Action Lab/Changing Exhibits Gallery plans to be one of the largest + more dynamic areas of the museum. The Lab will focus on programs highlighting issues of social justice connected specifically to people of African descent in the area + country. The rotating exhibit will likewise showcase pieces from artists which focus on social justice advocacy.
To honor the culture of historically African American communities on the coast of the Carolinas, Georgia, + Florida, a Gullah Geechee exhibit will be dedicated to the experiences of these people.
School-aged children will be encouraged to learn sweetgrass basket weaving + different painting techniques with the museum’s interactive workshop, named Studio Time.

In addition to the exhibits, the museum will house a cafe, gift shop, sweetgrass field + memorial garden.

Why Gadsden’s Wharf?

Many locals have seen the city’s old slave auction gallery which is now a museum, but one of the most important sites from the slave trade once sat hidden in plain sight– right in the heart of downtown Charleston. It wasn’t until 2014, during an exploratory dig, that the city discovered Gadsden’s Wharf + its historic ties to slavery.

Historians have claimed that nearly half of all African slaves who were brought to America arrived right here in Charleston, specifically through Gadsden’s Wharf. There isn’t another place in the country which received such a large number of enslaved African Americans.