Historic Black Newspapers Collection

About this Collection

The Oregon Black Pioneers Historic Black Newspapers Collection is a collection of newspapers published by African American Portlanders between 1944-1974. The collection is comprised of 12 full issues from six different publications: The Observer, The Northwest Clarion, The Advocate-Register, The Portland Challenger, The Oregon Mirror, and The Northwest Defender. These issues reveal the interests, challenges, and social activities of Black Portlanders during the mid 20th century.

This collection is made available online through the Portland State University Library Special Collections and University Archives. Issues are displayed alongside the larger collection of Black newspapers which make up the Verdell A. Burdine & Otto G. Rutherford Family Collection. Together, these combined collections represent the largest online archive of Black-owned newspapers published in Oregon.

portland challenger 2 - collections newspaper image

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