Great Plains Black History Museum |

Dear Friends of the GPBHM,

In 1975, Mrs. Bertha Calloway envisioned sharing the rich history of African Americans with the Omaha community. She founded the Great Plains Black History Museum (GPBHM) to be a resource for the community. The mission of the Museum has been to preserve, celebrate, and educate all people of the rich history of African Americans throughout the Great Plains of America.

Over the past two weeks, America has experienced unrest due to senseless injustice and racial violence. Once again, America is at a crossroads as it struggles to make sense of the racial abuse of its African American citizens. The Board of Directors & staff of the Great Plains Black History Museum would like to express our deepest sympathy to the families who have lost their loved ones during these times of unrest.

We at the Great Plains Black History Museum know that now is the time to work on the healing process and bring everyone together to make a fair and just environment for all. The great Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once stated “the time is always right to do what is right. We must learn to live together as brothers, or we will perish together as fools” We at the GPBHM want everyone to know that we are here for you as a resource to help in educating everyone on the history of African Americans to bring people together and encourage the dialogue needed to bridge the divide and bring us together as one.

Eric L. Ewing, Executive Director

Portia Cavitt, Board President

Welcome to the

Great Plains
Black History Museum

Preserving, celebrating and educating all people of the contributions and achievements of African Americans throughout the great plains of America.

Memberships

Book an Appointment

Due to COVID, we are requesting all guests to book an appointment prior to visiting the museum. We’re open Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 1 pm to 5 pm. To ensure that we are following social distancing we are limiting our visitor’s sizes to no more than 8 visitors at a time. To ensure the safety and health of all visitors to the Museum face mask will be required for entry. Thank you, and be safe.

Book an Appointment

About Great Plains Black History Museum

For the past 40 years, The Great Plains Black History Museum has been a striving institution dedicated to publicizing and preserving the achievements of the region’s vibrant African American heritage. To ensure the success both of a future capital campaign and the sustainability of the institution, the museum must gain broad community acceptance. The target audiences will include the general African-American community, regional residents, schoolchildren, and tourists.

The institutions main objectives are as follows:

To provide a gathering place and an educational resource to celebrate identity and achievement of the contributions African Americans have made in the development and settlement of the Great Plains region adhering to authenticity and truthfulness in the presentation of this history.
To inspire learning and contributions to knowledge cooperating with schools, historic sites, and other institutions in and beyond Omaha to facilitate research, instruction, and artistic expression.
Strengthen commitments to social justice and bridge cultural differences.
It will offer a context in which to understand local and regional African-American history and culture, through providing information about national and global history of African and African-American history and culture.
Through our partnerships and our committees we must foster the growth of much needed community leaders and organizations to which emphasis will be placed on effective community outreach programs targeting youth, parents, and community organizations.