Washington Afro-American Newspaper Office Building
1800 11th Street, NW
The independent weekly Afro-American, one of the most enduring Black newspapers in the country was founded in Baltimore in 1892 by John H. Murphy, Sr. The Washington Afro-American began publication in 1932, and operated from this building from 1937 until the late 1970s. Howard University architect Albert Cassell designed the conversion of this formerly residential building into offices.
Under the motto “A Champion of Civic Welfare and the Square Deal,” the Afro has advocated for full justice for African Americans – and provided both news and entertainment. In 2011 the paper remained in the Murphy family, and continued to publish from offices on Benning Road, NE.
[Photo caption:]Washington Afro-American Newspaper Office Building. Moorland Spingarn Research Center, Howard University.
Marker is on 11th Street, NW near S Steet/Virginia Avenue, NW, on the right when traveling south.
Courtesy hmdb.org
