Ida B. Wells

An item at American Writers Museum

A lifelong crusader for justice and a pioneering journalist, Ida B. Wells brought international attention to the issue of lynching: the murder of African-Americans by white vigilantes, typically in former slave states. She delivered lectures and wrote articles about the illegal practice, culminating with the publication of A Red Record in 1895.

Precise yet passionate, A Red Record is a masterwork of investigative journalism. To demonstrate the scope of the violence, Wells carefully compiled statistics from the Chicago Tribune and stories about specific incidents from southern newspapers. In other words, she used data and details reported by "white men," not "colored men." "Out of their own mouths shall the murderers be condemned," as she wrote.

AMERICAN VOICES

An exhibit at American Writers Museum

American writing is distinctive, diverse, and comes in many forms from across the nation. The 100 authors featured here represent the evolution of American writing. Learn more about each writer on the timeline by turning the panels below their portraits. Explore centuries of writing by pulling, turning, and touching the interactive elements on the counter.

This is not meant to be a list of the greatest or most influential writers. Instead, we present authors and works as part of the American story as it grows and changes. Taken together, this rich literary heritage reflects America in all of its complexity: its energy, hope, conflict, disillusionment, and creativity.

American Writers Museum