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"Indians of the U.S.A." map

An inventory of the item at Syracuse University

Finding aid created by: Michele Combs
Date: 14 Apr 2025

Revision history:

Biographical History

Louise E. Jefferson (1908-2002) was a Black American artist and author. A graduate of Hunter College and Columbia University, she helped found the Harlem Artists Guild in the 1930s. She worked for Friendship Press in New York, eventually becoming art director for the press, one of the first Black women to hold such a post at a major publishing house. Many of the maps she created for the press documented racial disparities, injustices, and intolerances in American society.

Jefferson retired in 1960 but continued working as a freelance artist. In 1974 she published The Decorative Arts of Africa, containing her research, photographs, and drawings from visits to Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The "Indians of the U.S.A." map is a full-color map of the United States created by Louise E. Jefferson, illustrating the locations of ancestral tribal lands across the country. Smaller illustrations document persons and events significant to Native American history such as General George Armstrong Custer and the Niobrara Convocation. Around the edges of the map are names of important Native American individuals including Chief Joseph, Tecumseh, and Powhatan.

Arrangement of the Collection

Single item.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions:

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions:

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Subject Headings

Persons

Jefferson, Louise E.

Corporate Bodies

Friendship Press, inc.

Subjects

African American women artists.
Geographical perception -- North America.
Indians of North America -- Maps.
Publishers -- New York (State)

Genres and Forms

Maps.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

"Indians of the U.S.A." map,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Purchase, 2025.

Table of Contents

Printed material

Inventory