Houston Community College

Museum Reports
Courtney Fleurinord

Angela Holder
History 1302
 Fleurinord 1

Courtney Fleurinord

Professor Angela Holder

History 1302

21 January 2018

Buffalo Soldier’s Museum

Before our class visit to the Buffalo Soldier’s Museum, here in Houston, Texas, I

had little to no knowledge about the Buffalo Soldiers. I’ve heard Professor Holder

mention them on multiple occasions during class, yet I never gained an interest in

finding out more about these admirable people. As an African-American woman, I grew

very excited as I was touring the museum because not only did I have the opportunity to

learn more about African-American history, but I also was able to learn about American

history as a whole, and how these soldiers contributed to it.

The first question that ran through my mind was: “Why are these African-

American soldiers called buffalos?” I was so curious as to why they were given such a

unique and different name. Later on, I learned that the soldiers were called “buffalos”

because of their wild curly hair, that resembled the mane of the animal, and because of

their ferocious fighting spirit. The founder and chairman of the Buffalo Soldiers Museum,

Paul Matthews, was an amazing tour guide, and carried such a lovable personality

especially considering how passionate he was about these soldiers. One thing that I

learned that completely shifted my perspective of things was the fact that these African-

American soldiers did not care under what circumstances it took for them to be able to

contribute. During that era, when discrimination and segregation in the army (and in
 Fleurinord 2

general) were at an all-time high, the Buffalo Soldiers did not let that hinder their desire

to defend their country. I find that truly admirable, and something valuable that I took

away from this whole visit to the museum. I don’t think that most people would defend a

country that oppressed them and completely treated them unfairly, so knowing that the

Buffalo Soldiers were an exception is absolutely commendable.

Mr. Matthews also informed us of the few Buffalo Soldier units. These units

included the 9 & 10 Cavalry units and the 24 & 25 Infantry units. To be completely

honest, I had no idea as to what these units were until it was explained to the class. I

learned that the army units were primarily identified as the 9th and 10th cavalry and the

38th, 39th, 40th and 41st. Later on, the infantry units were reorganized, in the year of

1868, as the 24th and the 25th infantry. I also learned that you would be able to tell

which unit a soldier was from just by looking at the color of their bandana, that was

attached to the uniform. A yellow bandana was for cavalry, a red bandana was for

infantry, and a blue bandana was for artillery. I also learned that the army tried to get rid

of horses and tried to replace them with bicycles, which was a huge unsuccess. The last

thing that I took away from the museum was the story about Cathay Williams, a woman

who served as a Buffalo Soldier, disguised as a man. After hearing her whole

background and story, I was amazed at her bravery and at the fact that she was one of

the keys that opened the door for equal rights for all women.

Overall, in my visit to the Buffalo Soldier Museums, I learned a lot of details that I

probably would have never learned if it had not been for Prof. Holder. I am proud to say

that I have become closer to my African-American history and that I had the opportunity

to meet and learn so many things from such a passionate and knowledgeable man like
 Fleurinord 3

Mr. Paul Matthews. Out of all the museums that I had visited in my life (which isn’t very

many), I must admit that this was my absolute favorite.

 Fleurinord 4

Courtney Fleurinord

Professor Angela Holder

History 1302

13 February 2018

The African American Library at the Gregory School Museum

In the past, I must admit that I have heard a lot about this museum in

particular, but I never really had the interest to go. Being African American, there are a

lot of things that I did not know/learn about my own people and my own culture. Going

to The African American Library at the Gregory School has not only introduced a lot of

new information to me, but it has also made me appreciate my black roots even more.

Before I even entered the building, I found my surroundings interesting. The

building was surrounded by a tiny community with small town houses built closely

together. Although my assumption could’ve been made way too soon, I felt as though

this tiny community gave off vibes of unity. I also saw that directly outside of the

museum, that there were little boxes with inspiring words on them, such as the

following: “greatness”, “wisdom”, “endurance”, “peacemaking”, “perseverance”,

“emancipation”, “leadership”, “learn from the past”, “knowledge”, “creativity”, “unity”, etc.

Seeing these empowering words put a smile on my face, and prompted extreme

excitement when I entered the building. An employee at the museum was very

welcoming and gave me a short background of the museum before leading me into a

gallery room with a bunch of desks in them. In this room I was to watch a short film, that

was to be projected on the wall. But as I took a look at my surroundings, I noticed that I
 Fleurinord 5

was sitting in classroom, but not your typical modern classroom. At the front of the

classroom there was the teachers big desk, and the rest of the classroom was filled with

wooden chairs that had a wooden table attached to the back. So basically, if I was

sitting in one of these chairs I would be using the table on the back of a classmate’s

chair that was in front of me, and someone would be using the desk in the back of my

chair. This concept was something that I have never seen before, and I was pretty

intrigued by it.

In the short film, I learned that the Gregory African American Library, built in

1926, was a two-story former elementary school named after Edgar M. Gregory. The

first few 1000 freed slaves settled in this small community and made it thrive with their

own businesses and churches. This community, also known as “Fourth Ward”, or

“Freedmen’s Town”, was in a very swampy area that was susceptible to flooding.

Although the land was cheap, the other factors repelled the Anglos from wanting to live

there. Throughout the video, I found it really saddening to see how the City of Houston

would deprive these African Americans of basically necessities, especially when the city

refused to build regular roads for their community. Even though this was an

inconvenience, black people made their own roads out of bricks, and that just goes to

show how much perseverance and high spirit they had. In general, found it really

amazing that I was inside of the very first public academic institution for African

American children.

After the short film, I was able to roam into the other galleries. I was very

fascinated with the background and stories of the highlighted people in this museum

such as W. L. Davis, who was the principal of the Gregory School, Thelma Patterson,
 Fleurinord 6

who was the first African American female physician in 1923, specializing in obstetrics

and gynecology, Hillard Taylor, one of the first African Americans to hold political office,

and so many more people. As important as religion is in my life, it was extremely

important in Freedmen’s Town. One of the oldest churches, which is Antioch Missionary

Baptist Church, is a church that is frequently visited, as well as Trinity Methodist

Church, and MT. Vernon United Methodist Church. In the corner of one of the exhibits,

there was a little box with a sign above it where you could share your thoughts and

special memories about Freedmen’s Town/4th Ward. There were many papers with

thoughts and shared memories posted up on the wall that I enjoyed reading. Lastly, I

was intrigued by the different tools that were used back in those days, and that were

found in Fourth Ward. These tools included secateurs, hand drills, and a long-handled

dipper/skimmer (a tool that was used to remove food from hot fats and liquids).

Overall, my experience at The African American Library at the Gregory School

was so great, I even decided to persuade my family members to go see it. I enjoyed

learning and observing things that I have never been taught/showed before in school,

and things/people that are not shown and recognized on the news, and in modern

entertainment. Although I am not from Houston, and was never really interested in

learning about its history, I am glad that I was given the opportunity to do so anyway –

especially in the month of Black History.

 Fleurinord 7

Courtney Fleurinord

Professor Angela Holder

History 1302

22 March 2018

The Holocaust Musuem

Visiting the Holocaust Museum definitely brought the emotional side out of me,

as I have never really learned about the Holocaust in fully detail. In my opinion, this

museum did an amazing job at showcasing pain and suffering, and it also taught me the

dangers of hatred, evil and prejudice.

When I first got my admission ticket to be able to enter into the museum, the tour

guide informed us that we could listen to a narrative voice on the phone, as we go

through the museum. I found this pretty interesting because I was able to call the

number and listen to a female voice tell the story and background of everything that I

was seeing on the walls. I started to learn more about the Jewish people and their lived

before the Holocaust and I became really interested because I feel as though this was

the kind of information that is not really shared. The Jewish people were very caring

people who welcomed everyone into their arms with trust and hope. They visited the

sick, and made sure that the dead were buried with dignity. Knowing that something as

disgusting as discrimination could happen to these kind and amazing Jews, made me

feel a mix of anger and sadness.

 Fleurinord 8

As I walked around the museum, I started to learn more about Hitler and the

growth of Nazism. Hitler promised the German people a better life. But their idea of a

better life was more of an ideology that emphasized German racial purity. I still find it

confusing how Hitler was able to gain all of that power, but it was upsetting to know that

he could rule Germany from 1933 to 1945.

I had the opportunity to look around at the actual artefacts that were found

relating to the holocaust. I saw the “Mein Kampf” which was Adolf Hitler’s

autobiographical book, which described the process by which he became anti-Semitic,

and it outline his plans and ideology for future Germany. I also got to see the hand-

embroidered silk baby dress, in which Chaja Verveer wore before she was separated

from her mother and place in hiding with another family. Having prior knowledge about

Anne Frank and her story, I also learned more details about her hiding situation during

the Holocaust. As I continued walking through the museum, I came across to

concentration/extermination camps which made me tear up a lot. I just couldn’t seem to

figure out how it was possible for people to engage in something so inhumane and

wrong. Also, reading about how the Nazi’s redefined “euthanasia” was something that I

have never learned about. The Nazi’s would euthanize German who were ill, and who

they felt were “unworthy of life”, which I totally hated reading. Everyone is worthy of their

lfie, and it is not your right to get to take it away from them.

Overall, I had a great experience at the Holocaust Museum. I was able to learn

so many thing that I never knew about, and get to learn about certain people, and their

backstories. Being able to learn about such a crucial moment in history, in extremely full
 Fleurinord 9

detail, was truly honoring. I was kind of taken aback when I saw how small the museum

was.