Explore African American contributions at the University of Georgia with the self-guided Celebrating Black History Through Steps Towards Inclusion site tour, featuring 10 locations across the UGA Athens campus. The tour can be completed in person by walking, driving, or biking at your leisure, or online through our immersive virtual experience during the month of February.
UGA Main Library
320 S. Jackson Street, Athens, GA
To commemorate the 60th anniversary of desegregation at the University of Georgia, the UGA Main Library is hosting an exhibit that chronicles the historic events of 1961, when Hamilton Holmes and Charlayne Hunter-Gault made history by becoming the first African American students admitted to UGA.
The exhibit includes images, documents, and other items from this significant period. The exhibit was designed in collaboration with the Hunter-Gault and Holmes families. It showcases various items from the Richard B. Russell Special Collections Libraries, as well as pieces lent by the Holmes family. Among the items displayed is the fraternity sweater worn by Holmes in photographs taken when he first received notice of his admission to the university.
The installation begins in the Main Library’s lobby with reproduction items and graphic panels that focus on the events of 1961. The exhibit continues into the first-floor main hallway of the building. Original items in the hallway spotlight the career achievements of Holmes and Hunter-Gault after their graduation from UGA in 1963. Fabric panels in the space explore milestones throughout the six-decade journey toward a more inclusive and diverse campus.
