This September, the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum (ACM) turned 59. The museum opened its doors in 1967, and it has spent nearly six decades preserving and celebrating the stories of communities across the greater Washington, DC, region.
When it first opened as the Anacostia Neighborhood Museum in the former Carver Theater, the idea behind it was considered groundbreaking. Founding director John Kinard and the surrounding community built a different kind of museum, one shaped by the people who lived nearby. In 1987, the museum moved to its current home at 1901 Fort Place SE, and its founding spirit, “powered by the people,” still guides the work today.
That belief is on full view in the museum’s current exhibition, “We Make History,” which opened in May and remains on view through January 2028. The exhibition looks at how everyday people record their experiences and help shape the nation’s story. At its center is the diary of Adam Francis Plummer, who began writing in 1841 while enslaved in Prince George’s County, Maryland, and whose daughter Nellie Arnold Plummer continued it after his death. It is believed to be the only known multigenerational diary started by an enslaved person in the United States. Visitors can explore additional stories including contralto Marian Anderson’s coat, a guitar that belonged to Chuck Brown, the Godfather of Go-Go, and a jersey worn by a member of the Washington Spirit, alongside interactive stations that invite people to record and preserve their own family and community histories. The exhibition is organized into five sections; primary sources, historic places, sports, the arts, and the museum’s own history.
Be part of the story. Visit the Anacostia Community Museum to explore “We Make History,” record your own family history at one of the interactive stations, and see what’s coming as the museum heads toward its 60th year. Admission is free. Find exhibitions, programs, and upcoming events at anacostia.si.edu.
This year’s celebration also sets the stage for something bigger. In 2027 the Anacostia Community Museum will mark 60 years of telling the community’s story, and Founders Day is a good moment to look back at how far the museum has come and to celebrate the neighbors who have carried it there. Fifty-nine years in, the museum is still powered by people and the power of their stories from communities across Washington, DC.
For m ore information on the Anacostia Community Museum, visit www.anacostia.si.edu.
