The museum’s latest exhibit will feature visual illustrations from the famous guide series to highlight the experiences of African American travelers
during the mid-century
LOS ANGELES (Dec. 11, 2023) – The Petersen Automotive Museum has partnered with the Smithsonian Institution to present its newest exhibition, “The Negro Motorist Green Book,” which offers an immersive look at how the guide served as “the bible of Black travel during Jim Crow” and the reality of travel for African Americans in mid-century America. The installation will open to the public on December 16 in the Armand Hammer Foundation Gallery.
Started in 1936 by Harlem postman Victor Green, “The Negro Motorist Green Book” was a guide published over three decades that helped African Americans travel the country safely and with dignity during a time of Jim Crow laws and segregation. The exhibition showcases a collection of artifacts, photographs and personal accounts that shed light on the impact of the guide, as well as the challenges African American travelers faced during the mid-century. This display also highlights the growth and development of African American businesses and the significant role played by “The Negro Motorist Green Book” in American history. “The Negro Motorist Green Book” is a traveling exhibition developed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) in collaboration with award-winning author, photographer and cultural documentarian Candacy Taylor. The exhibition was sponsored nationally by ExxonMobil.
“This exhibition provides valuable insights into a pivotal moment in American history, and we are proud to welcome it to our museum,” said Petersen Automotive Museum Executive Director Terry L. Karges. “Visitors will have the opportunity to explore how significant this guide was in providing community and safer travel for the Black community for three decades and how it helped shape our history.”
The “Negro Motorist Green Book” exhibition has traveled for three years and was on display at the Holocaust Museum Houston and the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center earlier this year. The exhibition will be open to the public at the Petersen Automotive Museum until March 10, 2024.
For more information about “The Negro Motorist Green Book” exhibition or the Petersen Automotive Museum, please visit www.Petersen.org.
About Petersen Automotive Museum
The Petersen Automotive Museum Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) charity. The museum is located at 6060 Wilshire Blvd. (at Fairfax) in Los Angeles, 90036. Admission prices are $19.95 for general admission adults, $17.95 for seniors, $12.95 for children ages 12 to 17 and $10.95 for children ages 4 to 11. Active military with ID, personal care attendants and children under age four are admitted free. Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. For general information, call 323-930-CARS or visit www.petersen.org.
About Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES)
SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside Washington, D.D., for more than 70 years. SITES connects Americans to their shared cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art, science and history, which are shown wherever people live, work a
