Walk into a Time Machine in AARLCC and Travel to the “Fabulous Forties” of
Fort Lauderdale’s Northwest 5^th Avenue

There is a certain time (the late 1940s) and a certain place (Northwest 5^th Avenue in Fort Lauderdale) that have been plucked from the stream of time and preserved for one year in the gallery of the African-American Research Library and Cultural Center (AARLCC). This is something to celebrate! This is something to see!

Why this time, and why this place? Northwest 5^th Avenue of the late ‘40s was a neighborhood that inspired generations of Black families to push through the boundaries of segregation and to form bonds that would join them in the pursuit of survival, of cultural reformation and of entrepreneurship.

"Fabulous Forties" Tour

Inside this Library exhibit you can walk down a crowded street filled with a wide variety of stores, a school and a home. You can journey through a historical time line of events, observe the tools used to work in the crop fields, inspect a real ice box used to keep food cool using blocks of ice, browse the shop windows to see artifacts on loan from members of the community and you can cool off in the Victory Theatre and watch film clips of the era.

The gallery exhibit opened in November 2011 and continues to be a great hit. Here are some of the comments captured in the record book...

• “Excellent art show. The best I’ve seen yet.”
• “Fantastic exhibit – I came all the way from Philly to see it.”
• “Words can’t explain, wow.”
• “Brought back lots of memories.”
• “Nostalgic!”
• “Moving, wonderful, a must see. We’ll come again and again.”

The exhibit will be open through October 2012, the 10^th year anniversary of AARLCC. Helping showcase the exhibit is a series of events inspired by the theme of the Fabulous Forties on the Avenue. The events began in late October 2011 with a play highlighting the lives of black pioneers in Fort Lauderdale (Mangos, Guavas and Mullet), later followed by concerts featuring the Dillard High School Jazz Band and the Parkway Middle School Jazz Band. In January, school children will be writing essays on “1940s – A Decade of Change” for a Library contest.

Events coming up include:

• A visit from Khalil Gibran Muhammad, the director of the Schomburg Center in New York (a Library similar in scope to AARLCC), who will discuss the Harlem Renaissance, scheduled for January 25 at 6 p.m.
• 1940s Fashion Show scheduled for March 24.
• Scholar Series on black history of the 1940s, scheduled for March 31.
• 1940s Gospel Fest featuring spiritual hymns, songs and sounds of the late ‘40s.
• And the finale – a Jump Jivin’ anniversary gala on October 20. 

The Fabulous Forties on the Avenue exhibit is available to view any time the library is open (from Noon to 8 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on every other day of the week). Ask at the Welcome Desk if the exhibit doors are closed.

The African-American Research Library and Cultural Center is located at 2650 Sistrunk Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale; phone 954-357-2810.