About This Item


  • Call NumberALPH_0108
  • TitleThree women dining at a round table at an event.
  • SummaryAlbum caption reads: "Mrs. Peggy Ward flashes a lovely smile. Daughter Allison." From left to right: Peggy Ward, Allison, unknown. Alpha Wives of Brooklyn & Long Island annual spring luncheon and card party at Queens College.
  • Date1987-04
  • Formatstill image
  • Physical Description1 image file : digital, TIFF, color
  • Genrecolor photographs
  • Biographical NoteAlpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African American men, was founded on December 4, 1906 at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York by seven college men who recognized the need for a strong bond of brotherhood among African descendants in the United States. The fraternity initially served as a study and support group for minority students who faced racial prejudice, both educationally and socially, at Cornell. The founders, known to their brethren as the ‘seven jewels,’ along with early leaders of the fraternity, laid a firm foundation for Alpha Phi Alpha’s principles of scholarship, fellowship, good character, and the uplifting of humanity. The organization has been interracial since 1945. Alpha Phi Alpha chapters were established at other colleges and universities, many of them historically black institutions, soon after the founding at Cornell. The first alumni chapter was established in 1911. The Gamma Iota Lambda Chapter was chartered in Brooklyn in 1945 with the aim of advancing the well-being of Black Brooklynites and established programs to promote education, health and justice in their neighborhoods. Among the membership are attorneys, civic leaders, architects, clergy, educators, physicians, and veterans. The visual series of the collection, connected to the Gamma Iota Lambda Chapter, consists mostly of photographs but also includes event programs, tickets, brochures and obituaries. Some of the photographs were housed in an album with captions written under the items. In most cases, these captions were written by member John R. Rice, Jr. Other photographs had inscriptions on the reverse, or had separate caption documents. All of this information has been added to the item record.
  • CreatorUnknown
  • SubjectQueens College (New York, N.Y.) ; African American fraternal organizations ; Fraternal organizations--United States ; African Americans ; Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. Gamma Iota Lambda Chapter
  • CollectionAlpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Gamma Iota Lambda Chapter records
  • Finding AidView the finding aid
  • PlaceFlushing (New York, N.Y.)
  • Cite AsAlpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Gamma Iota Lambda Chapter records, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
  • RightsCopyright restrictions apply to the use of this work. For more information or to obtain a reproduction of this work, contact the Center for Brooklyn History at Brooklyn Public Library.