Richard Samuel Roberts spent decades documenting Black life in Columbia, South Carolina. By day, he worked at the United States Post Office. After work, he photographed the people and places that shaped his community.
For decades after Roberts’ death in 1936, his family stored 3,500 glass plate negatives containing nearly 6,000 photographs under their home on Wayne Street.
These photographs have been digitized and made freely available online through the University of South Carolina Libraries, offering a glimpse into the everyday experiences, aspirations, and achievements of Black communities during a time when their stories were often overlooked or excluded from the historical record.
“What we are seeing when we look at these pictures is African Americans the way they wanted to be seen and remembered,” said Rachel Young, a historian at the Center for Civil Rights History and Research at the University of South Carolina.
Churches, clubs, fraternities, sororities, and other groups helped sustain Black communities through support, leadership, and collective action during the Jim Crow era.
Portrait of young man with boxing gloves Credit: USC Libraries/Richard Samuel Roberts collection 
Walter Adams with rooster 
Seated portrait of a woman in a dark dress with her legs crossed Credit: USC Libraries/Richard Samuel Roberts collection 
Sunday School group at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church Credit: USC Libraries/Richard Samuel Roberts collection 
View of the pond and dock at Lindenwood Park from the bathhouses. The water was whitish muddy. The Boy Scouts that met at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church had cookouts by the pond. Credit: USC Libraries/Richard Samuel Roberts collection 
Young women at the Phyllis Wheatley Y.W.C.A. Credit: USC Libraries/Richard Samuel Roberts collection
From farmers and socialites to students and magicians, Roberts preserved the stories of those whose lives were often overlooked in traditional historical records.
Peter Hooper, a magician, escape artist, and puppeteer, alongside his wife, “Princess” Elizabeth Hooper, a mind-reader and crystal ball gazer, pose with their assistant. They traveled and performed up and down the East Coast.
Credit: USC Libraries/Richard Samuel Roberts collection
Many students attended Brewer Normal School and engaged in activities such as music, athletics, and art.
Some notable subjects of Roberts’ portraits include Modjeska Monteith Simkins, the matriarch of the Civil Rights Movement in South Carolina, and Dr. Matilda Evans, the first Black woman licensed to practice medicine in South Carolina.
These photographs show more than a glimpse into the past. They remind us that history is shaped not only by events but by the everyday lives of families, neighbors, students, educators, workers, and community members.
Together, these photographs help ensure that future generations can see Black life as it was lived, celebrated, and remembered.
