Celebrating California's Black Trailblazers: A Virtual Tour From the California State Archives

The California State Archives is a division of the California Secretary of State’s Office, and was created by California’s first law in 1850. The State Archives collects records from all three branches of government, as well as some local government records and private donations. Our collection includes more than 350 million records in a variety of formats including paper, maps, photographs, audiovisual, artifacts, and electronic records, which are stored on six levels of climate-controlled, secured stacks at the March Fong Eu Secretary of State Building in downtown Sacramento.

This installation of the California State Archives Virtual Mini-Tour Series gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look into highlighted portions of the State Archives’ collections. This tour will showcase records that celebrate Black History Month, highlighting individuals who have made a significant impact on California’s history. Let’s go!

Mary Ellen Pleasant (1814-1904)

Abolitionist, Underground Railroad operative, civil rights trailblazer, illustrious entrepreneur, and one of California’s first African American women millionaires, Mary Ellen Pleasant was an extraordinary figure in California’s history. She was an exceedingly clever girl growing up, as her own account asserts, and an inheritance Pleasant received as a young woman from her first husband’s passing poised her for her future as an astute investor and business owner. Pleasant moved with her second husband across the country from the South to San Francisco during the California Gold Rush to continue her work helping others to freedom through the Underground Railroad.

In San Francisco, she began investing in and establishing several businesses in the area, including restaurants, boarding houses, and real estate. Even the times she spent working in mundane positions were enterprising; her time as a domestic servant back East and a cook in San Francisco were used to her advantage in her own business deals after overhearing key gossip of the latest financial currents to pursue. Eventually, Pleasant funded and designed her own house - an opulent, thirty-room mansion on a sprawling ground that once stood on Octavia Street.

Pleasant was a determined woman. She continued to help others escape from slavery on the West Coast through the Underground Railroad, was esteemed in elite San Francisco social circles, and when she was denied access to a streetcar because of her skin color, she took it to trial. Her case made it all the way to the California Supreme Court. In 1868, the court ruled in her favor in a landmark decision that declared streetcar segregation unlawful in California. Pictured here is the cover for the Brief for the Appellant from her case, “John J. Pleasants, and Mary E., (his wife) vs. The North Beach and Mission Railroad Co.”

As an astounding figure in California history, it is no wonder that Mary Ellen Pleasant is often referred to as “The Mother of Civil Rights in California.”

Lieutenant Colonel Allen Allensworth (1842-1914)

Lieutenant Colonel Allen Allensworth, born in 1842, escaped slavery in Kentucky and went on to become a highly respected military veteran, ordained minister, and lecturer. He and four others founded the California Colony and Home Promoting Association, which purchased land thirty miles north of Bakersfield and resold it to African American buyers. In 1908, the Association formally founded an African American community in southern Tulare County, naming the settlement after Colonel Allensworth. Over six years, the 900-acre town grew prosperous. Its 250-person town boasted a thriving agricultural economy, philanthropic, civil, and social organizations, as well as churches, schools, and multiple businesses.


Colonel Allensworth’s sudden death in 1914, a railroad constructed to bypass Allensworth, and a private water company’s breach of contract left the community socially shaken, economically undermined, and without adequate water supply. Allensworth saw a slow population decline and, by 1969, ceased to exist. However, due to pressure from former Allensworth resident and Department of Parks and Recreation landscape architect Ed Pope, as well as the activism of African American churches and organizations, Allensworth became a California State Historic Park in 1976. Today, the park has an annual attendance of over 10,000 visitors. You can learn more about Allensworth by visiting our exhibit, “Allensworth: Realization and Resurrection of an African American Dream,” here: https://artsandculture.google.com/exhibit/mQLiVfAd-6y4JA

Assemblymember Frederick M. Roberts (1879-1952)

Born in Ohio in 1879, Frederick Madison Roberts moved with his parents to Los Angeles, California in 1887, where he was the first Black graduate of the city's high school. After graduating from college, he worked as a tax assessor, school principal, mortician, and news editor of The New Age, a publication devoted to the advancement of African Americans. In 1918, Roberts became the first African American to be elected to the California State Legislature. He authored several bills to address the racial discrimination and segregation issues of his time, including Assembly Bill 452 (1921) related to instruction materials in the state's public elementary schools. The law stated in part, "No textbook, chart or other means of instruction used in the public schools of this state shall contain any materials reflecting on the citizens of the United States because of their race or color...." He served in the Assembly until 1934, and remained an active advocate for civil rights, serving as Director of the NAACP, YMCA, and Urban League. He was tragically killed in a car accident in 1952.

Wilson Riles (1917-1999)

Wilson Riles was the first African American in the nation to be elected state superintendent of schools, serving as California’s Superintendent of Public Instruction from 1971-1983. Born in 1917, Riles grew up in Louisiana, graduating from Northern Arizona University in 1940 and served in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II. Following the war, Riles earned a master’s degree in Education Administration, teaching in Arizona. In 1958, he was hired by the California Department of Education and became the first African American professional employee. After holding several positions, including the Deputy Superintendent of Program and Legislation and heading a $100 million federally subsidized program aimed to create additional educational opportunities for low-income students, Riles became the first African American elected to statewide office in 1970. He served three terms as California State Superintendent of Public Instruction and was awarded the Spingarn Medal by the NAACP for outstanding achievement by an African American in 1973. Riles founded the Wilson Riles Archives and Institute for Education in Sacramento as a resource for historical information about K-12 public education in California. The facility includes an archival collection available for research, a traveling exhibit for display, and an information and referral service.

Assemblymember Elihu M. Harris (1947 – )

Elihu M. Harris has pursued a dynamic career practicing law, serving in the Legislature, and owning several businesses. Born in Los Angeles, California in 1947, Harris grew up in Berkeley, California, earning a bachelor’s degree in political science from California State University, Hayward, a master’s degree in public policy from University of California, Berkeley, and a Juris Doctorate from University of California, Davis School of Law. Most recognized for his extensive public service, Harris has served as the mayor of Oakland (1993-1999), a member of the California State Assembly (1978-1990), a member of the Judicial Council of California (1981-1988), a member of the California Law Revision Commission (1987-1990), a member of the California Commission on Uniform State Laws (1981-1990), member of the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board (2000-2003), and Chancellor of the Peralta Community College District (2003-2010).

As an Assemblymember, Harris was a part of the California Legislative Black Caucus and he authored the bill AB 312 (1981), under which Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday became an official State holiday in California. In this photograph, he watches as Governor Jerry Brown signs the bill. You can learn more about the California Legislative Black Caucus and the signing of this law by visiting our exhibit, “California Legislative Black Caucus: Celebrating the Past, Working toward the Future,” here: https://artsandculture.google.com/culturalinstitute/beta/exhibit/california-legislative-black-caucus-california-state-archives/NgJSBcTCf-yyIA?hl=en

Honorable Yvonne W. Brathwaite Burke (1932 – )

Yvonne W. Brathwaite Burke was born on October 5, 1932 in Los Angeles, California. After graduating from Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles in 1947, she earned her bachelor’s degree from University of California, Los Angeles, and her juris doctorate degree from the University of Southern California School of Law in 1956. Burke was one of the first African American women to be admitted to the USC Law School since 1927. In 1966, Burke was elected to the California Assembly, representing the 63rd Assembly District. This historic victory made her the first Black woman elected to the California Assembly. Burke was also a founding member of the California Legislative Black Caucus. A lawyer in private practice, Burke has been a civil rights advocate and has sponsored legislation calling for more effective education for Los Angeles students, better recreation facilities to cut delinquency, strong and fair employment legislation, and tax reform. In 1972, Burke was elected to Congress, representing California’s 37th Congressional District. She also was the first African American to be elected to the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors, serving from 1979-1980 and 1992-2008, when she retired. In 2013, she became a member of the Amtrak Board of Directors, a position which she still holds.