Baltimore’s Afro newspaper to restore Upton Mansion and digitize archives with $2.2M in federal funds

Baltimore’s Afro news organization will house and showcase its extensive archives in a restored Upton Mansion in West Baltimore with more than $2 million in federal funding. Maryland Democrats U.S. Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and U.S. Rep. Kweisi Mfume worked together to secure $2.2 million for the project. The money will go toward restoring the building and digitizing the Afro’s archives, which is made up of more than 100 years of news articles, photographs, letters and audio recordings.  “The Afro archives is one of the strongest reserves of information about the African American community in our country, and it’s right here in Baltimore,” Cardin said.