Columbia Heights in Northwest Washington in Washington, District of Columbia — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Drum and Spear Bookstore Site
1371 Fairmont Street, NW
— African American Heritage Trail, Washington DC —
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, July 18, 2015
1. Drum and Spear Bookstore Site Marker
Inscription.
Drum and Spear Bookstore Site. 1371 Fairmont Street, NW. The Drum and Spear Bookstore, founded in 1968 by Charlie Cobb, a former secretary for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, specialized in books written by black authors, and books on Asian, African, and African American subjects. Growing out of DC's Civil Rights/Black Power movement, the store opened just before Black Studies took root as an academic discipline in colleges and universities. At the time only a handful of Afro-centric bookstores operated in this country. Quickly Drum and Spear evolved into a literary haven, where authors such as Toni Morrison and Amiri Baraka browsed the shelves alongside diplomats and students. The store operated from this building until 1974.
The Drum and Spear Bookstore, founded in 1968 by Charlie Cobb, a former secretary for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, specialized in books written by black authors, and books on Asian, African, and African American subjects. Growing out of DC's Civil Rights/Black Power movement, the store opened just before Black Studies took root as an academic discipline in colleges and universities. At the time only a handful of Afro-centric bookstores operated in this country. Quickly Drum and Spear evolved into a literary haven, where authors such as Toni Morrison and Amiri Baraka browsed the shelves alongside diplomats and students. The store operated from this building until 1974.
Location. 38° 55.495′ N, 77° 1.925′ W. Marker is in Northwest Washington in Washington, District of Columbia. It is in Columbia Heights. Marker can be reached from the intersection of 14th Street Northwest and Fairmont Street Northwest. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2701 14th Street Northwest, Washington DC 20009, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Also see . . . Drum & Spear Bookstore. by Brian Gilmore, Poetry Quarterly, Volume 11, Number 2, Spring 2010. (Submitted on July 19, 2015, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland.)
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, July 18, 2015
2. Drum and Spear Bookstore Site Marker
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, July 18, 2015
3. The Drum and Spear Bookstore, 1970.
Close-up of photo on marker
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, July 18, 2015
4. Columbia Uptown Apartments
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, July 18, 2015
5. 14th Street and Fairmont Avenue
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, July 18, 2015
6. Crest Above the Front Door Columbia Uptown
Credits. This page was last revised on January 30, 2023. It was originally submitted on July 19, 2015, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. This page has been viewed 717 times since then and 32 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on July 19, 2015, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
