--- title: Black History Month and Travel in Segregated America description: In honor of Black History Month, explore the guidebooks that helped travelers navigate a segregated world canonical: https://time.com/4190564/greenbooks-nypl-collection/ author: Lily Rothman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-02-01T15:00:14.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:43:09.248Z article:section: History og:title: Black History Month and Travel in Segregated America og:description: Explore the guidebooks that helped black travelers navigate a segregated world og:url: https://time.com/4190564/greenbooks-nypl-collection/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdf9c0a9b79629cc8/69887a2e196cf43c1d039fa3/160122-greenbook-1956-07.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1841 og:image:height: 1036 og:image:alt: 1956 Green Book og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Black History Month and Travel in Segregated America twitter:description: Explore the guidebooks that helped black travelers navigate a segregated world twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdf9c0a9b79629cc8/69887a2e196cf43c1d039fa3/160122-greenbook-1956-07.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # For Black History Month, See the Books That Helped Travelers Navigate a Segregated U.S. > Sponsored content. 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Subscriptions are at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### What is included in a TIME print and digital subscription? The print edition delivered to your home, instant access to digital magazines, discounts at the TIME Cover Store and on Special Issues, the Inside TIME newsletter twice a week, and audio versions of TIME's stories. It is from $29 for one year or $49 for two years at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### What is the difference between TIME's digital and print plans? Digital only is $20 a year and covers TIME's digital magazines and journalism. Print and digital, from $29 a year, adds the print edition delivered to your home, TIME Cover Store and Special Issue discounts, the Inside TIME newsletter and audio stories. #### Is TIME a reliable news source? TIME is a general-interest news organization founded in 1923. Its journalism is reported and edited by a professional newsroom led by Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs, with named correspondents on politics, climate, health, technology and culture. It reaches 1 million US print subscribers and 1.15 million globally, plus more than 1.1 million newsletter readers. #### How do I subscribe to TIME magazine? Subscriptions are at time.com/subscribe-agent. Choose digital only at $20 a year, or print and digital from $29 a year or $49 for two years. TIME also publishes seven free email newsletters at time.com/newsletters, which do not require a subscription. #### Can I cancel a TIME subscription? Yes. TIME states that subscriptions can be cancelled at any time. #### Does TIME have free newsletters? Yes. TIME publishes seven free email newsletters reaching more than 1.1 million readers, covering daily news, Washington politics, health, AI, climate and energy, culture, and the newsroom itself. They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: The Black Travel Movement is Here [Watch (HLS stream): The Black Travel Movement is Here](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/sQcSn8OR.m3u8) (6:50)  _Published 2015-10-14. Black millennials are using social media to touch all reaches of the world._ by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/) and [Liz Ronk](https://time.com/author/liz-ronk/) Feb 1, 2016 3:00 PM UTC  The Travelers' Green Book: 1956. The Travelers' Green Book: 1956. New York Public Library Digital Collections by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/) and [Liz Ronk](https://time.com/author/liz-ronk/) Feb 1, 2016 3:00 PM UTC Knowing where to go when you’re on the road can be a daunting task for any traveler—but for African-Americans in the segregated U.S., it had the potential to be a matter of life and death. That’s where the “Green-Book” came in. Starting in 1936, the United States Travel Bureau and publisher Victor H. Green issued an annual guide for the “negro motorist” to welcoming shops, entertainments, restaurants, hotels and services. As the front cover of several editions somewhat ominously advertised: “Carry your Green Book with you—you may need it.” Seen today, the Green Books are a vivid reminder of the extent to which segregation affected every aspect of life. Even for black Americans who lived in places where integration was generally the rule, their freedom was curtailed when they set out on the road. It’s a testament to the weight of those burdens that the publishers of the Green Book openly wished to go out of business. “There will be a day sometime in the near future when this guide will not have to be published,” the editors wrote in the [introduction](http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/9dc3ff40-8df4-0132-fd57-58d385a7b928#/?uuid=9e004590-8df4-0132-bce5-58d385a7b928) to the 1949 edition. “That is when we as a race will have equal opportunities and privileges in the United States. It will be a great day for us to suspend this publication for then we can go wherever we please, and without embarrassment.” The last Green Book was published about two years after the passage of the[ Civil Rights Act of 1964\. ](http://time.com/2891282/civil-rights-act-1964-50th-anniversary/)Many more copies of the book can be seen in the [collection of the New York Public Library](http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/collections/the-green-book#/?tab=about&scroll=4), from which the gallery above is drawn.  The Travelers' Green Book: 1940. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1940. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1940. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1947. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1947. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1947. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1956. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1956. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1956. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1956. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1960. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1960. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1960. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1960. New York Public Library Digital Collections  The Travelers' Green Book: 1960. 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