To help kick off the celebration of Black History Month 2011 that’s already begun, I would like to announce our brand new Black Fives Photo Archive!

The Smart Set Athletic Club of Brooklyn, just one of hundreds of team and player images in the new Black Fives Photo Archive.

This brand new never-before-seen archive is the world’s leading collection of vintage African American basketball photographs and self-customizable photo products celebrating the historic Black Fives Era, from 1904 through 1950, prior to the racial integration of the N.B.A.

Please visit the archive and see for yourself.  It is a rich and fascinating visual journey through black basketball history.

You can interact with the site by choosing their favorite images, “liking” them with a thumbs-up, making comments, giving them a star rating, or sharing them through social networking.

You can also select from a variety of photo products available for purchase.

That means you can get these images applied to products such as greeting cards, postcards, enlargements on canvas, ceramic coffee mugs, mouse pads, jigsaw puzzles, 100% cotton tee-shirts (including youth sizes), and more.

The merchandise is high-quality and self-customizable.

Try it! Customize a coffee mug, some greeting cards, a tee shirt, or other great products with whichever Black Fives Photo Archive photo you like!

Today, the archive is organized into the following galleries:

• New York (Harlem) Rens
• Washington Bears
• Men’s Teams
• Women’s Teams
• Players
• Contributors
• Ephemera
• Logos
• Culture

Of course we’ll be continuously adding to the archive with updates and new images.  You can subscribe to the archive’s own RSS feed to let you know anytime a new photo is added.

Some recent prominent usages of our photos:

• Black Fives Book of Postcards
• ESPN Outside The Lines
• The Savoy King: Chick Webb & the Music That Changed America, a film by Jeff Kaufman
• Say It Loud: An Illustrated History of the Black Athlete by ESPN Publishing
• BET Black History Month Promotion
• NBC4 Washington WRC-TV News Feature
• Bobbito Garcia’s “Doin’ It In The Park: Pick-Up Basketball, NYC” with Kevin Couliau
• … and of course, my upcoming book, An Introduction to the Black Fives Era: African American Basketball, 1904-1950

Please check it out!  I truly hope that you enjoy this new archive.

And remember, celebrate Black History Month every month!