Resource

Life Story: Zora Neale Hurston (1891–1960)

Harlem Renaissance Author and Anthropologist

The story of a Black writer and anthropologist who committed her career to studying and celebrating African American folklore and culture.

A 1938, black and white, half body portrait photograph of a seated African American woman looking left, with bobbed-length hair wearing a felt hat, a beaded necklace, and a belt over her knitted sweater top.
Portrait of Zora Neale Hurston

Carl Van Vechten, Portrait of Zora Neale Hurston, April 3, 1938. Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division, Van Vechten Collection, Washington, D.C.

A 1927, sepia colored photograph of three African American people, a man with a lady on each side, appearing to be dancing in a sunny, outdoor setting.
Unidentified Woman With Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston

Unidentified Woman With Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston, 1927. Yale University Library, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.

A 1927, sepia colored photograph of a young African American woman with a checkered coat, standing by a tree, holding a ukulele in her left hand.
Zora Neale Hurston

James Weldon Johnson, Zora Neale Hurston, 1927. Yale University Library, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.