Historical Preservation: Protecting the Past for Future Generations
Robert F. Smith learned early on the importance of preserving history for future generations. Over the last few decades, he has worked to protect historical and cultural sites, making them accessible to communities across the U.S. Smith’s childhood experiences, such as family trips to national monuments, helped shape his appreciation for historical and cultural landmarks.
These formative experiences instilled in him a lifelong commitment to safeguarding the stories and places that define our collective heritage. Smith has supported a range of organizations and initiatives that promote the protection of national historic sites and other places of cultural significance.
“The national parks hold a special place not just in my family’s history, but in the history of our nation. These sites are where many of our ancestors and leaders spent time, lived, thrived, fought and gathered. On a personal level, I’ve always felt a calling to preserve these spaces and share their stories with my community.”
-Robert F. Smith
SMITH’S PARTNERS
The Louis Armstrong House Museum
The Louis Armstrong House Museum (LAHM) in Queens, NY, preserves the life, legacy and home of the acclaimed jazz musician through educational programming and artistic performances. Its campus includes Armstrong’s home, the Armstrong Center and Selma’s Place. In 2016, under Smith’s leadership as founding director and President, Fund II Foundation awarded the museum $3 million. More than $2.7 million supported the digitization of Armstrong’s photographs, sheet music, videos and concert recordings. Smith was instrumental in launching the museum’s digital archive, which has expanded online collections and made them more accessible to the public. The grant also funded two full-time museum fellows to further advance the museum’s mission.
National Museum of African American History and Culture
The National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), part of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., was commissioned by Congress in 2003 and opened in 2016. Dedicated to preserving and sharing the life, history and culture of Black Americans, the museum tells these stories through artifacts, art and interactive storytelling. That same year, Smith donated $20 million to establish the Center for the Digitization and Curation of African American History. The center includes the Robert F. Smith Explore Your Family History Center, the Community Curation Program, the Great Migration Home Movie Project and the Robert Frederick Smith Internship and Fellowship Program. In 2022, Smith joined the museum’s advisory board.
National Parks Foundation
The National Park Foundation (NPF), the nonprofit partner of the National Park Service, helps sustain the history and heritage of national parks across the U.S. through private support, strategic partnerships and programs. Smith and Fund II Foundation have partnered with the NPF to preserve national parks and historical sites for future generations. Smith has contributed to the National Park Foundation’s African American Experience Fund and, through Fund II Foundation, partnered with NPF to establish the African American Civil Rights Program. This initiative supports planning, development and research projects for historic sites connected to the Civil Rights Movement. Together, Smith, Fund II and NPF have helped preserve landmarks such as the homes of Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and others.
