Repository: Archives & Special Collections, Charles Evans Inniss Memorial Library of Medgar
Evers College, CUNY
Location: CEIML ASPC, Suite 0108
Identifier: CEI
Collection Title: Papers of Charles Evans Inniss, 1935-1997
Name of Creator(s): Charles Evans Inniss
Inclusive Dates: 1960-2006
Language(s): English
Quantity: 2 boxes of papers and photos; 1 box of plaques and trophies

SCOPE AND CONTENT
The collection is divided into 3 series: papers and photos; awards; and art works. The collection
arrangement follows the original order.

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Charles Evans Inniss, 1935–1997
Mr. Inniss devoted his life to community, social and educational concerns. A partial list of his
titles at his death included trustee of the City University of New York, chairman of the
university’s Construction Corporation, trustee and past chairman of the Studio Museum in
Harlem and a director of the Brooklyn Children’s Museum, the Catholic Interracial Council, the
Marcus Garvey Nursing Home in Brooklyn and the Staten Island Zoological Society.
At the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, a nonprofit community development group
in Brooklyn where he became a director in 1983 and was elected chairman in 1994, Mr. Inniss
helped establish and develop the Bedford-Stuyvesant Family Health Center, the Billie Holiday
Theater and the corporation’s Center for Art and Culture. He first served the corporation as its
director of area development from 1969 to 1973.
At various times and in various capacities he also helped the Brooklyn Arts Council, the Mayor’s
New York City Advisory Cultural Commission, the American Gas Foundation and the Black
Officer’s Association. He was a retired captain of the 369th Artillery Battalion of the Army
National Guard.
Mr. Inniss joined Brooklyn Union Gas in 1979 as an assistant manager in public relations and
communications. He retired in 1995 as vice president for community affairs.
Mr. Inniss was born in Harlem and spent the formative years of his childhood in the East Bronx.
His parents, Edna and Stanley Inniss, had come to the United States from Barbados and Canada.
He graduated from Evander Childs High School and in 1968 earned a Bachelor of Science
degree in economics from New York University. He began his career as an assistant district
service manager for Dun & Bradstreet Corporation.
In 1980, Mr. Inniss received a master’s degree in public information from N.Y.U. His honors
included a Doctor of Laws degree from St. Joseph’s College in Brooklyn.
(New York Times, Feb 1, 1997)

INDEX TERMS
Individual names
Inniss, Charles Evans, 1935-1997
Institutions and Programs
The 369th Infantry Regiment
The American Gas Foundation
The Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation
The Brooklyn Children’s Museum
Brooklyn Home for Aged People
The Brooklyn Union Gas Company
The Catholic Interracial Council of New York
The Charles E. Inniss St. Joseph Franciscan House
City University of New York, CUNY
The Ford Foundation
The Hundred Year Association of New York
The Model Cities Program
New York University, NYU
St. Joseph’s College
The Studio Museum in Harlem

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
Acquisition Information: This collection was donated to the Archives of the Charles Evans
Inniss Memorial Library, Medgar Evers College, CUNY in 2014 by Mr. Inniss’ wife, Marjorie
Thomas-Inniss.

Processing Information: Finding aid and collection processing were completed by Yelena
Novitskaya, Archives and Special Collections librarian, in 2016.
Conditions of Access and Use: Access to the collection is unrestricted. It is available for
research purposes. Duplication of the collection may be governed by copyright and other
restrictions.
Physical Access: Appointment is required for access.

COLLECTION INVENTORY AND DESCRIPTION
This collection contains personal papers and photographs of Charles Evans Inniss and his awards
(plaques and trophies).

SERIES 1. PAPERS AND PHOTOS. Box 1
369th Regiment, 1960-1995
NYU materials, 1979-1980
Speeches, 1993-1996,
Newspapers clippings, 1990s
Miscellaneous correspondence, 1960s-1980s
Proclamations, certificates
Obituaries, 1997
Condolences, 1997
Photos

SERIES 1. PAPERS AND PHOTOS. Box 2
Events, 1989-1997
Studio Museum in Harlem, 1968-1998
Model Cities, 1976-1978
Brooklyn Home for Aged People, 1970-1991
Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, 1981-2006
Catholic Interracial Council of New York, 1988-1992
Brooklyn Children’s Museum, 1989-2001
The Brooklyn Union Gas Company, 1983-1995
American Gas Foundation, 1990
St. Joseph’s College, 1993
Charles Evans Inniss St. Joseph Franciscan House, 1994-1997
Ford Foundation, 1995
100 Year Association
CUNY, 1986-1997
Photos

SERIES 2. PLAQUES AND TROPHIES. Box 3