A photographer best known for documenting Black life in Pittsburgh during the mid-20th century, Charles “Teenie” Harris (1908–1998) was a lifelong resident of the community he chronicled.

Born and raised in the city’s Hill District, he got his first camera at age 3 and began his professional career in 1937, opening a studio and taking on freelance work. In 1941, Harris became staff photographer for the Pittsburgh Courier, which was then the country’s preeminent Black newsweekly. He worked there for 35 years.

His photographs, taken in homes, clubs, stadiums, streets, and alleys, captured moments small and large, from everyday life to famous figures such as Muhammad Ali, Duke Ellington, and Martin Luther King Jr. Seen nationwide through the Courier, those images played a key role in shaping how Black Americans defined themselves.

Now archived at Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Museum of Art, a collection of more than 75,000 Harris photographs provides a rich visual record of African American culture and achievements during a crucial period for Black Americans, and the images are celebrated for their honesty, warmth, and historical importance.