A Missing Chapter: Shining a Light on Black Contributions to Silicon Valley

In 2019, the Stanford University Libraries’ Silicon Valley Archives launched an oral history project to begin the work of assembling a more factual and inclusive history of Silicon Valley with a focus on the Black community, often overlooked in standard works on the region’s development.

The naming of the project’s archive honors Ken and Caretha Coleman for their significant and lasting impact on the culture and ethics of Silicon Valley over the past fifty years. During their respective careers in technology, venture capital, and healthcare, the Colemans not only achieved highly as business leaders, but they also advised countless numbers of executives and strived to build inclusive and diverse workplaces for people of color and women.

“We are deeply honored to have the Black History Archive bear our names,” said Ken and Caretha. “This is not only a personal blessing, but a lasting tribute to the countless Black leaders whose courage, vision, and perseverance have shaped our past — as well as those who will light the way forward. Our hope is that these archives stand as a living legacy, reminding future generations of the importance and power of stories. Through these archives, their voices and work will live on in perpetuity.”

Added Michael A. Keller, the Ida M. Green University Librarian, “Historians will write about Silicon Valley for hundreds of years. The Silicon Valley Archives, drawing upon Stanford’s close relations with local scientists and entrepreneurs, is uniquely positioned to preserve vanishing records which go beyond fascination with ingenious inventions and incredible wealth. The Coleman Archive presents a more realistic appraisal that reveals, for example, the decades-long struggle to eliminate endemic racism and sexism in business. We trust that it will inspire generations of students and become a destination collection for visiting scholars.”

Fred Gibbons, adjunct professor of Electrical Engineering at Stanford and formerly the founding CEO of Software Publishing Corporation in Mountain View, made the inaugural gift to the endowment established to support the Coleman Archive. The endowment will enable Stanford University Libraries to acquire and expedite the processing of newly arriving materials, conduct ongoing oral history interviews, and host a series of related events, exhibits, and lectures.

“Ken and Caretha Coleman have had a profound impact on my career and life,” shared Gibbons. “They supported my move from the East Coast to Silicon Valley and helped me launch my first role as a product manager at Hewlett-Packard. Our relationship deepened when Caretha joined me in building and growing Software Publishing Corporation. Over the years, I relied on both Ken and Caretha as team members, sounding boards, and mentors, and I watched them offer the same support and inspiration to countless others. My hope for these archives is that they will preserve the Colemans’ remarkable legacy, encourage others in their vast network to share their stories, and help future generations understand and learn from this rich history of Black people in Silicon Valley.”

“The Coleman Archive brings to light the contributions of its honorees, Ken and Caretha Coleman, and many others like theirs,” noted Henry Lowood, Harold C. Hohbach Curator for History of Science & Technology Collections and head of the Silicon Valley Archives. “Its formation was inspired by Kathy Cotton’s 2016 documentary, ‘A Place at the Table: Black Pioneers of Silicon Valley,’ which featured selections from interviews with prominent Black businesspeople, engineers, and entrepreneurs who were active in Silicon Valley from the 1950s forward. The importance and urgency of this project was underlined by the recent passing of Roy Clay Sr., a key figure in the development of the personal computer and of tech giant Hewlett-Packard, who paved the way for generations of Blacks in Silicon Valley by recruiting from historically Black colleges and universities.”
 

The Silicon Valley Archives at Stanford University Libraries traces its origins to the launch of the Stanford and Silicon Valley Project in 1985. Today, it is a renowned repository of primary source materials such as unpublished professional correspondence, research notes, diaries, corporate records, and patent applications. Notable holdings include the Apple Computer Records and the papers of Gordon Moore, Robert N. Noyce, Russell and Sigurd Varian, Ray Dolby, among many others. The work of Stanford faculty such as Edward A. Feigenbaum and John McCarthy, leading figures in the development of artificial intelligence, is also well represented in the Silicon Valley Archives.

The Ken and Caretha Coleman Archive of Black Histories in Silicon Valley seeks the personal and professional papers of Blacks who pursued careers in technology and related fields, with the objective of assembling a robust collection of these materials sufficient for scholars to write a missing chapter in the celebrated history of Silicon Valley.

Stanford University Libraries Contacts

Anh Ly, Assistant University Librarian for External Relations

Henry Lowood, Harold C. Hohbach Curator for History of Science & Technology Collections, Silicon Valley Archives