IMAGINED ARCHIVES
At Toogood Stories, we understand the past is alive—an intricate tapestry woven from memory, experience, and meaning. Through our Imagined Archives, we seek to bring the forgotten, the unidentified, and overlooked lives of Black women into the light, in celebration of their complexity, beauty, and resilience.
The photographs we collect—whether obtained at flea markets, purchased from online sellers, or handed down through generations—often tell fragmented stories. These images capture faces and a single moment in time, yet the spirits and legacies of these women endure. Though we may not always know individual names or stories, each photo is an invitation to imagine: to explore their hopes, dreams, and the lives they led.
In the Imagined Archives, we reframe the understanding of these photographs, filling in the gaps with stories of joy, struggle, triumph, and everyday life. We pay tribute to these women through the creation of a voice, context, and presence in a world that has often denied them recognition.
We invite you to join us in our ongoing exploration, to witness the power of imagination to transform history, and to reflect on the legacy of Black women whose stories deserve to be told.
Imagined Archives Stories:
Photo of unknown women in the 1950s or 1960s at Chicken Bone Beach, Atlantic City, NJ.
Photo Credit: John W. Mosley (1907-1969)