Byron Lewis Papers
name: label: Donor
content: Lewis, Byron E., Sr., 1931-
label: Names
content: Uniworld Group, Inc. (Bethesda, Md.)
label: Donor
content: Lewis, Sylvia Wong
topic: label: Topic
content: advertising
label: Topic
content: Advertising agencies
label: Topic
content: African American actors
label: Topic
content: African American actresses
label: Topic
content: African American politicians
label: Topic
content: African Americans -- Politics and government
label: Topic
content: African Americans -- Religion
label: Topic
content: Audio tapes
label: Topic
content: Black people -- History
label: Topic
content: Business Advertising
label: Topic
content: Consumerism. Consumers--History--20th century
label: Topic
content: Consumers--History--20th century
label: Topic
content: Ethnic radio programs
label: Topic
content: Film festivals
label: Topic
content: Fraternal organizations
label: Topic
content: HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities)
label: Topic
content: Minority consumers
label: Topic
content: Publicity
label: Topic
content: Soap operas -- 1970-1990
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Collection donated by Byron Eugene Lewis, Sr. and Sylvia Lewis, December 8, 2022.
creator: label: Donor
content: Lewis, Byron E., Sr., 1931-
setName: label: See more items in
content: Byron Lewis Papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: Collection documents the life and career of Byron Eugene Lewis, Sr. founder of UniWorld Group, Incorporated, (UWG), an early African American advertising agency.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Byron Eugene Lewis, Sr. was born on Christmas Day in 1931 to Eugene and Myrtle Lewis in Newark, New Jersey.  Lewis founded UniWorld Group, Incorporated (UWG) advertising agency in 1969 to champion multicultural advertising and promote the importance of African American and Latino consumers. His company created multi-media advertisements and campaigns for clients such as Lincoln Motor Company; Mars, Incorporated; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM); Stax Records; American Telephone & Telegraph (AT&T); Ford Motor Company; United States Marine Corps; Burger King Corporation; PepsiCo, Incorporated; Quaker Oats Company; Avon Products, Incorporated; and Home Depot, Incorporated.   

Lewis leveraged his corporate clients to help Civil Rights projects, including his media work for Black activists and politicians; provided work for Black artists and creatives; helped educational and cultural causes like Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Apollo Theater, the Schomburg Research Center, and the African Burial Ground Project.  In addition, he travelled to Kenya, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Sudan, and Ghana in the 1970s as part of his work for the United States State Department to promote advertising and national brand-building strategies.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 15 Cubic feet (27 boxes, 1 map folder)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1931-2023, undated
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives Center, National Museum of American History
identifier: label: Identifier
content: NMAH.AC.1583
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Brochures
label: Type
content: Business cards
label: Type
content: Commercials
label: Type
content: Correspondence
label: Type
content: Magazines (periodicals)
label: Type
content: Photographs
label: Type
content: Videotapes
label: Type
content: Radio scripts
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: Collection is arranged into eleven series.

Series 1: Personal Papers, 1942-2021, undated


Series 2: Business Records, 1969-2023, undated


Series 3: Correspondence, 1950-2022, undated


Series 4: Projects, 1961-2012, undated


Series 5: Awards, 1980-2013, undated


Series 6: Events, 1972-2022, undated


Series 7: Press, 1971-2019, undated


Series 8: African Burial Ground, 2003-2021, undated


Series 9: Sylvia Wong Lewis, 1981-2017, undated

Series 10: Photographic Materials, 1931-2021, undated

Series 11: Audiovisual Materials, 1980s-2014, undated

Subseries 11.1: Video Cassette Tapes, 1991-2003, undated

Subseries 11.2: Compact Discs, 1980s-2014, undated
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: Collection processed by Audrey Willius, intern, 2023 and Vanessa Broussard-Simmons, archivist, 2023. Finding aid encoded by Audrey Willius, intern, 2023 and Meredith Clowse, intern, 2024.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Brochures
label: Genre/Form
content: Business cards
label: Genre/Form
content: Commercials -- 20th century
label: Genre/Form
content: Correspondence
label: Genre/Form
content: Magazines (periodicals)
label: Genre/Form
content: Photographs
label: Genre/Form
content: Videotapes
label: Genre/Form
content: Radio scripts
scopecontent: label: Content Description
content: Archival materials documenting the life and career of Byron Eugene Lewis, Sr. founder of UniWorld Group, Incorporated, (UWG), an early African American advertising agency. Materials include photographs, correspondence, business records, awards, drawings, newspaper clippings, magazines (e.g. Urbanite Magazine and the Tuesday Magazine), radio scripts, compact discs, and video cassette tapes. The collection is arranged in eleven series.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: Materials at the Archives Center, National Museum of American History


NW Ayer & Sons, Incorporated Advertising Agency Records, NMAH.AC.0059


Emmett McBain Afro-American Advertising Poster Collection, NMAH.AC.0192


Kraft Television Theatre Oral History Project, 1947-1992, NMAH.AC.0464


African American Cosmetic and Food Label Collection, NMAH.AC.0480


Caroline R. Jones Papers, NMAH.AC.0552


Sosa, Bromley, Aguilar, and Associates Records, NMAH.AC.1351


Hector and Norma Orcí Advertising Agency Records, NMAH.AC.1384
separatedmaterial: label: Separated Materials
content: National Museum of American History (NMAH), Division of Work and Industry

Advertising Hall of Fame award, accession number 2022.0243


Best of Black Business award, accession number 2022.0243


Giraffe sculpture, accession number 2022.0243


Graphic print, accession number 2022.0243


Hippopotamus sculpture, accession number 2022.0243


Motorcycle sculpture, accession number 2022.0243


Motorcycle sculpture, accession number 2022.0243


Print "Equipoise" by Daniel LaRue Johnson, accession number 2022.0243


Print "Picking Cotton" by Robert Gwathmey, accession number 2022.0243