Mayme Clayton collected books， magazines and letters written by African Americans. Her son， Avery Clayton， thought her collection was important. Unlike most books， these were rare and hard to find. They were written by writers who helped shape African American culture.

    One book in the collection was written by Phillis Wheatley. Wheatley was a slave who wrote poetry. She was the first African American to publish a book. Wheatley herself signed (签名) the book in the Claytons' collection. No one else owns a copy signed by Phillis Wheatley.

    By the time she passed away at age 83， Mrs. Clayton had more than 30，000 books by or about black people. Her collection also includes papers about slaves， photographs， movies， sheet music， and personal letters by black leaders and artists. It is one of the biggest personal collections of African American history and culture in the United States.

    Avery Clayton's dream was to create a museum for his mother's treasures.  Scholars say that Mrs. Clayton's collection is very important. Without her work， part of African American heritage (遗产) would have been lost. “We didn't know these things existed，” says Sara Hadron of California's Huntington Library.

    The collections new home is likely to be in Culver City， California. Part of Avery Clayton's dream is to share the cultural riches his mother collected with others. He especially wants children to have a chance to see the collection. “ At present African American culture is being explained by pop culture，” he says， “ It's important to offer a more complete picture.”