Morgan State gains possession of part of late Rep. Elijah Cummings' estate

BALTIMORE -- Morgan State University has acquired part of the estate of the late political and civil rights advocate Elijah Cummings. 

A rare collection of Cummings's belongings is now in the university's possession -- photographs, speeches and personal notes. 

These are just some of the items that are in the hundreds of boxes Morgan State University acquired from the estate of the former U.S. Representative. 

Cummings was born and raised in Baltimore and went on to attend Baltimore City College. He later served his community as the longtime representative of Maryland's 7th District.

"We welcome back a native son," said Dr. Ida Jones, from Morgan State University. "He was born here in Baltimore and Elijah Cummings is a local hero. To have him come home, and to be resting in a place where he served on our Board of Regents is a fitting end of the circle to his life." 

Cummings served on Morgan State's Board of Regents from 1999 until his death on October 17, 2019, at the age of 68. 

"He really understood his responsibility to be a steward and a servant to the people who elected him into office," Cummings said. "He remained in the neighborhood, he remained visible, he remained accessible."

Now, students at Morgan will have access to this rare collection with university leaders saying they plan to have multiple displays from the collection on campus.

Morgan State is now looking to secure funding with plans on using that money to digitize this collection so they can share it with the world.