The Steve Turner collection of photographs pertaining to the history of Colorado's African American community were acquired by History Colorado in February 2020 from a Cowan's auction, titled "The Road West: The Steve Turner Collection of African Americana, Part I." The auction included several photographs, manuscript material, art, and other items documenting African American history throughout the United States. The large collection of 300 lots included noteworthy items such as the last known photo portrait of Harriet Tubman, personal effects of Frederick Douglass, and the photographic work of prominent Black photographers like Augustus Washington, the Goodridge brothers, A.S. Thomas, and James P. Ball. A portion of the Steve Turner collection included relatively rare portrait and tourist photographs of African Americans in Colorado, which this collection is comprised of.
Steve Turner, the last owner of the material, is an art dealer and gallery owner from Los Angeles, California who has collected African American-related artifacts since 1996. He has also been directly involved in increasing the visibility of Black artists in the US through exhibition and his own scholarly research. One of his most noteworthy interests has been the work of artist William H. Johnson, whose paintings he highlighted in a traveling exhibit starting in 2002, "William H. Johnson, Truth be Told." As of 2020, Turner also continues to work with more contemporary artists through the Steve Turner Gallery at 6380 Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles, California.