The Archive Revival Collection
Great Then, Great Now
At Taliaferro Union, we believe in style and substance, form and function.
The seeds of our latest collection, The Archive Revival, were planted more than two years ago. What started as ideas bounced between old friends became sketches. Those sketches turned into shared galleries of reference material. Those reference images turned into the trips to Tuskegee's hallowed archives and the digital collections internet wide.
We poured over photographs and fragments of memories—moments frozen in time—capturing students from decades past in garments that told stories of dignity, ambition, and pride. These weren’t just clothes; they were cultural artifacts, heirlooms of style worn by the sons and daughters of Tuskegee. And we knew their stories deserved a second life.
Photo Courtesy: Alabama Department of Archives and History
What followed was an exhaustive journey to bring those pieces into the present. A venture undertaken by clothing industry amateurs driven by a singular focus and passion, our taste, love for our hometown and alma mater, and sheer will to bring this collection to life. A resurrection not of costume, but of character. We carefully selected the silhouettes that moved us most—those that embodied the spirit of Tuskegee’s unique sartorial legacy. From there, we began the meticulous process of reinterpreting these garments for a new generation.
Photograph Courtesy: Tuskegee University Archives, digital yearbook collection
Over the course of many months, we partnered with global manufacturers and artisans, testing everything from 100% wool to merino and cotton blends, from worsted textures to soft French terry. We tested, refined, and retested again. Silhouettes were tweaked. Patches were redrawn and remade. Buttons were engraved. Even the buttonholes received special treatment. It took multiple rounds of development samples to achieve the level of detail we knew these garments—and Tuskegee—deserved.
Our color palette wasn’t chosen, it was earned. Through countless rounds of lab dips and fabric trials, we arrived at tones that evoke timelessness, warmth, and identity—shades that feel both vintage and eternal. The result is a collection that looks back with reverence and forward with purpose and optimism.
Photograph Courtesy: Tuskegee University Archives, digital yearbook collection
While letterman sweaters, varsity jackets, and collegiate insignias are most often associated with the Northeastern Ivy League—Harvard, Yale, Princeton—the visual language of prep style has long transcended those institutions.
At Tuskegee, and at HBCUs more broadly, a parallel sartorial tradition has thrived. For generations, students have worn cardigans emblazoned with chenille letters, pullovers layered over oxford shirts, and varsity jackets with unmistakable flair.
Photograph Courtesy: Tuskegee University Archives, digital yearbook collection
This collection reaffirms what we’ve always known: We birthed cool—and Tuskegee has always been a part of the Black Ivy. As nostalgia resurfaces in today’s wardrobe choices, from vintage collegiate knits to archival outerwear, we saw an opportunity not just to follow the trend—but to honor the source. To reclaim and reframe the aesthetic through our own lens.
We like to say we design with your grandkids in mind. Because we believe in making clothing that lasts—not just in quality, but in meaning. This is fashion as a family archive. These are the pieces your descendants will fight over. The kind of garments you’ll wish your parents had kept. And that’s exactly what we set out to create.
We know the feeling well—scouring eBay and Depop for rare, one-of-one Tuskegee finds. Pieces from another era that still carry power. With the Archive Revival, we decided to reverse that equation: instead of wishing, we made what we had been searching for.
Archive Revival: Great Then, Great Now.
Not just a collection. A continuation.
Co-Founder/Designer, David A. Banks