Historically black two-year colleges have existed in the United States since 1875, yet little is known about them because they have been largely ignored by educational researchers. Most black two-year schools were founded by religious bodies and were limited geographically to the South. Enrollment in black two-year colleges reached its zenith in 1950-51, when 7,173 students were enrolled in twenty-four schools. These institutions had erratic histories, closing and reorganizing often, sometimes changing from four-year to two-year schools as a part of the retrenchment process. The history of the black two-year colleges is revealed in this paper, as well as some hypotheses regarding the relative obscurity of these institutions as far as research is concerned. A list of more than one hundred historically black two-year colleges that have existed over the past century is included. (AH)