Here are some works that deal specifically with the history of Durham's African-American community. They are arranged in approximate chronological order by the time periods that they cover.

Quick, Oliver B. Milestones Along the Color Line: a Souvenir of Durham, N.C., Showing the Progress of a Race. Durham, O.B. Quick, c1922.
Mostly illustrations of buildings owned by members of Durham's African-American community during the 1920s.
Special Collections 2nd 89:G-H Box 30 (part of the Southgate-Jones Family Papers; preservation photocopy available).  Also, Special Collections Pam. Coll. 13483.

Brinton, Hugh P. The Negro in Durham: a Study of Adjustment to Town Life. 1930.
E185.93.N6 B756 1930a.

Houck, Thomas H. A Newspaper History of Race Relations in Durham, North Carolina, 1910-1940. 1941.
Perkins Theses A.M. H835 1941.  Also, University Archives.

Wilkinson, Edith Lewis. Pattern of Negro Segregation in Durham, North Carolina. 1950.
Looks at institutions such as hospitals, schools, and hotels in an age of segregation.
University Archives A.M. W686P 1950.

Cannon, Robert. The Organization and Growth of Black Political Participation in Durham, North Carolina, 1933-1958. 1975.
Perkins Microfilm M5241s.

Howard, Chris D. Keep Your Eyes on the Prize: the Black Struggle for Civic Equality in Durham, North Carolina, 1954-1963. 1983.
This work traces the civil rights movement until the desegregation of many Durham institutions in 1963.
Archives 904 D877 1983-HO.

Weare, Walter B. Black Business in the New South : a Social History of the North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company. Durham: Duke University Press, 1993.
This book traces the history of Durham's most prominent African-American business from its founding in 1898 through the 1960s.
HG8963.N9553 W4 1993. Also Special Collections.

Davidson, Osha Gray. The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South. New York: Scribner, 1996.
A case study of the civil rights movement, highlighting the friendship between a civil rights activist and a Ku Klux Klan leader.
E185.61 .D29 2007. Also Special Collections.

Redburn, Francis Stevens. Protest and Policy in Durham, North Carolina. 1970.
An analysis of the Civil Rights movement in 1960s Durham.
E185.93.N6 R433 1971a.