Anchoring the west end of the Sweet Auburn historic district, the Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture and History (AARL) opened May 1994 in Atlanta. A special library of the Fulton County Library System (FCLS), it is the first public library in the Southeast to promotes specialized library service, archival resources, and culturally/educationally related activities essential for study and use by the general public, students, and scholars of the culture and history of peoples of African descent.