Early 1940s — Flovilla, Georgia

Before Chicago

Charlie Joe Henderson was born in Indian Springs, Georgia. As a boy, he snuck into the school library at night to read books. The South's school system wasn't giving Black children what they deserved. Charlie Joe found his own way to learn. He was always going to find a way.

Late 1950s — The Great Migration

Coming to Chicago

At 15, Charlie Joe's family brought him north to Chicago. He was part of the Great Migration — one of millions of Black Southerners who headed to the cities looking for something better. Chicago was that something better.

1961

The Partnership Begins

Charlie Joe's mother introduced him to Marie, who had come to Chicago from Mississippi at 14. They married and became lifelong business partners. Everything that followed, they built together.

1963 — 8 S. Pulaski Road

Henderson Studio

Charlie Joe opens Henderson Studio — a photography business and the first Henderson family store on Chicago's West Side. He wasn't supposed to be able to buy the property. A Jewish doctor named Dr. White purchased it on his behalf in exchange for free office space upstairs for life. Charlie Joe outsmarted the system.

The Music Begins

The Music Begins

Out of Henderson Studio, Charlie Joe and Marie ventured into records. Blues LPs, 45s, cassettes, 8-tracks. A decision that would define the family for generations.

1968 — The Night the Riots Came

The Spray-Painted Mark

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated. Chicago's West Side erupts. A young man stops in front of Henderson Studio and looks in the window. "Is this a Black-owned business?" Marie says yes. He pulls out a can of black spray paint and marks a 'B' on the window. "Don't worry. We're not gonna mess with y'all." Nobody touched the store.

1972 — Maxwell Street

Mayor of Maxwell Street

Charlie Joe sets up his table at the Maxwell Street Market. Blues LPs, cassettes, 8-tracks. Whenever vendors have a dispute, they come to Charlie Joe. He keeps order with fairness, not force.

Charlie Joe would often say: The Blues belongs to everyone. The Blues is as real as it gets.— Professor Alfonso Morales, University of Wisconsin

1970s–1980s

Ten Stores

At their peak, Charlie Joe and Marie ran 10 stores on Chicago's West Side. Henderson Studio. Tiki Alley. Marie's Wigs. Marie's Records. Shane Sunglasses locations. Fires took some. Displacement took others. Out of the Past Records is what endured.

1986 — 4407 W. Madison Street

Out of the Past Records Opens

Charlie Joe and Marie open Out of the Past Records. Blues, R&B, Rock, Soul in every format they can find. Collectors from around the world make it a stop on their trips to Chicago.

To Blues fans, his store was and still is a Chicago Metropolitan Museum of Blues.— Professor Steve Balkin, Roosevelt University

1994

Surviving Change

UIC and Mayor Daley shut down the original Maxwell Street Market. Eight hundred vendors don't follow when the city tries to move it to Canal Street. Charlie Joe takes the economic hit. He keeps showing up anyway. Every time the market moves, Charlie Joe moves with it.

2019

The Vinyl Renaissance

Vinyl is coming back. Collectors from Germany, Japan, France, India, and Holland are making Out of the Past a pilgrimage stop. Practically blind, Charlie Joe is still at the market every Sunday. With his sons beside him. Because the music and the market and the community are worth showing up for.

January 23, 2022

Charlie Joe Henderson

Charlie Joe Henderson passes away at 82. Interred in Indian Springs, Georgia, his birthplace.

If you wanted an old vinyl record but had no money, Charlie would give it to you for free. He taught his whole family to respect the customer and to respect the music.— Peter Pero, Chicago writer

Today — Marie and Annisa

The Story Continues

Marie Henderson is still at the store. Still behind the register. Still talking to every customer who walks through the door. Annisa Gooden, Marie's granddaughter, is making sure the story doesn't end.

People call it home because every time they come out here they see somebody they know they haven't seen in many years.— Marie Henderson

2026 — Still Here

Still Digging

Ten rooms of vinyl, 8-tracks, cassettes, CDs and music memorabilia. Blues, Soul, Jazz, R&B, Funk, Hip Hop. The old artists always sell.

I always knew records were going to come back. I got 10 rooms of records here.— Marie Henderson