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Obama, Barack, Jr. (1961- )

Barack Obama is the 44th President of the United States and the first African American to occupy the White House. Obama was born August 4, 1961, in Honolulu, Hawaii. His father, Barack Obama Sr., was a Kenyan graduate student studying in the United States and his mother, Stanley Ann

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Source: Black Past

Emmitt Smith

Born on May 15, 1969, in Pensacola, Florida Emmitt Smith wished to be one of the Dallas Cowboys from a young age but the enthusiastic individual had to face many struggles before he could pursue a career in professional football. Belonging to a financially weak family, Smith had to juggle between

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Source: Black History Resources

May

15

1969

Leander Jay Shaw, Jr., justice of the Florida State Supreme Court (1983), first

Leander Jay Shaw, Jr., justice of the Florida State Supreme Court (1983), first African American chief justice (1990) in Florida, the second African American chief justice in any state supreme court, born

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Sep

6

1930

Slavery

Africans accompany Spanish explorer Panfilo de Narvez on his expedition that is ship wrecked, leaving only four survivors, in southwestern Florida; this expedition continues with Narvaezs successor, Alvar nunez Calbeza de Vaca.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Jan

0

1527

West Indies

West Indies, archipelago, between North and South America, curving c.2,500 mi (4,020 km) from Florida to the coast of Venezuela and separating the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico from the Atlantic Ocean. The archipelago, sometimes called the Antilles, is divided into three groups: the

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Gibbs, Jonathan (1827-1874)

Born a freeman in Pennsylvania in 1827, Jonathan Gibbs was the son of Maria Jackson and the Methodist minister, Jonathan

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Source: Black Past

West, Allen (1961- )

In 2010, retired lieutenant colonel Allen West became the first black Republican to represent Florida in Congress since Rep. Josiah T. Walls, who served during Reconstruction. Congressman West was born on February 7, 1961 in Atlanta, Georgia to Herman and Elizabeth West. His father was a career

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Source: Black Past

Feb

7

1961

The 1928 Bunion Derby: America’s Brush with Integrated Sports

In the following account sports historian Charles Kastner describes the Bunion Derby, the 1928 cross country footrace that captured the nation’s attention in the spring of 1928 and the remarkable group of black runners who participated in that event. For a detailed discussion of the race, see

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Source: Black Past

May

26

1928

10 Early Artists Who Defined the Blues

These are the 10 crucial artists who helped define the genre of the blues. Each one contributed greatly to the music, whether through their instrumental skills — usually on the guitar — or vocal talents, and their early recordings and performances influenced the cultural impact of the blues and the

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Source: ThoughtCo

Jarboro, Caterina (1903-1986)

Caterina Jarboro was born one of three children in Wilmington, North Carolina, to an American Indian mother and a black father who was a local barber. She was christened Katherine Lee Yarborough at St. Thomas Catholic Church in Wilmington. She received elementary school education at

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Source: Black Past

Wygant Et. Al. v. Jackson Board of Education Et. Al. (1986)

November 6, 1985, Argued

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Source: Black Past

Slavery

Africans accompany Spanish colonizer Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Jan

0

1526

10 Famous African American Women You Should Know About

It is not untrue when they said it’s a men’s world. One hardly see equal ratio of man and woman, be it in a workplace setting, educational institute or sports. Men always tend to stay ahead of women throughout the history. Even in the twenty-first century we see a huge pay gap between two genders

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Source: Famous African Americans

Bethune, Mary McLeod

Bethune, Mary McLeod bəthyo͞on´ [key], 1875–1955, American educator, b. Mayesville, S.C., grad. Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, 1895. The 17th child of former slaves, she taught (1895–1903) in a series of southern mission schools before settling in Florida to found (1904) the Daytona Normal and

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Anti-Slavery Law

The provisional governor of Florida abolishes slavery by proclamation.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Aug

3

1865

Coleman, William T. Jr. (1920-2017)

William T. Coleman, Jr., a prominent Republican lawyer and businessman, served as Secretary of Transportation under President Gerald Ford. Born in 1920 to a middle class Philadelphia, Pennsylvania family, Coleman attended a segregated elementary school. When he moved to Germantown High School he

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Source: Black Past

Mar

31

2017

Juanita Jewel Shanks Craft (1902-1985) and the Long Civil Rights Movement in Texas

A small but growing number of black women are slowly being recognized for their contributions to the “long” civil rights movement, the nearly century-long struggle by African Americans against all forms of racial discrimination. In the account below University of Texas-El Paso

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Source: Black Past

Oct

4

2013

Clarence Thomas

Clarence Thomas is the U.S. Supreme Court justice who was thrust into the limelight in his 1991 confirmation proceedings, during which he was accused of sexual harassment. Clarence Thomas grew up in rural Georgia, attended Conception Seminary and Holy Cross College, then graduated from Yale Law

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Claimed Pres. Election

President Rutherford B. Hayes and Samuel J. Tilden claimed the presidential election. Republicans and Democrats claimed elections in Louisiana, South Carolina and Florida.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Nov

7

1876

Nassau, Commonwealth of the Bahamas (1492--)

Nassau is the capital city and chief port of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, an archipelago of over 700 islands that stretch from 50 miles southeast of Florida. Nassau is located on New Providence Island and is the largest city in the Bahamas; approximately two-thirds of the nation’s people live

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Source: Black Past

Zora Neale Hurston’s Letter to the Orlando Sentinel, 1955

August 11, 1955

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Source: Black Past

Aug

11

1955

(1843) Henry Highland Garnet, "An Address To The Slaves Of The United States"

The National Negro Convention of 1843 was held in Buffalo, New York drawing some seventy delegates a dozen states. Among the delegates were young, rising leaders in the African American community including Frederick Douglass, William Wells Brown, Charles B. Ray and Charles L. Remond. Twenty-seven

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Source: Black Past

Simmons, William J. (1849-1890)

Born into slavery in Charleston, South Carolina on June 29, 1849, William J. Simmons served as the second president of what would later become Simmons College of Kentucky between 1880 and 1890. He was also a prominent historian and biographer of African American men. Simmons’s parents were Edward

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Source: Black Past

Jun

29

1849

Wesley Snipes

Wesley Snipes is an American actor, producer, martial artist and entrepreneur. He was born on July 31, 1962 in Orlando, Florida to Wesley and Maryann Snipes, and grew up in the Bronx, New York. He was inclined towards becoming a dancer at first but later changed his mind when he took acting classes

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Source: Black History Resources

Jul

31

1962

Perry, Julia Amanda (1924-1979)

Julia Amanda Perry was a prolific composer of neoclassical music during her relatively brief life. Born on March 25, 1924 in Lexington Kentucky, she spent most of her early years in Akron, Ohio. Her father, Dr. Abe Perry, was a doctor and amateur pianist, who once accompanied the tenor Roland

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Source: Black Past

Mar

25

1924

Republican National Convention, meeting in

Republican National Convention, meeting in Chicago, nominated U.S. Grant for the presidency. Convention marked the national debut of Black politicians. P.B.S. Pinchback of Louisiana and James J. Harris were delegates to the convention. Harris was named to the committee which informed Grant of his

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Source: Blackfacts.com

May

20

1868

Freddy Adu

Freddy Adu of Tema, Ghana, was born in 1989 and moved to the United States with his family at the age of eight. Adu had a nag for soccer from a young age and began competing in neighborhood matches at the age of four. From then on, Adu practiced every day to make his game

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Source: Black History Resources

Lydia Holmes patents wood toys

Lydia M. Holmes St. Augustine, Florida Patent No. 2,529,692 on November 14, 1950 are the plans for several easily assembled wooden pull toys including a bird, a truck and dog.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Nov

14

1950

Pratt , Edwin T. (1930-1969)

Edwin Thomas Pratt had been a leader in Seattle, Washington’s civil rights movement for a decade when he was assassinated at the front door of his home on January 26, 1969. At the time, Pratt was Executive Director of the Seattle Urban League. His murder remains

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Source: Black Past

What Comes Naturally: The Loving v. Virginia Case in Historical Perspective

When Richard Loving and Mildred Jeter decided to get married in June 1958, laws banning interracial marriage had been in effect for nearly three centuries. The colonies of Maryland, Virginia, and Massachusetts had banned intermarriage in 1664, 1691, and 1705. After the American Revolution, states

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Source: Black Past

Jun

12

1967

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