Caesar Carpenter “C.C.” Antoine is best known as a leading African American politician in Louisiana during Reconstruction (1863-1877). Antoine was born in New Orleans to a Black father who fought the British as an American soldier at the Battle of New Orleans (1815), and to … Read MoreCaesar Carpenter Antoine (1836-1921)
Rep. John Lewis was a U.S. Congressman and civil rights icon, who chaired the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee from 1963 to 1966. He was a Democrat who represented Georgia’s 5th Congressional District from 1987 until his death in 2020. John Robert Lewis was born in … Read MoreJohn Lewis (1940-2020)
James Enos Clyburn was born in Sumter, South Carolina on July 21, 1940 to parents Enos and Almeta Clyburn. James Clyburn’s father was a minister and his mother was a cosmetologist. In 1957 James Clyburn graduated from Mather Academy located in Camden, South Carolina. Four … Read MoreJames Enos Clyburn (1940- )
It may be impossible today to understand fully the shock and outrage which alto saxophonist Ornette Coleman’s 1959 arrival in New York caused within the jazz community. Coleman’s innovations freed his quartet from traditional structures of form, chordal harmony, tonality, and rhythm, and though his … Read MoreOrnette Coleman (1930-2015)
A jazz pianist and bandleader, Count Basie was one of the leading musicians of the Big Band “Swing” era. His Count Basie Orchestra was formed in 1936, and featured singers such as Billie Holliday, and notable musicians including Lester Young, Jo Jones, and Walter Page. … Read MoreWilliam Allen (Count) Basie (1904-1984)
The life of the Reverend Cordy Tindell “C.T.” Vivian is in many ways the story of the modern black freedom struggle. Vivian actively participated in the Nashville desegregation movement, Freedom Rides, Birmingham, Selma, Chicago, and other chapters of the fight for equal rights. Born Boonville, … Read MoreCordy Tindell “C.T.” Vivian (1924-2020)
Winston Elliott Scott, a former Navy Captain and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronaut, was born on August 6, 1950 in Miami, Florida to Alston Scott and Rubye Scott. Winston Scott graduated from Coral Gables High School in 1968 and received a B.A. degree … Read MoreWinston E. Scott (1950- )
James Thomas Rapier was a Republican representative from the state of Alabama elected to the 43rd United States Congress. Rapier was born on November 13, 1837 in Florence, Alabama and attended high school in Nashville, Tennessee. In 1856 at the age of 19 he traveled … Read MoreJames Thomas Rapier (1837-1883)
Stephanie St. Clair was born in Martinique, an island in the East Caribbean on December 24, 1897 and came to the United States via Marseilles, France. In 1912 fifteen-year-old St. Clair arrived in Harlem and eventually by the 1920s became known for her deep involvement … Read MoreStephanie St. Clair (1897–1969)
A director, actor and theatre administrator of the regional and professional stage, Frederick O’Neal was one of the chief architects of the American Negro Theatre (ANT) in Harlem, New York, in the 1940s. He was involved actively in professional theatre for over 40 years, between … Read MoreFrederick O’Neal (1905-1992)
