The following are short descriptions of the women and men who have contributed to the shaping of African American history. These encyclopedia entries serve as a starting point for much more inclusive descriptions and discussions that appear in other sources. For additional information please consult the print or website sources cited in the entry.
Richard Howell Gleaves was a Haitian-American merchant, lawyer, politician, and the 55th Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina. Greaves was born free on July 4, 1819, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to a Haitian father and English mother. He received his early education in Philadelphia and New Orleans. … Read MoreRichard Howell Gleaves (1819-1907)
Thurbert Earl Baker is a lawyer and Democratic politician who served as the 46th Attorney General of Georgia. Baker was born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, on December 16, 1952. He was raised by his mother Mary H. Baker on a small farm. He graduated … Read MoreThurbert Earl Baker (1952- )
Daniel Jay Cameron is an attorney, politician, and the 51st Attorney General of Kentucky. Cameron was born on November 22, 1985 in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. His father owned a local coffee shop, and his mother was a professor at Elizabethtown Community & Technical College. Cameron graduated … Read MoreDaniel Jay Cameron (1985- )
Pellom McDaniels, the first born of Pellom and Mary McDaniels, was born on February 21, 1968. He was an all-American professional football player who played defensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL). Although he was a well-known player for the Kansas City Chiefs (1992-1998), … Read MorePellom McDaniels III (1968-2020)
Garlin Gilchrist is a politician, entrepreneur, and activist serving as the 64th Lieutenant Governor of Michigan. Gilchrist was born September 25, 1982, in Detroit, Michigan. He graduated from Farmington High School, in Farmington, Michigan. He then attended University of Michigan College of Engineering, graduating with … Read MoreGarlin Gilchrist (1982- )
Born in Brownsville, Tennessee, on February 7, 1949, Walker was one of four children to parents Roger E. Walker Sr. and Ida Currie Walker who later moved to Decatur, Illinois. A graduate of Richland Community College in Decatur, Illinois, he joined the U.S. Navy and … Read MoreRoger E. Walker Jr. (1949-2012)
In 2011 Antoine M. Garibaldi was named University of Detroit Mercy’s 25th president. He was also the first lay president and first African American at this 1877 Jesuit-founded institution that consolidated with Mercy College of Detroit in 1990. Prior to Detroit Mercy, Garibaldi was the … Read MoreAntoine M. Garibaldi (1950- )
Reverend Henry Clay Anderson was a pastor, teacher, veteran, and photographer, best known for capturing the lives of the black middle class of Greenville, Mississippi from 1948 to 1986. He was born in Nitta Yuma, Mississippi, in 1911 and spent his childhood in Hollandale outside … Read MoreReverend Henry Clay Anderson (1911-1998)
Journalist and Think Tank founder Eddie Nathan Williams was born on August 18, 1932, in Memphis, Tennessee. His father Ed Williams was a musician. His mother’s name is unknown. In 1950, he left the South to attend the University of Illinois. As an undergraduate from … Read MoreEddie N. Williams (1932-2017)
Vonetta McGee was a talented actress now best remembered as a popular leading lady in blaxploitation films such as Hammer (1972), Blacula (1972), and Shaft in Africa (1973).” Born Lawrence Vonetta McGee on January 14, 1945 to parents Lawrence and Alma (Scott) McGee, she grew … Read MoreVonetta McGee (1945-2010)
