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.
Fannie Jackson was born a slave in Washington D.C. on October 15, 1837. She gained her freedom when her aunt was able to purchase her at the age of twelve. Through her teen years Jackson worked as a servant for the author George Henry Calvert … Read MoreFannie Jackson Coppin (1837-1913)
Playwright Ed Bullins was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1935. He was raised by his mother on Philadelphia’s North side, a community considered troubled and crime-ridden. Bullins has often recounted his near fatal death by stabbing while he was a youth. Many scholars note that … Read MoreEd Bullins (1935- )
Robert Reed Church, Sr., was a millionaire business leader and philanthropist in Memphis, Tennessee. Born in Holly Springs, Mississippi, on June 18, 1839, he was the product of an interracial union. His father was a steamboat captain, Charles B. Church, and his mother, Emmeline, was … Read MoreRobert Reed Church, Sr. (1839-1912)
Robert Reed Church, Jr. was born on October 26, 1885 in Memphis, Tennessee. He was the youngest son of Robert Church Sr., a prominent African American businessman in the city and his second wife, Anna Wright Church. Like his father, he became an important businessman, … Read MoreRobert Reed Church, Jr. (1885-1952)
Trish Millines Dziko is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Technology Access Foundation. A native of New Jersey, Dziko focused on college and ultimately became a first-generation college student. Ms. Dziko also made history by becoming the first woman to be awarded a full … Read MoreTrish Millines Dziko (1957- )
Millie Louise Bown Russell was born in Seattle in 1926 to Augustus and Edith Bown, a Pullman Porter and beautician, respectively. Augustus and Edith Bown met in Chicago, married and relocated to Seattle where Millie was born, one of seven children. Both parents were local … Read MoreMillie Russell (1926-2021)
Born in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi in 1901, Richmond Barthé moved to New Orleans, Louisiana at an early age. Little is known about his early youth, except that he grew up in a devoutly Roman Catholic household, he enjoyed drawing and painting, and his formal … Read MoreRichmond Barthé (1901-1988)
Born a freeman in Pennsylvania in 1827, Jonathan Gibbs was the son of Maria Jackson and the Methodist minister, Jonathan Gibbs. Gibbs was originally trained as a carpenter until in 1848. Then he became one of only two African Americans accepted at Dartmouth College in … Read MoreJonathan Gibbs (1827-1874)
Bass Reeves was the first African American commissioned to serve as a deputy U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi River. Born a slave in Paris, Texas and owned by George Reeves, Bass Reeves grew up illiterate and remained illiterate for his entire life. When the … Read MoreBass Reeves (1838-1910)
William Harvey Carney was born a slave in Norfolk, Virginia in 1840. His father William Sr. had escaped slavery through the Underground Railroad and eventually earned enough money to buy the freedom of his wife and son. After freeing his family, the reunited Carneys moved … Read MoreWilliam H. Carney (1840-1908)
