Brian Gann, Author at

Independent Historian

Brian Gann is a 2011 graduate of the University of Washington where he majored in history. In 2010, he received the Dr. Frances K. Millican Fund in order to pursue his research of Washington State Public Ports and the environment. In addition to BlackPast, Gann wrote for HistoryLink.org. After his undergraduate career, he entered the technology space.

Harris-Stowe University (1857- )

Harris-Stowe University is a historically black college in St. Louis, Missouri. It was also the first public teacher education institution west of the Mississippi River. Harris-Stowe was originally two separate institutions: Harris Teachers College and Stowe Teachers College, which were merged together in 1954 to … Read MoreHarris-Stowe University (1857- )

T.R.M. Howard (1908-1976)

Born March 4, 1908, Theodore Roosevelt Mason Howard was a wealthy doctor, successful entrepreneur, and civil rights activist. Born and raised in Murray, Kentucky, Howard seemed destined to follow in his father’s footsteps as a tobacco twister until a white doctor at Murray’s local hospital … Read MoreT.R.M. Howard (1908-1976)

Spottswood William Robinson (1916-1998)

Spottswood William Robinson III, a prominent federal judge during the Civil Rights era, was born on July 26, 1916 in Richmond, Virginia. His father was Spottswood William Robinson Jr., a lawyer and businessman, and his mother was Inez Clements. The younger Robinson attended Armstrong High … Read MoreSpottswood William Robinson (1916-1998)

Sidney Barthwell (1906-2005)

Born on February 17, 1906 in Cordele, Georgia, Sidney Barthwell was the founder of Barthwell Drugs, once the largest chain of black-owned drug stores in the United States. As a young man, he attended Lucius H. Holsey Academy of Excellence in Fitzgerald. In 1922, he … Read MoreSidney Barthwell (1906-2005)

Rufus B. Atwood (1897-1963)

Academic, leading educator, World War I veteran, and president of Kentucky State College for Colored Persons (later Kentucky State College for Negroes and now Kentucky State University), Rufus Ballard Atwood was born on March 15, 1897 near Hickman, Kentucky. The child of former slaves, Atwood … Read MoreRufus B. Atwood (1897-1963)

The Bloods (1972 – )

The Bloods are a predominantly African American street gang that originated in South Central Los Angeles, California in 1972. The genesis of the Bloods street gang is traced to the intense street violence that consumed the city in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Much … Read MoreThe Bloods (1972 – )

Harold M. Kingsley (1887-1970)

Harold M. Kingsley, Congregational minister and political activist, was born in Mobile, Alabama in 1887. The son of a wealthy white man and a poor black woman, Kingsley was raised by Baptists but sent to an Episcopal church because his family believed it was closely … Read MoreHarold M. Kingsley (1887-1970)

John Wesley Edward Bowen (1855-1933)

Image Ownership: Public Domain Educator, philosopher and theologian John Wesley Edward Bowen preached for social equality fifty years before the U.S. Civil Rights Movement. He supported black intellectualism and urged African Americans to develop self worth even in the face of white oppression. John Wesley … Read MoreJohn Wesley Edward Bowen (1855-1933)

The Crips (ca. 1971- )

The Crips are a predominantly African American gang that originated sometime between the mid-1960s and 1971 in South Central Los Angeles, California. The origin of the Crips is highly mythologized and facts are difficult to separate from myth. One of the most common versions involves … Read MoreThe Crips (ca. 1971- )

The Nigerian Youth Movement (1934-1951)

J.C. Vaughn, Ernest Ikoli, H.O. Davies, and Samuel Akinsanya founded the Nigerian Youth Movement (NYM) in 1934. Although based in Lagos, the NYM was the first Nigerian nationalist organization to promote politics outside of the capital. Furthermore, the NYM was also the first organization to … Read MoreThe Nigerian Youth Movement (1934-1951)