Erika Weber, Author at

Independent Historian

Erika Weber grew up in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle Washington. She is currently attending the University of Washington in Seattle where she is a Business Administration major. She is also interested in pursuing a minor in psychology. In the future, she hopes to attend graduate school and earn her MBA. Her ultimate goal is to be a CEO of a record label. She enjoys playing music, especially guitar and piano, and inherited the history buff gene from her dad.

Johnnie Harrison Taylor (1934-2000)

Johnnie Harrison Taylor was an R&B and gospel singer prominent in the 1960s and 1970s. His career crossed genres and generations spanning around four decades and resulting in three Grammy nominations. He has released dozens of albums and was inducted in to the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame in 1999. Taylor was born … Read MoreJohnnie Harrison Taylor (1934-2000)

Garnet Douglass Baltimore (1859-1946)

Garnet Douglass Baltimore was the first African American to earn a bachelor’s degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and was an accomplished landscape engineer who made a huge impact on his hometown of Troy, New York. Baltimore’s most notable contribution to Troy was Prospect Park, which is an 84-acre … Read MoreGarnet Douglass Baltimore (1859-1946)

Walter J. Whitfield (1948- )

Brigadier General Walter John Whitfield was the first African American General in the Army National Guard. His career extends over thirty years in the military working in both active and reserve areas. During his period with the National Guard he also had a career as a … Read MoreWalter J. Whitfield (1948- )

Alice H. Parker (1895-?)

Alice H. Parker was an African American inventor famous for her patented system of central heating using natural gas. In the 1920s using natural gas to power a heating furnace was a revolutionary idea that conserved energy and paved the way for the central heating systems we … Read MoreAlice H. Parker (1895-?)

David L. Brewer, III (1946- )

Vice Admiral David L. Brewer III is 35-year veteran of the United States Navy and former superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District in California. The retired three-star admiral worked to develop the Navy College Program helping sailors receive higher education and oversaw the Military Sealift Command’s … Read MoreDavid L. Brewer, III (1946- )

Julia Jeter Cleckley (1944- )

Brigadier General Julia Jeter Cleckley was the first African American female General in the U.S. Army National Guard. Cleckley spent twenty-eight years in the active Army National Guard, rising in the ranks and breaking barriers. She was the first person of color in many positions throughout her … Read MoreJulia Jeter Cleckley (1944- )

Marjorie Stewart Joyner (1896-1994)

Marjorie Stewart Joyner was the inventor of the Permanent Wave Machine thus ensuring her a prominent place in cosmetology history. She helped write the first cosmetology laws for Illinois and founded the United Beauty School Owners and Teachers Association with Mary Bethune McLeod in 1945. Joyner was also active in the African American … Read MoreMarjorie Stewart Joyner (1896-1994)

Theodore Judson Jemison (1918-2013)

Rev. Theodore Judson Jemison was a civil rights leader and president of the National Baptist Convention. He was responsible for leading the Baton Rouge Bus Boycott in Louisiana in 1953, the first large-scale bus boycott protesting racial segregation in the South and advised Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on leading the Montgomery (Alabama) bus boycott two years later. … Read MoreTheodore Judson Jemison (1918-2013)

Muriel E. Poston (1950- )

Muriel E. Poston is an accomplished botanist and dedicated educator working to increase underrepresented populations in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Her extensive science career crosses many universities and institutions, including Howard University, and the National Science Foundation. Her expertise in botany lies in the flora of Central and South America, specifically Panama, Nicaragua, and Ecuador with … Read MoreMuriel E. Poston (1950- )

Charlotte Wesley Holloman (1922-2015)

Charlotte Wesley Holloman was an opera singer and voice teacher who taught at Howard University for over twenty years as the only vocal faculty member. She was a prominent opera star in Europe with credits in twenty-two operas in Germany, Switzerland, and France. After an accomplished performing career, Holloman resumed her career in music education. She returned to Washington D.C. … Read MoreCharlotte Wesley Holloman (1922-2015)