AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY
People in African American History
The following are short descriptions of important and impactful people in 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.
Coretta Scott King with strikers
Courtesy of the Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture
 People in African American History
Explore encyclopedia entries written by expert historians exploring important and impactful people African American History.
Julia C. Collins (1842–1865)
Julia C. Collins was an African American educator, novelist, and abolitionist best known for her work The Curse of Caste;...
Lena Richard (1892–1950)
Lena Richard was a chef, restaurateur, cookbook author, and frozen food entrepreneur. In 1949, she became the first African American...
Lucy Orintha Oxley (1912-1991)
Pioneering physician and cancer researcher Lucy Orintha Oxley was born on August 19, 1912, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Her father, Edmund...
Joan Little (1954–)
Joan Little is an African American woman who was charged in 1974 with the murder of Clarence Alligood, a white...
Edith Irby Jones (1927–2019)
Edith Irby Jones was a pioneering American physician and a trailblazer in both medicine and civil rights. She achieved numerous...
Lynn Hamilton (1930–2025)
Alzenia Lynn Hamilton was an American actress. She was born on April 25, 1930, to Nancy and Louis Hamilton in...
At the Junction of History and Myth: Mary Fields (ca. 1832-1914), A Black Woman on the Montana Frontier
In the article below, writer Leslie Budewitz works to separate fact from fiction in the story of Mary Fields, one...
Abigail Hubbell McGrath (1940-2024)
Abigail Hubbell, a multi-talented actress and theater owner, was born as Abigail Calachaly Hubbell on September 18, 1940, in Manhattan,...
Prince Rogers Nelson (“Prince,” “The Artist Formerly Known As Prince”) (1958-2016)
Prince was one of the most popular musical artists of the 1980s. During a prolific 38-year career, Prince released 39...
