Dominga de la Cruz-Becerril, socialist, lecturer, poet, and declamadora, was born April 22, 1909 in Bueno Aires, Ponce, Puerto Rico (PR) to Catalina Becerril of Fajardo and Domingo Clarillo Cruz of Ponce. Reared in Mayagüez, both parents and godparents died while she was a pre-teen. … Read MoreDominga Cruz-Becerril (1909-1981)
Chief Festus Samuel Okotie-Eboh, one of the Founding Fathers of the Republic of Nigeria, was born on July 18, 1912 in the city of Warri to an Itsekiri Prince, Okotie Eboh of Jakpa. His mother, Ekayoda Ojegba was from another ethnic group, Urhobo in Okpe … Read MoreFestus Samuel Okotie-Eboh (1912-1966)
Allen and Albert Hughes are American film directors and producers, known for works such as Menace Society II and The Book of Eli. Albert was born minutes before Allen on April 1, 1972 to an African-American father, Albert Hughes, and Armenian-American mother, Aida, in Detroit, Michigan. Their parents divorced when they were … Read MoreAllen and Albert Hughes (1972- )
Simone Arianne Biles is an American artistic gymnast. She is a three-time world all-around champion (2013-2015), three-time world floor champion (2013-2015), four-time United States National all-around champion (2013-2016), and a member of the gold medal-winning American teams at the 2014 and 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics … Read MoreSimone Arianne Biles (1997- )
St. Philips Moravian Church is the oldest continuously operating black church in North Carolina. St. Philips is also the only historically black Moravian church in the United States. The Moravians were a Christian sect established by immigrants from the Moravia region of what is now … Read MoreSt. Philips Moravian Church, Winston-Salem, North Carolina (1822- )
Will Marion Cook was a talented musician, conductor, and composer born on January 27, 1869 in Washington, D.C. to John Hartwell Cook and Marion Isabelle Lewis. From 1884 to 1887 Cook studied violin at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. He then studied abroad for two … Read MoreWill Marion Cook (1869-1944)
Elliot C. van Zandt had a major impact on the development of Italian sports from 1947 to 1959. Born in Arkansas in 1915, van Zandt lost his father at a very early age. Census records indicate that Elliot’s widowed mother, a seamstress, probably left him … Read MoreElliot C. Van Zandt (1915-1959)
