“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Cosmetics entrepreneur Comer Joseph Cottrell, Jr. was born in Mobile, Alabama on December 7, 1931. His father was a life insurance salesman, and his mother, Helen Smith Cottrell, performed a variety of cleaning jobs. Cottrell became fascinated with business at an … Read MoreComer Joseph Cottrell Jr. (1931-2014)
Anthony Foxx, the seventeenth United States Secretary of Transportation, was born April 30, 1971 in Charlotte, North Carolina, and raised by his mother, Laura Foxx, and grandparents James and Mary Foxx. He graduated from West Charlotte High School in 1989, and four years later received … Read MoreAnthony Renard Foxx (1971- )
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Clarence Everett Lightner, the first popularly elected mayor of Raleigh, North Carolina and the first African American elected mayor of a metropolitan Southern city, was born on August 15, 1921 to Mammie Blackmon and Calvin E. Lightner in Raleigh. His father, … Read MoreClarence Everett Lightner (1921-2002)
Alvin J. Boutte Sr., co-founder and past chairman and CEO of Independence Bank (at one time America’s largest black-owned bank), was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana on October 10, 1929. He was the youngest of 10 children. His mother Adorea Darensbourg Boutte was a seamstress, and his … Read MoreAlvin J. Boutte Sr. (1929-2012)
Influential educational leader Freeman A. Hrabowski III has occupied many roles in his life, as a child civil rights activist in the 1960s, as professor, as university president, as philanthropist, and as consultant. He was born on August 13, 1950 in Birmingham, Alabama to parents … Read MoreFreeman A. Hrabowski III (1950- )
Image Ownership: G.D. Hackett/Pictorial Parade (Fair Use) Ulysses Simpson Kay, Jr., was one of the leading black composers in the classical music industry in the 20th Century. Born in Tucson, Arizona, Kay grew up in a musically talented family. His mother, Elizabeth Kay, was a … Read MoreUlysses S. Kay (1917-1995)
Educator, diplomat and businessman, Jerome Heartwell Holland was born on January 9, 1916 in Auburn, New York. The parents of Holland, and that of his twelve other siblings, were Robert Holland, a gardener/carpenter, and Viola Bagby Holland. For the entirety of his life, Holland maintained … Read MoreJerome Heartwell Holland (1916-1985)
Educator and Sociologist Charles Eric Lincoln was born June 23, 1924 in Athens, Alabama. After he was abandoned by his parents, Lincoln was raised by his maternal grandparents. He attended the Trinity School in Athens, an institution created by the New England-based Congregational Church to … Read MoreC. Eric Lincoln (1924-2000)
Born on July 3, 1919 in North Little Rock, Arkansas, Samuel Proctor Massie was as one of the few African American scientists to work on the Manhattan Project during World War II. He later became a distinguished professor of chemistry. Massie graduated from Dunbar High … Read MoreSamuel P. Massie (1919-2005)
Civil rights attorney Wiley Austin Branton Sr. was born on December 13, 1923 in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. His father, Leo Andrew Branton, ran a family-owned taxi cab business while his mother, Pauline Wiley, was a school teacher. Branton attended a segregated elementary, junior high, and … Read MoreWiley Austin Branton (1923-1988)
