Edward Austin Johnson was a businessman, historian, educator, lawyer and politician. Born enslaved in Raleigh, N.C. on November 23, 1860, his parents Columbus and Eliza Johnson, had twelve children. He was educated by Nancy Walton, a free African American woman who also taught white children … Read MoreEdward A. Johnson (1860-1944)
Frederick Randolph Moore, a political activist and journalist, was born in 1857 to his slave mother and white father in Virginia. While Moore was still very young, the family moved to Washington, D.C., where Moore attended public schools and to make money, sold newspapers on … Read MoreFrederick Randolph Moore (1857-1943)
John Jones, apprentice tailor, writer, and politician was born in 1817 in Green City, North Carolina to a German father and an African American mother. Born a free man, he taught himself to read and write. Jones started his own tailoring business and eventually became … Read MoreJohn Jones (1817-1879)
When Gary Franks was elected to Congress in 1990, he was the first black representative from Connecticut and the first black Republican in Congress in nearly 50 years. Son of a brass factory worker and a dietary specialist, education was a high priority in Franks’s … Read MoreGary Franks (1953- )
George Lewis Ruffin was born December 16, 1834 in Richmond, Virginia, the son of free blacks. He was educated in Boston, Massachusetts and soon became a force in the city’s civic leadership. After marrying Josephine St. Pierre, Mr. Ruffin supported his family by working as … Read MoreGeorge Lewis Ruffin (1834-1886)
