Henry Binga Dismond, a star athlete, medical device inventor, pioneering physician and poet, was born on December 27, 1891, in Richmond, Virginia to Dr. Samuel H. Dismond and Jessie Cornelia Binga. Henry attended Richmond public schools, Virginia Union University, and Howard University, where he graduated … Read MoreHenry Binga Dismond (1891-1956)
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Samuel Eugene Kelly, soldier and educator, was born in Greenwich, Connecticut on January 26, 1926 to James Handy Kelly, a minister, and Essie Matilda Allen-Kelly, a homemaker. Educated at Greenwich public schools, Kelly dropped out of high school in 1943 and … Read MoreSamuel Eugene Kelly (1926-2009)
Civil rights activist Osceola Enoch (“Mac”) McKaine was born in Sumter, South Carolina on December 17, 1892. In 1908, at the age of 16, he moved to Boston, Massachusetts where he attended classes at Boston College. Later he worked as associate editor of the Cambridge … Read MoreOsceola Enoch McKaine (1892-1955)
“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)
Walter Samuel McAfee, theoretical physicist, professor, and civil servant was born in Ore City, Texas to Susie and Luther McAfee on September 2, 1914. His father, Luther McAfee, was a mechanic and carpenter, while his mother, Susie, was an educator. McAfee earned a Bachelor’s degree … Read MoreWalter Samuel McAfee (1914-1995)
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Ronald DeWayne Palmer, U.S. ambassador to three nations—Togo, Malaysia, and Mauritius—was born on May 22, 1932, in Uniontown, Pennsylvania. He attended the University of Bordeaux in France from 1954 to 1955 and graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. from Howard … Read MoreRonald DeWayne Palmer (1932-2014)
Poet, editor, diplomat, and cultural theorist Léon Damas was born on March 28, 1912, in Cayenne, French Guiana. He was the youngest of five children born to parents Ernest and Marie Aline Damas. After his mother’s death in 1913, young Léon and his siblings were … Read MoreLéon-Gontran Damas (1912-1978)
Walter Arthur Gordon, attorney and civil rights activist, was born on October 10, 1894, in Atlanta, Georgia, to Henry B. and Georgia Bryant Gordon. He was the son of a Pullman porter and the grandson of slaves. His family moved to Riverside, California, in 1904. … Read MoreWalter Arthur Gordon (1894-1976)
Benedetto Manasseri, an Italian of African descent, was born near Messina, Italy to Cristoforo and Diana Manasseri in 1526. His parents, captured as slaves from Africa in the early 16th century, were brought to San Fratello, near Messina. They converted to Catholicism and, due to … Read MoreSt. Benedict the Moor (1526-1589)
Recording artist and three-time Grammy award nominee Bobby Short, a self-taught piano prodigy during his childhood, was regarded as the quintessential sophisticated cabaret and supper-club vocalist and piano player of his time. Short, who learned to play piano by ear at the age of four, … Read MoreRobert “Bobby” Waltrip Short (1924-2005)
