Pierre G. Deslondes (last name sometimes spelled Deslonde) was an African American sugar planter and wealthy free man of color who served as Secretary of State of Louisiana during Reconstruction. He was the son of famed slave rebellion leader George Deslondes and Eloise Belly and … Read MorePierre George Deslondes (1829-1885)
In 1879 the Kansas State Legislature passed a law permitting first class cities in Kansas (cities with a population of 15,000 or more) to create racially segregated schools. The Topeka Board of Education quickly followed by segregating elementary schools in the city. In 1890 Lowman … Read MoreWilliam Reynolds v. Board of Education of Topeka Kansas (1903)
Ball handling wizard Elgin “Rabbit” Baylor was born Elgin Gay Baylor on September 16, 1934, in Washington, D.C. to John Wesley Baylor from Caroline County, Virginia, and Uzziel Lewis Baylor from Spotsylvania County, Virginia. His brothers were John L. Baylor and Kermit Baylor, and his … Read MoreElgin “Rabbit” Baylor (1934-2021)
Although Black Americans have lived on the outskirts of major American cities since colonial times, Black suburbanization, that is the significant presence of African Americans in suburban communities, is a post-1960 phenomenon. The modern American suburb is a 20th century development as homebuilders, responding to … Read MoreA Brief History of African American Suburbanization
St. Philip’s College began as St. Philip’s Normal and Industrial School, in 1898 as an HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities), in San Antonio, Texas, to educate and train newly freed slave girls in a weekend sewing class known as Bowden’s School (Artemisia Bowden, a … Read MoreSt. Philip’s College (1898- )
The “March Against Fear” began on June 5, 1966, and was initiated by civil rights activist James Meredith. Four years earlier he had become the first African American student to integrate the University of Mississippi by enrolling there in 1962. Meredith decided to protest the … Read MoreJames Meredith’s March Against Fear (1966)
James Alexander Hood was the first African American male student to register and attend classes at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, a previously all-white institution. Hood was born on November 10, 1942, in Gadsden, Alabama, to Octavie Hood and Margaret Hughes Hood. James had … Read MoreJames Alexander Hood (1942-2013)
The USS Mason (DE-529) was an Evarts-class destroyer escort and was the second ship of the U.S. Navy to be named Mason. The USS Mason was one of the two U.S. Navy ships during World War II with a mostly African American crew. The other … Read MoreThe USS Mason (DE-529) (1943-1945)
Sir Guy was born Clarence Eugene Barron, on October 16, 1946 in a musical family in Norfolk, Virginia to Thelma Barron Cartwright and James Norfleet, Sr; reared by mother and stepfather, William “Bro. Bear” Cartwright in the segregated section of the city called Berkley-Campostella. He … Read MoreSir Guy/ Clarence Eugene Barron (1946-2010)
The Golden Gate Quartet was formed in 1934 in Norfolk, Virginia, as the Golden Gate Jubilee Singers by four teenage students at Booker T. Washington High School. The founders were bass Orlandus Wilson who was born on August 27, 1917, in South Norfolk, arranger/ baritone … Read MoreThe Golden Gate Quartet (1934- )
