Ambassador Richard Kenneth Fox served as U.S. Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago during the Jimmy Carter Administration. Fox was born on October 22, 1925 in Cincinnati, Ohio. After a stint in the U.S. Navy from 1944 to 1946, he enrolled at Indiana University and received … Read MoreRichard K. Fox (1925- )
Ambassador Charles Joseph Nelson was born in 1921 and raised in Battle Creek, Michigan. He was a 1942 graduate of Lincoln University, a historically black college in Pennsylvania where his field of study was Public Administration and Political Science. Upon graduation, Nelson was drafted into … Read MoreCharles Joseph Nelson (1921-2011)
“Image Courtesy of The Black Heritage Society of Washington” Dr. William Henry Calhoun, a prominent early 20th century Seattle, Washington physician, was born on December 29, 1890 in Jackson, Tennessee. Little is known about his parents or his childhood. Calhoun attended Meharry Medical School located … Read MoreWilliam Henry Calhoun (1890–1967)
Elliott Percival Skinner, a leading late 20th Century anthropologist, also served as the United States ambassador to the Republic of Upper Volta (the West African country renamed itself Burkina Faso in 1984). Skinner was born on June 20, 1924 in Port of Spain, Trinidad. During … Read MoreElliott Percival Skinner (1924-2007)
King Daniel Ganaway, a 39-year-old butler on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois rose to fame in 1921 by winning the first place prize in national photographic contest sponsored by Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Department Store Owner John Wanamaker. Titled “The Spirit of Transportation,” the photograph was … Read MoreKing Daniel Ganaway (1882- 1944)
“Image Ownership: Oakland Public Library & African American Museum” Emmanuel Francis (E.F.) Joseph was the first professional African American photographer in the San Francisco Bay Area of California. Born on November 8, 1900 on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia, Joseph would later move to … Read MoreEmmanuel Francis Joseph (1900–1979)
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” In 2004 former President Clinton’s and former First Lady Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s official oil portraits were revealed in the East Room at the executive mansion. The artist, Simmie Lee Knox, became in 2002 the first African American artist to get … Read MoreSimmie Lee Knox (1935- )
Samuel (“Sammy”) Leamon Younge Jr. was a 21-year-old civil rights activist who was shot to death on January 3, 1966 when he attempted to use a whites-only restroom at a gas station in Macon County, Alabama. He was a navy veteran studying political science at … Read MoreSamuel (“Sammy”) Leamon Younge, Jr. (1944-1966)
The Kansas City (Missouri) Monarchs were the most prominent baseball team to play in the Negro Leagues. Formed in 1920, they were also the longest-running team in the Leagues, disbanding in 1965. Many famous players were on the Monarchs roster, including the hall of fame … Read MoreThe Kansas City Monarchs (1920-1965)
Abolitionist and civil rights activist William Lambert was born in Trenton, New Jersey in 1817, the son of a manumitted father and a freeborn mother. As a young man Lambert was educated by abolitionist Quakers. Twenty-three year old Lambert arrived in Detroit, Michigan in 1840 … Read MoreWilliam Lambert (1817-1890)
