Image courtesy of the South Carolina African American Calendar Born in Columbia, South Carolina on June 19, 1913, Edwin Roberts Russell was an African American chemist who worked on the Manhattan Project in World War II which produced the first atomic bombs and initiated the … Read MoreEdwin Roberts Russell (1913-1996)
Born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on April 15, 1912, Jasper Brown Jeffries was an African American physicist and mathematician who worked on the Manhattan Project in World War II. The eldest child of Brown and Edna Jeffries, Jasper had three younger brothers, Carl, Hubert, and Robert. … Read MoreJasper Brown Jeffries (1912-1994)
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)
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on August 24, 1919, Harold Delaney was one of several African American scientists to work on the Manhattan Project in World War II. The eldest child of William and Henriette Delaney, Harold had four sisters, Mildred, Gertrude, Laura, and Ethel, and a … Read MoreHarold Delaney (1919-1994)
Moddie Daniel Taylor, a chemist by training, was a member of the small, elite group of African American scientists who worked on the Manhattan Project, the code name for the top-secret effort to create an atomic bomb during World War II. Taylor was born in … Read MoreModdie Daniel Taylor (1912-1976)
Robert Henry Lawrence Jr., was the first African American selected to be an astronaut. He was also a test pilot and senior United States Air Force pilot with over 2,500 flight hours. Born in Chicago, Illinois on October 2, 1935, Robert Henry Lawrence Jr. graduated … Read MoreRobert Henry Lawrence Jr. (1935-1967)
David Harold Blackwell, mathematician and statistician, was the first African American to be elected to the National Academy of Sciences (1965) and is especially known for his contributions to the theory of duels. Blackwell was born on April 24, 1919, to a working-class family in … Read MoreDavid Harold Blackwell (1919-2010)
Neil deGrasse Tyson is an American astronomer and astrophysicist and Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium in New York City. Tyson was born on 5 October 1958 to Sunchita Feliciano Tyson and Cyril deGrasse Tyson, a sociologist who would later become active in … Read MoreNeil deGrasse Tyson (1958- )
Prominent educator Walter Eugene Massey was born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, on April 5, 1938. His father, Almar, was a steelworker and his mother, Essie, a teacher. Massey had an exceptional mind, even at an early age. By the time he finished 10th grade, his skills … Read MoreWalter E. Massey (1938- )
Lisa Perez Jackson, the first African American Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), brings a wealth of experience to that agency. A scientist by profession, she has spent more than 20 years working as an advocate for the better use and awareness of … Read MoreLisa Perez Jackson (1962- )
