Alexander Louis Jackson II, historian, journalist, athlete, and one of five founders of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), was born on March 1, 1891, in Englewood, New Jersey, to Alexander Louis Jackson and Evelyn Martha Lewis Jackson. They … Read MoreAlexander Louis Jackson, II (1891-1973)
Ralph Elwood Brock is generally recognized as the first African American forester. Brock was academically trained and became an experienced manager of foresters in his home state of Pennsylvania. Born on February 15, 1881 near Pottsville, Pennsylvania, he was one of the seven children of … Read MoreRalph Elwood Brock (1881-1959)
Dr. Guillermo Ameer is the Daniel Hale Williams Professor of Biomedical engineering in the McCormick School of Engineering, Professor of Surgery in the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University, and the director of the Center for Advanced Regenerative Engineering (CARE). Dr. Ameer joined the … Read MoreGuillermo Ameer (?- )
Screenwriter, filmmaker, actor, and social critic Carlton Moss was born in Newark, New Jersey, on February 14, 1909. The son of Frederick Douglass Moss, a coachman for an affluent family, and Sarah Vincent Moss, he grew up both in New Jersey and North Carolina. As … Read MoreCarlton Moss (1909-1997)
Sheila Guyse was an actress and singer during the 1940s and 1950s. She was born Etta Drucille Guyse on July 14, 1925, in Forest, Mississippi. Her parents, Wilbert Vincent Guyse and Ethel Williams, separated and divorced shortly after she was born. Guyse was raised by … Read MoreSheila Guyse (1925 -2013)
William Raphael Tate was a labor movement leader and a rabbi of the Beth Shalom Congregation in Brooklyn, New York. Born September 9, 1930, and raised in Brooklyn, Tate enlisted in the New York National Guard in the late 1940s and later studied labor relations … Read MoreWilliam Raphael Tate (1930-2003)
Christopher Julius “Chris” Rock is an actor and stand-up comedian. Rock, the eldest of seven children, was born on February 7, 1965, to Rosalie and Julius Rock in Andrews, South Carolina. His family moved to New York City, New York when he was a child. … Read MoreChris Rock (1965- )
Jazz musician Donald Ulysses Walden was born to Gracie Buck and Louis Walden on July 12, 1938. The family lived in Clarksville, Tennessee from 1938 to 1946. Being musically gifted, Walden’s mother took him to see bands that toured the South. After seeing the Silas … Read MoreDonald Ulysses Walden (1938-2008)
Charles Wade Mills was a notable Caribbean-American political philosopher and distinguished professor. He was born in London on January 3, 1951 to Jamaican parents, Winnifred and Gladstone Mills, who were both pursuing their graduate degrees in the city. The couple returned to Kingston shortly after … Read MoreCharles Wade Mills (1951-2021)
Woodrow Wilson “Buddy” Johnson was a popular bandleader and recording artist in the 1940s and 1950s whose compositions and arrangements made him an important figure in the transition from the big band sound to Rhythm & Blues. His many hit records earned his band a … Read MoreBuddy Johnson (1915-1977)
