During the late nineteenth and the early twentieth century, Philip Bell Downing successfully filed at least five patents with the United States Patent Office. Among his most significant inventions were a street letter box (U.S. Patent numbers 462,092 and 462,093) and a mechanical device for operating street … Read MorePhilip B. Downing (1857-1934)
The violent, heroic actions of an illiterate black sailor threatened with enslavement enthralled newspaper and magazine readers during the tense early phase of the American Civil War. Born free in Milford, Delaware—a state that permitted slavery but had a relatively small slave population—William B. Tillman found opportunity as a … Read MoreWilliam B. Tillman (a.k.a. William Tilghman, 1834?-1880?)
Joseph Paul Reason was the first African American to attain the rank of four-star admiral in the United States Navy. Reason was born March 22, 1941, in Washington, D.C., the son of Howard University librarian and French language professor Joseph Henry Reason, and schoolteacher Bernice … Read MoreJoseph Paul Reason (1941- )
Maritcha Remond Lyons, an African-American teacher and civil rights activist, was born in New York City, New York to Albro Lyons Sr. and Mary Joseph Lyon on May 23, 1848. She was the third of five children in the free black family. To avoid the … Read MoreMaritcha Lyons (1848-1929)
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Laurence Allen Elder, known commonly as Larry Elder or the “Sage of South Central,” is an African American lawyer, conservative political columnist, and media personality. He is a libertarian-wing Republican and advocates for a variety of causes, spanning from domestic issues … Read MoreLaurence Allen Elder (1952– )
Henrietta Vinton Davis was an American elocutionist, dramatist, and impersonator. She was also considered to be the physical, intellectual, and spiritual link between the abolitionist movement of the Frederick Douglass era and the African Redemption Movement of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities … Read MoreHenrietta Vinton Davis (1860-1941)
Viola Davis is an American producer and actress of stage, screen, and television. Davis was born August 11, 1965, in St. Matthews, South Carolina. She is the daughter of Mary Alice Davis, a maid, factory worker, homemaker, and civil rights activist. Her father, Dan Davis, … Read MoreViola Davis (1965- )
Born in Washington, D.C. on September 2, 1941, legendary basketball coach-emeritus John Thompson Jr., arose from segregated public-housing and asphalt playground-courts to the polished hardwoods of collegiate and professional basketball, becoming the first African American head coach — in any major college sport– to win … Read MoreJohn Robert Thompson Jr. (1941-2020)
In 2013, Brian A. Nichols, career Foreign Service officer with the rank of Minister Counselor, was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve as ambassador to Peru. Nichols was born in 1965, to Charles Harold and Mildred (Thompson) Nichols. Charles Harold Nichols was a Professor … Read MoreBrian A. Nichols (1965- )
Sharon P. Wilkinson is an American diplomat. She served as United States Ambassador to Burkina Faso from 1996 to 1999 and United States Ambassador to Mozambique from 2000 to 2003. She has extensive experience in foreign affairs and has served all over the globe. Born … Read MoreSharon P. Wilkinson (1947- )
