Julianna Michelle Childs, a U.S. District Court judge in South Carolina, was born on March 24, 1966, in Detroit, Michigan. Her father, Ralph Childs, was a former U.S. Junior Table Tennis Champion, and her mother, Shandra Childs-Thomas, was a personnel manager for Michigan Bell. In … Read MoreJ. Michelle Childs (1966- )
Opera singer, composer, librettist Uzee Brown, Jr. was born on June 13, 1950, in Cowpens, South Carolina, to Alline Gaffney Brown from Thickety Mountain, South Carolina, and Uzee Brown, Sr. Uzee Jr’s siblings, were Willie Brown, Sr. Ethelene Brown Palmer, Delois Brown Daniels, Daisy Dawkins, … Read MoreUzee Brown, Jr (1950- )
Nick Aaron Ford, critic, pedagogic, and activist, was born on August 4, 1904, in Ridgeway (part of Columbia), South Carolina, to Nick Aaron Ford, Sr., a laborer who was born enslaved, and Carrie Ford, a substitute teacher. Nick was introduced to reading by his mother … Read MoreNick Aaron Ford (1904-1982)
Bakari Sellers is a noted attorney, political commentator and politician. He was born September 18, 1984 in Bamberg, South Carolina the son of Cleveland and Gwendolyn Sellers. His father is a well-known civil rights activist and leader of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) during … Read MoreBakari Sellers (1984- )
Henry E. Hayne was the first African American to serve as the South Carolina Secretary of State. He held that post from 1872 to 1877. Hayne was born into slavery on December 30, 1840 (estimated date), in Charleston, South Carolina to an enslaved mixed-raced mother … Read MoreHenry E. Hayne (ca. 1840-unknown)
The earliest evidence of African Americans as cattle herders (cowboys) in North America can be traced back to colonial South Carolina, where stock grazers from what is now Senegal in West Africa were specifically brought to that colony because of their unique skills. They were … Read MoreBlack Cowboys in the 19th Century West (1850-1900)
Jaime R. Harrison is the current chairman of the Democratic National Committee and the first African American elected to chair of the South Carolina Democratic Party. Harrison was born on February 5, 1976, in Orangeburg, South Carolina. He is the son of Rodney and Patricia … Read MoreJaime R. Harrison (1976- )
The history of West Indian immigration can be traced back to the 17th century when enslaved Africans from Barbados, Jamaica, and Antigua were brought to the British North American colonies to work on plantations. The Haitian Revolution (1791-1804) sparked another wave of immigration with thousands … Read MoreWest Indian Immigration to the United States (1900- )
By 1708 South Carolina became the first British North American colony to have an African American majority. The first Africans to arrive in South Carolina likely came in 1526 as part of the San Miguel de Gualdape Colony organized and sponsored by Spain. When the … Read MoreSouth Carolina’s Black Majority (1708-1920)
Margaret Abner Dixon, the first African American president of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), was born in Columbia, South Carolina, in August 8, 1923. She was reared by an aunt, Emily Clark Metz, and her grandfather, Mantle Birt Williams, as both parents died … Read MoreMargaret Abner Dixon (1923-2011)
