Regina Marcia Benjamin (1956- )

Dr. Regina Marcia Benjamin, President Barack Obama’s nominee for Surgeon General of the United States, is an accomplished physician whose professional and personal  roots are planted deeply in rural America. Dr. Benjamin was nominated for the post by the President on July 13, 2009 and … Read MoreRegina Marcia Benjamin (1956- )

Edward James House (“Son”), Jr. (1902-1988)

Eddie James House Jr., better known as “Son House,” was an influential blues performer born in Lyon, Mississippi to Eddie House, Sr. and Maggie House. He was the middle child of three siblings, with an older brother, Rathel House, and a younger brother, Lee Jackson … Read MoreEdward James House (“Son”), Jr. (1902-1988)

Knights of St. Peter Claver (1909- )

The Knights of Peter Claver organization was founded in 1909 in Mobile, Alabama. It is the largest African American Catholic lay organization in the United States. The organization was founded by the Josephites, a Catholic order whose mission was to serve Catholic African Americans. Josephite … Read MoreKnights of St. Peter Claver (1909- )

Lucinda “Cindy” Wilson Todd (1903-1996)

Lucinda Todd was a National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) activist in Topeka, Kansas who fought for school integration.  Todd was born in Litchfield, Kansas on May 31, 1903 to parents who were part of the 1879 mass movement of black farmers … Read MoreLucinda “Cindy” Wilson Todd (1903-1996)

Kansas Industrial and Educational Institute (1895-1919)

The institute was known in Topeka as the “Western Tuskegee,” was the result of  the work of Lizzie Riddick, a prominent member of the Colored Women’s Suffrage Association, and Edward Stephens.  Riddick and Stephens successfully enlisted the support of Booker T. Washington and later the … Read MoreKansas Industrial and Educational Institute (1895-1919)