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)
Compared at the time to his more famous colleague, Paul Robeson, and heralded by major publicity outlets of his day as one of black America’s most exceptional baritone vocalists, singer-actor Kenneth Spencer was one of the most prominent black artists of the early 20th Century. … Read MoreKenneth Spencer (1913-1964)
Mentis Carrere was a black activist in Los Angeles mainly known for his 1926 heroic defense of his home against a white mob angry that he became an occupant in a formerly all-white neighborhood. Born on December 9, 1891 in Louisiana, Carrere was a working-class … Read MoreMentis Carrere (1891-1989)
Born on July 2, 1922, to sharecroppers Mattie and Ed Henry on the Flowers plantation in Coahoma County outside of Clarksdale, Mississippi, Aaron Henry would come of age in the era of segregation, fight in World War II, and return home from war ready campaign … Read MoreAaron Henry (1922-1997)
Spencer Williams is widely known for his portrayal of the character Andy in the controversial 1950s television comedy series Amos ‘n Andy. His contributions to the world of film and television, however, far surpassed the limitations of the popular but widely criticized Amos ‘n Andy … Read MoreSpencer Williams (1893-1969)
In 1961, Margaret Burroughs and her husband, Charles Burroughs founded the Ebony Museum of Chicago, later called the DuSable Museum of African American History. The DuSable is the oldest museum of its type in the United States. Margaret Burroughs was born Margaret Taylor on November … Read MoreMargaret Burroughs (1917-2010)
In the following article drawn from his book, Black Philosopher, White Academy: The Career of William Fontaine, University of Pennsylvania historian Bruce Kuklick introduces us to the world of philosopher William Fontaine, one of the few African American faculty members at an Ivy League institution … Read More“Going South: William Fontaine’s Trip to Virginia, 1948”
Activated on May 15, 1942, at Fort Huachuca, Arizona, the U.S. Ninety-third Infantry Division was the first segregated division-size infantry unit mobilized during the Second World War. Composed of White general staff officers and African American junior officers and enlisted men, the Ninety-third was made … Read More93rd Infantry Division (1942-1946)
Creole New Orleans newspaper editor Paul Trévigne, the biracial son of a Battle of New Orleans veteran, was born in New Orleans in 1825. Trévigne was part of the free people of color community in Louisiana that protested racial injustice before the Civil War and … Read MorePaul Trévigne (1825-1908)
Andrew Callioux, Captain of the First Louisiana Native Guards Regiment, Union Army, became a hero while leading his troops at the Battle of Port Hudson in 1863. Callioux was born a free man in New Orleans. A cigar maker with an elite clientele, Callioux was … Read MoreAndrew Callioux (1820-1863)
