New York historian Walt Bachman introduces Northern Slave, Black Dakota, his new biography of Joseph Godfrey, an African American who was born into slavery in the free territory that became Minnesota, fled from abusive masters to seek refuge among the Dakota Indians, and was a … Read MoreSlavery and Freedom on the Minnesota Territory Frontier: The Strange Saga of Joseph Godfrey
Helene (Hilyer) Hale, the first African American woman elected to the Hawaii Legislature, was born March 23, 1918 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her father was an attorney in Minneapolis and her grandfather was one of the first African American attorneys to graduate from the University of … Read MoreHelene H. Hale (1918-2013)
John Francis Wheaton was a late 19th Century and early 20th Century lawyer and a politician. Wheaton ran for elective office in three states and was the first African American to serve in the Minnesota House of Representatives. John Francis Wheaton was born on May … Read MoreJohn Francis Wheaton (1866-1922)
Eileen Southern was among the first generation of musicologists focused on studying, preserving, and teaching the history and traditions of African American music. She was also the first female African American faculty member at Harvard University. Born Eileen Jackson in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1920, her … Read MoreEileen Jackson Southern (1920-2002)
Gabrielle Christina Victoria “Gabby” Douglas is an artistic gymnast who became the first African American and woman of color in Olympic history to become the all-around individual champion during the 2012 Summer Olympics. Douglas was born in Virginia Beach, Virginia to parents Timothy Douglas and … Read MoreGabrielle Christina Victoria “Gabby” Douglas (1995- )
Dr. Riley Andrew Ransom Sr., the founder of the first hospital for African Americans in Fort Worth, Texas, was born on March 9, 1886, in Columbus, Kentucky, to parents Allen and Alice Ransom. Ransom briefly attended Lane College in Tennessee then transferred to Southern Illinois … Read MoreRiley Andrew Ransom Sr. (1886-1951)
The Dred Scott v. Sandford case (1857) was the most important slavery-related decision in the United States Supreme Court’s history. Coming on the eve of the Civil War, and seven years after the Missouri Compromise of 1850, the decision affected the national political scene, impacted … Read MoreThe Dred Scott Decision, 1857
Educator, newspaper publisher and politician John Quincy Adams is best known as the editor of the Western Appeal/The Appeal of St. Paul, Minnesota. He held the position from 1886 to 1922. John Quincy Adams was born free in Louisville, Kentucky, on May 4, 1848, to … Read MoreJohn Quincy [“J. Q.”] Adams (1848-1922)
Bernard Anthony Harris Jr. is a scientist, surgeon, astronaut, entrepreneur, and leader. He is best known for having been the first African American to walk in space, and developing the non-profit known as the Harris Foundation. Harris was born on June 26, 1956 in Temple, … Read MoreBernard A. Harris Jr. (1956- )
Image Ownership: Courtesy Gage Skidmore (CC BY-SA 3.0) Herman Cain, Republican Party activist and 2012 Presidential candidate was also a newspaper columnist, popular radio talk show host in Atlanta, and former chairman and CEO of Godfather’s Pizza, a Pillsbury subsidiary. Cain was born on December … Read MoreHerman Cain (1945-2020)
