Prezell Russell Robinson, longtime President of St. Augustine’s College (later University) was born in Batesburg, South Carolina, on August 22, 1920, to Clarence Robinson and Annie Foulks Robinson. He is the eighth of nine children. Robinson’s early education began at Leesville Colored Primary School in … Read MorePrezell Russell Robinson (1920- )
Clara Mae Ward, one of the most outstanding soloists and conductors in gospel history, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on April 21, 1924, to George Ward, a handcrafter and ironworker from Anderson County, South Carolina, and Gertrude Mae Murphy Ward, a pianist and singer also … Read MoreClara Mae Ward (1924-1973)
Leonard Jeffries, Jr., university administrator, professor, and Pan-Africanist was born January 19, 1937 in Newark, New Jersey to Leola Smith Jeffries of Lynchburg, Virginia, an office secretary, and Leonard Jeffries of Akron, Ohio, a tailor at Irvington Cleaners & Dryers. Reared in Newark’s Roseville section, … Read MoreLeonard Jeffries (1937- )
Composer, conductor, and flutist Alton Augustus Adams, Sr., was born in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, the Danish West Indies, on November 4, 1889, to Jacob Henry Adams, a carpenter, and Petrina Evangeline Dinzey, a seamstress. They were handcrafters and encouraged their children to be entrepreneurs. … Read MoreAlton Augustus Adams Sr. (1889-1987)
Clarence Burgess Owens is one of only two African American Republicans currently serving as a congressional representative in the U.S. Congress (along with Byron Donalds, R-FL), and the only African American Republican in the Utah congressional delegation. Born on August 2, 1951, in Columbus, Ohio, … Read MoreBurgess Owens (1951- )
Roland G. Fryer, Jr. is an economist, the youngest African American to receive tenure at Harvard University, and one of the youngest professors in the school’s history. Roland Gerhard Fryer, Jr. was born in Daytona Beach, Florida on June 4, 1977 to Roland Gerard Fryer, … Read MoreRoland G. Fryer, Jr. (1977- )
The Philadelphia Giants were a Negro baseball team that played from 1902 to 1911. From 1904 to 1909 they were one of the strongest pre-Negro League teams in black baseball, winning five eastern championships in six years 1904-07. In 1902, Harry A. Smith, a former baseball player and writer … Read MorePhiladelphia Giants (1902-1911)
Marc H. Morial is an American politician and civil rights activist. He is best known as an influential political figure in Louisiana and the CEO and president of the National Urban League. Morial, the second of five children, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on … Read MoreMarc H. Morial (1958- )
The Philadelphia Pythians were one of the earliest Black baseball clubs formed in the United States. They were founded in 1865 by childhood friends and civil rights activists Jacob C. White Jr. and Octavius V. Catto. A third lesser-known founder was William Still, known as … Read MoreThe Philadelphia Pythians (1856-1871)
Known for discovering the Alpha Helix, a common protein structure, Dr. Herman Branson was a pioneer in biophysics. Born on August 14, 1914 in Pocahontas, Virginia, not much is known about his early life. After a primary and elementary education, Branson attended Virginia College (now … Read MoreHerman Branson (1914-1995)
