Singer-songwriter Eddie Lee Floyd, known by his stage name, Eddie Floyd, was a popular R&B singer in the 1960s. Floyd was born on June 25, 1937, in Montgomery, Alabama, to Prince Edward, a steelworker, and Florence Floyd, a nurse. He had three brothers, Joe, Benny, … Read MoreEddie Lee Floyd (1937- )
Mildred “Millie” Virginia Jackson, R&B singer, playwright, model, lyricist who is often called the “Mother of Hip Hop,” was born on July 15, 1944, in Thomson, Georgia. Her parents’ names are not publicly known. Her mother died in a fire when she was two years … Read MoreMillie Jackson (1944- )
The Chiffons, a premier all-female American group, was formed in 1960 by three Bronx, New York born teenaged girls. They were the 14-year-old lead singer Judy Craig, born on August 6, 1946; Patricia Bennett, 13 was born on April 7, 1947; and Barbara Lee, 13, … Read MoreThe Chiffons (1960-2009)
Fatima Djalor was an international children’s welfare activist and the first woman of African ancestry to appear regularly on television in the Republic of Moldova. Born in 1989 in Moldova’s capital city of Chișinău, she was one of the three children of a local woman … Read MoreFatima Djalor (1989-2019)
This entry is for juvenile audiences. To see the full version of this entry, click here. Who are they: On November 3, 2020, Kamala Devi Harris was elected Vice-President of the United States. She is the first Black woman and first woman of South Asian … Read MoreKamala Devi Harris (1964- ) [Children’s Edition]
Frederick Stephen Humphries Sr., university president, professor, and HBCU advocate, was born December 26, 1935, in Apalachicola, Florida to Minnie Fry Henry, a domestic servant and teacher, and Thornton Govan Humphries Sr., a lumber mill worker and salter. A lifelong Catholic, Humphries was influenced by … Read MoreFrederick Humphries (1935-2021)
Pianist, composer, lyricist, “word doubling” singer William Larry Stewart II, known by his stage name, Billy Stewart, was born on March 24, 1937, in Freemen’s Hospital on the campus of Howard University, Washington, D.C. His parents were William Larry Stewart, Sr. and Idabel Stewart and … Read MoreBilly Stewart II (1937-1970)
Joseph Echols Lowery was an American minister in the United Methodist Church and a founder of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1957. Lowery was born on October 6, 1921 to Leroy and Dora Lowery in Huntsville, Alabama. Because … Read MoreJoseph Echols Lowery (1921-2020)
Alice H. Parker was an African American inventor famous for her patented system of central heating using natural gas. In the 1920s using natural gas to power a heating furnace was a revolutionary idea that conserved energy and paved the way for the central heating systems we … Read MoreAlice H. Parker (1895-?)
“Image Courtesy of the Los Angeles Public Library” Dentist and civil rights leader Christopher L. Taylor was born in Wilson, North Carolina, to Russell Buxton Taylor and Viola Gaither on December 21, 1923. Taylor served in the United States Army in World War II. In … Read MoreChristopher L. Taylor (1923–1995)
