The Clovers were a rhythm and blues and doo-wop group that gained fame in the 1950s with song hits like “Love Potion No.9.” The Clovers were formed in 1946 by Harold “Hal” Lucas at Armstrong High School in Washington D.C. The original members included Lucas, Thomas Woods, and Billy Shelton. … Read MoreThe Clovers (1946- )
Paris Dennard is a prominent conservative Republican strategist and political commentator. He regularly contributes to CNN and NPR and worked in the White House for George W. Bush’s administration. In addition, he is the Director of Strategic Communications for the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, a nonpartisan organization … Read MoreParis Dennard (1982- )
Pioneering journalist Ethel Lois Payne was born on August 14, 1911, in Chicago, Illinois, to William A. Payne and Bessie Austin. Known as the “First Lady of Black Press” for her extensive list of accomplishments as a writer, journalist, and reporter, Payne, according to her colleagues, asked questions … Read MoreEthel Lois Payne (1911-1991)
Josef Nassy was an Afro-Jewish artist and Holocaust survivor. Born on January 19, 1904 in Paramaribo, Surinam (Dutch Guiana), he was one of seven children born to Adolf Philipus Nassy, a prosperous Jewish businessman who was elected to the Surinam Parliament, and Elisabeth Carolina Natalia Nassy (born de Maesschalk), … Read MoreJosef Johan Cosmo Nassy (1904-1976)
Larry Spencer is a retired Air Force 4-star General who began his military service in 1971 as a eighteen-year-old private. Spencer was born on August 1, 1954 in Washington, D.C. to Alfonzo Spencer, a disabled career Army mechanic, and Selma Gaines Spencer. After graduating from Central High School … Read MoreLarry Oneil Spencer (1954- )
Dr. Ruth Smith Lloyd was the first African American woman in the United States to obtain a doctorate degree in Anatomy. She earned her degree at Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 1941. Ruth Smith Lloyd, was born on January 17, 1917 in Washington, D.C. Her mother Mary Morris … Read MoreRuth Smith Lloyd (1917-1995)
Dr. John Francis is a conservationist, scholar, educator, and best-selling author. He holds a Ph.D. in Land Resources from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has served as a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador. Francis is perhaps best known for forsaking motorized vehicle transport to instead travel the country by foot, … Read MoreJohn Francis (1946- )
During the late nineteenth and the early twentieth century, Philip Bell Downing successfully filed at least five patents with the United States Patent Office. Among his most significant inventions were a street letter box (U.S. Patent numbers 462,092 and 462,093) and a mechanical device for operating street … Read MorePhilip B. Downing (1857-1934)
Army 4-star General Dennis L. Via was born in 1958 in the industrial town of Martinsville, Virginia, the son of Henry Via, a house painter and small-contract repairman, and Margaret Via, a homemaker. He had worked in a local textile mill and intended to skip college and … Read MoreDennis L. Via (1958- )
Air Force 4-star General Darren W. McDew was born in Rantoul, Illinois, on September 29, 1960. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in engineering in 1982 from the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia. With his officer’s commission, McDew trained as pilot in the 82d Flying Training Wing, Williams Air Force Base, Arizona. He … Read MoreDarren Wayne McDew (1960- )
