Johnnie Wilson is a retired Four-Star United States Army General. His generous service to the Ordnance Corps led to him being inducted into the Ordnance Corps Hall of Fame. Wilson was born on February 4, 1944 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. His father worked in a steel mill … Read MoreJohnnie E. Wilson (1944- )
James Whitehead, Jr., the first African American Lockheed U2 pilot, was born in Jersey City, New Jersey in 1934. From a young age Whitehead was surrounded by a strong military presence in his family including relatives who served in World War II. Coming of age during that war he … Read MoreJames T. Whitehead, Jr. (1934- )
Roscoe Robinson Jr., the first African American four-star general in the U.S. Army, was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1928. He received a bachelor’s in military engineering from The United States Military Academy (West Point) in 1951 and later attended the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. … Read MoreRoscoe Robinson, Jr. (1928-1993)
Four-star general and precision flier Lloyd W. Newton was born December 24, 1942 in Ridgeland, South Carolina, the fourth of seven children of John H. Newton, a farmer, and Annie Newton. Finishing Jasper High School in Ridgeland, he majored in mechanical engineering at Tennessee State … Read MoreLloyd Warren Newton (1942- )
“Image Ownership: Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times” Leo Antony “Tony” Gleaton was an African American photographer, scholar, and artist who is best known for his photographic images capturing and documenting the African influence in the American West and Central and South America. Gleaton, the youngest son … Read MoreTony Gleaton (1948-2015)
Bismarck Myrick is a retired United States Ambassador to Lesotho from 1995 to 1998 and the Republic of Liberia from 1999 to 2002. Originally from Portsmouth, Virginia, Myrick has held multiple positions with the U.S. government over a number of decades. Myrick entered the U.S. … Read MoreBismarck Myrick (1940- )
General Fred A. Gorden was the first black Commandant of Cadets, the officer in charge of the training, discipline, and physical condition of the Corps of Cadets at the United States Military Academy at West Point. The Commandant of Cadets position is second only to … Read MoreFred Gorden (1940- )
Tone Johnson, medical doctor, Vietnam hero, and civic leader was born on November 9, 1944 to Lyzer (Elizabeth) Marks Johnson and sawmill worker and farmer Henry Johnson in Plain Dealing, Louisiana. After graduating from Carrie Martin High School in Plain Dealing in 1963, he went … Read MoreTone Johnson Jr. (1944– )
Perry James Henry Watkins was the only openly gay person discharged from the U.S. Army with full honors after serving almost two decades. He had to fight for this distinction, suing the Army after being forced out because of his sexual orientation. The case went … Read MorePerry Watkins (1948-1996)
Jesse Brown, wounded veteran and government official, was born on March 27, 1944 to Lucille Brown in Detroit, Michigan. His single-parent mother raised him in Chicago. Brown first attended Roosevelt University in Chicago and later graduated from Kennedy- King College in that same city. In … Read MoreJesse Brown (1944-2002)
