What’s New on BlackPast

Raymond A. Brown, a prominent civil rights activist, attorney, and military officer was born on May 6, 1915 in Fernandina Beach, Florida. His mother, Elizabeth Christopher Traeye, was a domestic, teacher and homemaker who in 1930 helped establish Christ the King, Jersey City’s only Black … Read MoreRaymond Aloysius Brown (1915-2009)

The Virden, Illinois Race Riot was an example of the combination of labor and racial violence in the late 19th and early 20th Century United States. Following a United Mine Workers (UMW) national coal strike in 1897, a new 40-cents-per-ton rate was agreed on by … Read MoreVirden, Illinois Race Riot (1898)

Breffu, an African woman from what is now the nation of Ghana, who was enslaved in the Danish West Indies, is credited with leading one of the longest recorded slave revolts in North American history. Denmark began its involvement in the African slave trade in … Read MoreBreffu (?- 1734)

Actor, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer Terrence Deshon Howard is best known for his role as Lucius Lyons, music mogul, in the TV series Empire for which he won the BET Best Actor Award in 2015. While he began his career appearing on several … Read MoreTerrence Howard (1969- )

American actor of stage and screen. He is perhaps best known known for films such as Shaft (1971), Ragtime (1981), and Heartbreak Ridge, (1986). He won his first Obie Award for his portrayal as Aaron in Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus, and was nominated for a Tony … Read MoreMoses Gunn (1929-1993)

Tuskegee Airman Charles McGee is a retired Fighter Pilot whose legendary career spans three wars and four hundred and nine combat missions. McGee was born on December 7, 1919 to Lewis Allen and Ruth Elizabeth (Lewis) in Cleveland, Ohio. His father’s position as a minister, … Read MoreCharles Edward McGee (1919- )

Black Bottom was a neighborhood near what is now downtown Nashville where African Americans once resided. The area got its name from the periodic floods of the Cumberland River that left muddy residue on the streets. Black Bottom came into existence around 1832 as a … Read MoreBlack Bottom (Nashville) (1832-1950)

In May of 1899 the United States Army sent Buffalo Soldiers, the black soldiers of Company L of the 24th Infantry, to Dyea, Alaska Territory. The Klondike Gold Rush had brought hordes of gold rushers up the Lynn Canal to the tiny ports at Dyea … Read MoreBuffalo Soldiers in Skagway, Alaska (1899-1902)

The Nashville Race Riot occurred on April 8, 1967 when African American students from Fisk University and Tennessee A&I University (Now Tennessee State University) rioted along Jefferson Street leading to many injuries and arrests as well as extensive property damage. The Nashville Race Riot was … Read MoreThe Nashville Race Riot (1967)