The Jazz Crusaders: Houston-Bred, World-Renowned

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Jan

6

1968

Fred McKinley Jones is certainly one of the most important Black inventors ever based on the sheer number of inventions he formulated as well as their

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Source: Black History Resources

The Harlem Renaissance in the American West

In the following article historians Bruce Glasrud and Cary Wintz discuss their new book, The Harlem Renaissance in the American West which argues that the literary and artistic outpouring by African Americans during the third decade of the 20th Century was a national phenomenon which included the

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Source: Black Past

Florence Griffith Joyner, track legend born

Delorez Florence Griffith Joyner

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Dec

21

1959

jazz

jazz, the most significant form of musical expression of African-American culture and arguably the most outstanding contribution the United States has made to the art of music. Sections in this article:

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Henry Ransom Cecil McBay, chemist, is born

Henry Ransom Cecil McBay, chemist, Born May 29, 1914 in Mexia, Texas. He received a Bachelor of Science from Wiley College in 1934 and a Master of Science from Atlanta University in 1936. Henry McBay earned a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Chicago in 1945. McBay served as an Instructor

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Source: Blackfacts.com

May

29

1914

Black Women Inventor

Dr. Patricia E. Bath of Los Angeles, a renowned ophthalmologist and Black woman, patented (1988) an apparatus that efficiently removes cataracts by using laser technology.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

May

17

1988

Waters, Ethel

Waters, Ethel, 1896?–1977, African-American singer and actress, b. Chester, Pa. As a singer, she is noted for her sultry, sophisticated, and dramatic version of the blues, evinced in her interpretations of Am I Blue, Dinah, Heat Wave, Stormy Weather, and other songs. After beginning in

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Nkom, Alice (1945- )

Alice Nkom broke barriers for women by becoming the first female barrister in her country of Cameroon. She is also well known among Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) activists worldwide because of her legal advocacy for gay

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Source: Black Past

James Meredith

James Meredith is a 20th century eminent American Civil Rights Movement figure. He was involved in political advisory committee and also wrote about the social inequality issues. Besides, he was a war veteran and was the first black to be admitted in an all-white

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Source: Black History Resources

Jun

25

1933

Eartha Kitt

Eartha Kitt was a singer and actress who recorded the hit holiday song “Santa Baby”. She was born on January 17, 1927 in South Carolina to an African American mother and a white father. She was raised by Anna Mae Riley, as her biological mother had abandoned her. It wasn’t until later

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Source: Black History Resources

Jan

17

1927

Andrew Young elected to Congress

On this date in 1972, Barbara Jordan of Houston and Andrew Young of Atlanta, become the first African Americans from the south elected to Congress since Reconstruction.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Nov

17

1972

Johnson, Jack (1878-1946)

Jack Johnson, the first African American and first Texan to win the heavyweight boxing championship of the world, was born the second of six children to Henry and Tiny Johnson in Galveston on March 31, 1878. His parents were former slaves. To help support his family, Jack Johnson left school in

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Source: Black Past

Civil Rights

April 3, 1944. The US Supreme Court, in an 8-1 ruling declared that Blacks could not be barred form voting in the Texas Democratic primaries. The high court repudiated the contention that political parties are private associations and held that discrimination aginst Blacks violated the 15th

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Apr

3

1944

Armed Democrats seized Texas government

Armed Democrats seized Texas government and ended Radical Reconstruction in Texas.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Jan

17

1874

Rodney King is beaten by a group of white policemen in Los Angeles, Calif

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Mar

3

1991

O’Ree, Willie (1935- )

Willie O’Ree, the National Hockey League’s (NHL) first black player, is an African-Canadian, born on October 15, 1935, in Fredricton, New Brunswick. He began skating at an early age and quickly developed into one of the best players in eastern Canada. O’Ree joined the Quebec Frontenacs, a junior

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Source: Black Past

Jan

18

1958

Rap artist Nortorious B.I.G. dies

Rap artist the Nortorious B.I.G. is killed in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles. He was 24.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Mar

9

1997

After the Underground Railroad: Finding the African North Americans who Returned from Canada

The Underground Railroad which fugitive slaves followed from the antebellum South to Canada is now a well-known story. But what of those who returned? In his ongoing research, University of Texas at El Paso historian Adam Arenson explores this little-known aspect of nineteenth- century African

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Source: Black Past

William R. "Cozy" Cole, jazz drummer, dies.

William R. Cozy Cole, jazz drummer, dies. His recording of Topsy became the only drum solo to sell more than one million records

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Jan

29

1981

Spingarn Medal : Duke Ellington

Spingarn Medal was presented to Edward Kennedy (Duke) Ellington, composer, pianist and jazz pioneer, for his contributions to the arts.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Dec

21

1959

At a New York City conference, representatives of

At a New York City conference, representatives of the NAACP and the American Fund for Public Service planned a coordinated legal campaign against segregation and discrimination. Charles H. Houston, Vice-dean of the Howard University Law School, was named director of the NAACP legal campaign.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Oct

26

1934

Rev

Rev. Thomas Kilgore, a Los Angeles pastor, was elected president of the predominantly white American Baptist Convention.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

May

17

1969

Charles H. Houston

Charles H. Houston awarded the Spingarn Medal posthumously for his pioneering work in developing the NAACP legal campaign.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Sep

27

1950

Track star Ronnie Ray Smith born

Track and Field athlete Ronnie Ray Smith born in Los Angeles.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Mar

28

1949

Count Basie

William Count Basie, jazz musician, dies.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Apr

26

1984

Texas constitutional convention

Texas constitutional convention (nine Blacks, eighty-one whites) met in Austin.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Jun

1

1868

Warren Moon

Warren Moon is a retired football player, who played for the Canadian and American football leagues. He was born in Los Angeles, California on November 18, 1956 and was the only brother of 6 sisters. His father was a laborer who died of liver disease when Warren was a young child and his mother was

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Source: Black History Resources

Nov

18

1956

The famous jazz singer Billy Ecktine was born

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Jul

8

1914

Pearl Primus: Dancer is born

Blending African and Caribbean sources with American traditions of blues, jazz, and jitterbug, Pearl Primus created new and vibrant forms of dance.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Nov

29

1919

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