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1780 - Two blacks aid in the capture of British spy, Major John Andre, in New York.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Jan
0
1780
Adderley, Julian Edwin “Cannonball” (1928-1975)
Combining styles of earlier influences with his own unique twists secured Julian Cannonball Adderley’s place in history as an experienced alto saxophonist who was fearless in exploring fresh musical styles.  Born in Tampa, Florida on September 15, 1928, Adderley was welcomed into a musical family
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Source: Black Past
Sep
15
1928
Ailey, Alvin (1931-1989)
Alvin Ailey was born in Rodgers, Texas during the Great Depression. He overcame racism, poverty, and homophobia to become one of the most celebrated choreographers in American history. His single teenage mother Lula Ailey washed clothes, picked cotton, and worked in domestic service in various
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Source: Black Past
The Manumission of Monimia Travers: A Slave Freed at Fort Vancouver
Few people identify slavery with Oregon and the Pacific Northwest.  However, there were slaves in the region particularly in the decade before the Civil War.  In the following article, Gregory Paynter Shine, the Chief Ranger and Historian at the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site, describes the
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Source: Black Past
National Black convention
National Black convention met in Rochester, New York, with 140 delegates from nine states. James W.C. Pennington of New York was elected president of this meeting which is generally considered the largest and most representative of the early Black conventions.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Pride Academy
Jul
6
1853
Slavery abolished in New York State
Slavery abolished in New York State.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Association of Latino Professionals For America (ALPFA) Boston Professional Chapter
Jul
4
1827
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald was an American jazz icon of the 20th century. She was born on April 25, 1917 in Virginia to William and Temperance Fitzgerald. The couple separated soon after Ella’s birth, and Temperance moved to New York with her boyfriend, Joseph De Silva. She had a half sister named
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Source: Black History Resources
Jun
15
1996
African Company / African Grove Theatre
The African Company was the first known black theatre troupe. In 1816, William Henry Brown (1815-1884), a retired West Indian steamship steward, acquired a house on Thomas Street in lower Manhattan, New York. He offered a variety of instrumental and vocal entertainments on Sunday afternoons in his
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by Pride Academy
Duke Ellington opened at the Cotton Club
Duke Ellington opened at the Cotton Club in
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Greater Boston Veterans Collaborative
Dec
4
1927
George Crum
George Crum was born as George Speck in 1822 in Saratoga Lake, New York, the son of a Huron Native-American mother and an African-American father who worked as a jockey. He worked for a while as a mountain guide and trapper in the Adirondack Mountains in New
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Source: Black History Resources
Aug
21
2013
Taylor, Ruth Carol (1931- )
Journalist and nurse Ruth Carol Taylor became the first African American airline flight attendant in the United States when she joined Mohawk Airlines in 1958. While she is most commonly known for her achievement in the airline industry, she spent much of her career as an activist for minority and
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Source: Black Past
Feb
11
1958
Laurence Fishburne
Laurence Fishburne is an American actor, writer, director and producer. He was born on July 30, 1961 in Augusta, Georgia to Hattie Bell and Laurence John Fishburne, Jr. His parents divorced when he was very young and he moved to Brooklyn, New York with his mother while visiting his father once
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Source: Black History Resources
Sponsored by Eastern Bank
Jul
30
1961
Harry Belafonte
Harry Belafonte is an eminent African-American figure in the American entertainment industry. He is a notable singer, lyricist, actor and social activist. Belafonte came to international stardom as “King of Calypso” for his popular Caribbean musical style. He is famous for his
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Source: Black History Resources
Mar
1
1927
Graves, Letitia A. (1863-1952)
Early 20th Century Seattle civil rights activist Letitia Ann Dennie Graves was born in 1863 in Illinois to Martha Murphy and George Dennie. Very little is known about Gravess early life otherthan the fact that she and her husband, John Henry Graves, a Kansasstonemason, migrated to
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Source: Black Past
Oct
23
1913
Lady Bo birthday.
Lady Bo, Bo Diddleys original girl guitar player and the first female guitarist in history to be hired by a major rock & roll musician, is born Peggy Jones in New York, NY, USA.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Jul
14
1940
The New York newspaper Amsterdam News is founded.
The New York newspaper Amsterdam News is
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by NSBE Boston
Dec
4
1909
Perkins, Marvin (1963– )
Marvin Perkins is an accomplished recording vocal artist, a sought-after public speaker, and a leader in the effort to correct misunderstanding and incorrect assumptions about blacks, especially in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
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Source: Black Past
National Black convention met in Syracuse, New
National Black convention met in Syracuse, New York.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Christo Rey New York High School
Oct
4
1864
Three organizations the Committee for Improving
Three organizations the Committee for Improving the Industrial Conditions of Negroes in New York, the Committee on Urban Conditions and the National League for the Protection of Colored Women merged, under the leadership of Dr. George E. Hayne and Eugene Kinckle Jones, to form the National Urban
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Oct
23
1911
Williams, Vanessa (1963- )
Vanessa Lynn Williams was born in Tarrytown, New York on March 18, 1963. She is the daughter of Helen and the late Milton Williams who were music teachers. She has a younger brother, Christopher, who is also an actor.  Williams was the first African American woman to win the Miss America title on
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by Christo Rey New York High School
Charles L
Charles L. Reason named professor of belles-lettres and French at Central College, McGrawville, New York. William G. Allen and George B. Vashon also taught at the predominantly white college.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Oct
16
1849
Gordone, Charles (1925- )
Charles Gordone was born Charles Edward Fleming on October 12, 1925 in Cleveland, Ohio to parents William and Camille Fleming.  He took his stepfather’s surname of Gordon when his mother remarried when he was five years old.  The family moved to Elkhart, Indiana, his mother’s hometown, when Charles
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by Illinois Math and Science Academy
Nov
13
1995
National Equal Rights League (1864–1921)
Founded in Syracuse, New York in 1864, the National Equal Rights League (NERL) promoted full and immediate citizenship for African Americans. Created during the Civil War, the League based its call for full citizenship as compensation for military service in the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. They
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Source: Black Past
Birth of Sojourner Truth
Sojourner Truth born a slave in Hurley, New York.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Prospanica Boston Professional Chapter
Jan
30
1797
Fifth national Black convention met in New York
Fifth national Black convention met in New York with fifty delegates from eight states.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Jun
2
1834
Kay, Ulysses S. (1917-1995)
Ulysses Simpson Kay, Jr., was one of the leading black composers in the classical music industry in the 20th Century. Born in Tucson, Arizona, Kay grew up in a musically talented family. His mother, Elizabeth Kay, was a church pianist.  His step-brother played the violin and his step-sister played
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Source: Black Past
May
20
1995
Jim Brown
Born on February 17, 1936, James Nathaniel Brown grew up off the southern coast of Georgia without a father who left the family when Brown was only two weeks old. After his mother left to take up a job in New York, the young child was brought up by his great-grandmother. At eight years of age, Jim
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Source: Black History Resources
Sponsored by National Association of Black Accountants (NABA) Boston Metropolitan Chapter
Feb
17
1936
Sojourner Truth
Sojourner Truth left New York and began her career as an antislavery activist.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Greater Boston Veterans Collaborative
Jun
1
1843
Death of Harriet Tubman
Death of Harriet Tubman, Auburn, New York.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association (MBLA)
Mar
10
1913
New York and New Jersey legally recognize the institutionof slavery.
New York and New Jersey legally recognize the institution of slavery.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA) Boston Professional Chapter
Jan
0
1664
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