January 3, 1955 William “Willy” Theodore Ribbs, Jr., former race car driver, was born in San Jose, California. Following his graduation from high school in 1975, Ribbs moved to Europe to compete in the Formula Ford Series. He won the Dunlop Championship in his first year of competition and then returned to the United States. […]
Archive | January, 2013
January 2nd in African American History – John Hope Franklin
January 2, 1915 John Hope Franklin, historian and author, was born in Rentiesville, Oklahoma. Franklin earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Fisk University in 1935 and his Master of Arts degree and Ph. D. in history from Harvard University in 1936 and 1941, respectively. In the early 1950s, he served on the NAACP Legal […]
January 1st in African American History – Derrick Vincent Thomas
January 1, 1967 Derrick Vincent Thomas, hall of fame football player, was born in Miami, Florida. Thomas played collegiate football at the University of Alabama. In 1988, he was named an All-American and won the Butkus Award as the best linebacker in college football. Thomas was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the 1989 […]