October 30, 2007 John Youie Woodruff, Olympic champion, died. Woodruff was born July 5, 1915 in Connellsville, Pennsylvania. As a 21 year old college freshman, Woodruff won the 800 meter Gold Medal at the 1936 Berlin Summer Olympic Games.
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October 29th in African American History – Vonetta Flowers
October 29, 1973 Vonetta Flowers, the first Black person to win a Gold Medal in the Winter Olympic Games, was born in Birmingham, Alabama. Flowers was a sprinter and long jumper at the University of Alabama and aspired to make the United States Summer Olympic Team. After several failed attempts, she turned to making the […]
October 29th in African American History – Pearl Primus
October 29, 1994 Pearl Primus, dancer, choreographer, and anthropologist, died. Primus was born November 29, 1919 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. Early in her career, Primus saw the need to promote African dance as an art form worthy of study and performance. In 1943, she presented her first composition, “African Ceremonial.”
October 28th in African American History – Terrell Lamar Davis
October 28, 1972 Terrell Lamar Davis, former football player, was born in San Diego, California. Davis initially played college football at Long Beach State University and when they ended their football program, he transferred to the University of Georgia. Davis graduated from Georgia with a Bachelor of Science degree in Consumer Economics and was selected […]
October 28th in African American History – Oliver Edward Nelson
October 28, 1975 Oliver Edward Nelson, jazz musician, arranger, and composer, died. Nelson was born June 4, 1932 in St. Louis, Missouri. He learned to play the piano when he was six and started to play the saxophone when he was eleven. After military service in the Marines, Nelson studied music composition and theory at […]
October 27th in African American History – John Oliver Killens
October 27, 1987 John Oliver Killens, novelist, died. Killens was born January 14, 1916 in Macon, Georgia. He attended a number of institutions of higher learning, including Morris Brown College, Howard University, and Columbia University, but never earned a degree. After serving in the military, Killens moved to New York City in 1948 to focus […]
October 27th in African American History – Roy Rudolph DeCarava
October 27, 2009 Roy Rudolph DeCarava, photographer, died. DeCarava was born December 9, 1919 in Harlem, New York. He determined early that he wanted to be an artist and initially worked as a painter and commercial illustrator. Eventually he was drawn to photography and in 1955 opened A Photographer’s Gallery, pioneering an effort to win […]