May 21, 1923 Clarence Edward “Big House” Gaines, Sr., hall of fame college basketball coach, was born in Paducah, Kentucky. Gaines attended Lincoln High School where he excelled academically and athletically, graduating as class salutatorian in 1941. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from Morgan State College in 1945 and in 1950 […]
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May 21st in African American History – Katherine Mary Dunham
May 21, 2006 Katherine Mary Dunham, dancer, choreographer, author, educator, activist, and “Matriarch and Queen Mother of Black Dance,” died. Dunham was born June 22, 1909 in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. She became fascinated with dance at a young age and while in high school started a dance school for young black children. Dunham studied dance […]
May 20th in African American History – Francois-Dominique Toussaint L’Ouverture
May 20, 1743 Francois-Dominique Toussaint L’Ouverture, Haitian patriot and revolutionary leader, was born enslaved in Saint-Domingue, Hispaniola (now Haiti). At an early age, Toussaint’s master recognized his superior intelligence and taught him French, gave him duties which allowed him to educate himself, and freed him at age 33. Beginning in 1791, Toussaint led enslaved blacks […]
May 20th in African American History – David Alexander Paterson
May 20, 1954 David Alexander Paterson, the first African American Governor of New York and the second legally blind Governor of any state, was born in Brooklyn, New York. At the age of three months, Paterson contracted an infection which left him with no sight in his left eye and limited vision in his right. […]
May 19th in African American History – Lorraine Hansberry
May 19, 1930 Lorraine Hansberry, playwright and author, was born in Chicago, Illinois. In 1950, Hansberry moved to New York City to pursue a career as a writer and in 1959 her play, “A Raisin in the Sun,” debuted on Broadway. It was the first play written by an African American woman to be produced […]
May 19th in African American History – Cyril Lionel Robert James
May 19, 1989 Cyril Lionel Robert James, historian, journalist, and author, died. James was born January 4, 1901 in Trinidad and Tobago. He graduated from the Queen’s Royal College in Port of Spain and initially worked as a school teacher. In 1932, he moved to England and began to campaign for the independence of the […]
May 18th in African American History – Reginald Martinez “Reggie” Jackson
May 18, 1946 Reginald Martinez “Reggie” Jackson, hall of fame baseball player known as “Mr. October,” was born in Wyncote, Pennsylvania. Jackson excelled in high school baseball and football and went to Arizona State University on a football scholarship. In the 1966 Major League Baseball Draft, Jackson was selected by the Kansas City Athletics and […]