May 2, 1925 Isaiah Mays, Medal of Honor recipient, died. Mays was born enslaved on February 16, 1858 in Carters Bridge, Virginia. By May 11, 1889, he was serving as a corporal in Company B of the 24th Infantry Regiment. On that day, he was involved in an engagement with robbers and his actions earned […]
Tag Archives | Army
Dwight Hal Johnson – April 30th in African American History
April 30, 1971 Dwight Hal Johnson, Medal of Honor recipient, died. Johnson was born May 7, 1947 in Detroit, Michigan. He was drafted into the United States Army in 1967 and in June, 1968 was serving in Company B, 1st Battalion, 69th Armor, 4th Infantry Division in the Republic of Vietnam. His citation partially reads: […]
Parren James Mitchell – April 29th in African American History
April 29, 1922 Parren James Mitchell, the first African American elected to Congress from Maryland, was born in Baltimore, Maryland. Mitchell served as an officer in the 92nd Infantry Division during World War II and earned the Purple Heart. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Morgan State University in 1950 and that year successfully sued […]
Percy Heath – April 28th in African American History
April 28, 2005 Percy Heath, jazz bassist, died. Heath was born April 30, 1923 in Wilmington, North Carolina but raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He started playing the violin and singing at the age of eight. Heath was drafted into the United States Army in 1944 and became a member of the Tuskegee Airmen. After World […]
April 17th in African American History – Ralph David Abernathy
April 17, 1990 Ralph David Abernathy, minister and civil rights leader, died. Abernathy was born March 11, 1926 in Linden, Alabama. After serving in the United States Army during World War II, he graduated with honors and a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics from Alabama State University in 1950 and in 1951 earned a […]
April 15th in African American History – Benjamin Lawson Hooks
April 15, 2010 Benjamin Lawson Hooks, attorney, minister and civil rights leader, died. Hooks was born January 31, 1925 in Memphis, Tennessee. After earning his Bachelor of Arts degree from Howard University in 1944, he joined the army where he found that the prisoners he was responsible for guarding could eat in restaurants from which […]
April 12th in African American History – Sugar Ray Robinson
April 12, 1989 Sugar Ray Robinson, hall of fame boxer, died. Born Walker Smith, Jr. on May 3, 1921 in Detroit, Michigan, Robinson began boxing at the age of 14 and he finished his amateur career with a record of 85 wins and no losses. Robinson made this professional debut in 1940 but his career […]