November 25, 1949 Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, tap dancer and stage and film actor, died. Robinson was born May 25, 1878 in Richmond, Virginia. He began to dance for a living at the age of six. Robinson served in the United States Army from 1898 to 1900. He gained success and fame on the black theater […]
Tag Archives | Army
November 24th in African American History – Webster Anderson
November 24, 1969 Webster Anderson received the Medal of Honor, America’s highest military decoration, from President Richard M. Nixon. Anderson was born July 15, 1933 in Winnsboro, South Carolina. He joined the United States Army in 1953 and served during the Korean War. By October 15, 1967, he was serving as a staff sergeant in […]
November 4th in African American History – Rayford Whittingham Logan
November 4, 1982 Rayford Whittingham Logan, historian and Pan-African activist, died. Logan was born January 7, 1897 in Washington, D. C. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Williams College in 1917 and enlisted in the United States Army. In 1919 he requested, and was granted, a discharge because of his dissatisfaction with the […]
October 25th in African American History – Earl Cryil Palmer
October 25, 1924 Earl Cryil Palmer, hall of fame drummer, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. Palmer started his entertainment career at the age of five as a tap dancer on the black vaudeville circuit. He toured the country extensively with the Darktown Scandals Review. Palmer served in Europe for the United States Army during […]
October 24th in African American History – George Jordan
October 24, 1904 George Jordan, Medal of Honor recipient, died. Jordan was born in Williamson County, Tennessee. By 1880, he was serving as a sergeant in the 9th Cavalry Regiment in New Mexico during the Indian Wars. His citation reads: “While commanding a detachment of 25 men at Fort Tularosa, New Mexico, repulsed a force […]
October 22nd in African American History – Milton Lee Olive, III
October 22, 1965, Milton Lee Olive, III, the first African American Medal of Honor recipient of the Vietnam War, was killed in action. Olive was born November 7, 1946 in Chicago, Illinois. He enlisted in the United States Army at 17 and by 1965 was serving as a private first class in Vietnam. On October […]
October 17th in African American History – Lerone Bennett, Jr.
October 17, 1928, Lerone Bennett, Jr., scholar, author and social historian, was born in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Bennett earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Morehouse College in 1949 and served in the United States Army from 1951 to 1952. He joined Ebony Magazine in 1954 and for decades served as executive editor. Bennett is the […]