February 9, 1906 Paul Laurence Dunbar, poet, died. Dunbar was born June 27, 1872 in Dayton, Ohio. He wrote his first poem at the age of six and gave his first public recital at nine.
Tag Archives | poet
January 9th in African American History – Countee Cullen
January 9, 1946 Countee Cullen, Harlem Renaissance poet and novelist, died. Cullen was born Countee LeRoy Porter on March 30, 1903 in Louisville, Kentucky. At a very young age, he won many poetry contests and often had his winning works published. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1925 from New York University and […]
December 20th in African American History – Leopold Sedar Senghor
December 20, 2001 Leopold Sedar Senghor, poet and the first President of Senegal, died. Senghor was born October 9, 1906 in Joal, Senegal. His father was a successful businessman and this allowed him to attend the best schools in Senegal and earn a scholarship to study in France where he graduated from the University of […]
December 3rd in African American History – Gwendolyn Elizabeth Brooks
December 3, 2000 Gwendolyn Elizabeth Brooks, poet and novelist, died. Brooks was born June 7, 1917 in Topeka, Kansas but raised in Chicago, Illinois. She published her first poem in a children’s magazine at 13 and by the time she was 16 she had a portfolio of 75 published poems. Brooks’ first book of poetry, […]
November 30th in African American History – James Arthur Baldwin
November 30, 1987 James Arthur Baldwin, novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, and civil rights activist, died. Baldwin was born August 2, 1924 in Harlem, New York. When he was 17, Baldwin began to write short stories, essays, and book reviews, many of which were later collected in “Notes of a Native Son” (1955). In 1948, disillusioned […]
November 30th in African American History – Margaret Abigail Walker
November 30, 1998 Margaret Abigail Walker, poet and writer, died. Walker was born July 7, 1915 in Birmingham, Alabama. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Northwestern University in 1935 and began working with the Federal Writer’s Project. In 1940, she earned her Master of Arts degree in creative writing from the University of […]
November 21st in African American History – Margaret Taylor Goss Burroughs
November 21, 2010 Margaret Taylor Goss Burroughs, poet, artist, and educator, died. Burroughs was born November 1, 1917 in St. Rose, Louisiana, but raised in Chicago, Illinois. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in education from Chicago Teacher’s College in 1946 and her Master of Arts degree in education from the Art Institute of […]