KRLemmons African American History

December 20 African American Historical Events

Today in Black History – December 20 *

1854 – Walter F. Craig is born in Princeton, New Jersey. He will
obtain his music education in Cleveland, Ohio under
Hermon Troste, Edward Mollenhauer and Carl Christian
Muller. He will become an excellent violin soloist and
accomplished conductor and composer. He will become the
organizer of Craig’s Celebrated Orchestra, and the first
African American to be admitted to the New York Musician’s
Mutual Protective Union. The Cleveland Gazette will refer
to him as “The Leading Colored Violinist in the East.”
He will live primarily in New York City and will perform
in Carnegie Hall between 1892 and 1900. He will join the
ancestors in 1920.

1870 – Robert H. Wood, Mississippi political leader, is elected
mayor of Natchez.

1870 – Allen University, Benedict College and LeMoyne-Owen
College are established.

1870 – Jefferson F. Long of Macon, Georgia, is elected to an
unexpired term in the Forty-first Congress. Georgia
Democrats carry the state election with a campaign of
violence and political intimidation.

1893 – Paul Lawrence Dunbar publishes “Oak and Ivy.” Unable to
afford the $125 publishing costs, he accepts a loan from
a white friend. The loan will be quickly repaid through
book sales, often to passengers in the elevator of the
Dayton, Ohio, building where he works.

1893 – The first state anti-lynching statute is approved in
Georgia.

1942 – Robert Lee “Bullet Bob” Hayes is born in Jacksonville,
Florida. He will be a two-sport stand-out in college in
both track and football at Florida A&M University. He
will become a world class sprinter for the United States,
winning the Gold Medal in the 100 meter dash in the 1964
Olympic games. He will have one of the top 100 meter times
by NFL players. He will be enshrined in the Dallas Cowboys
Ring of Honor in 2001 and selected for induction in the
Pro Football Hall of Fame in January 2009. He will be
officially inducted in Canton, Ohio on August 8, 2009. He
will be the second Olympic gold medalist to be inducted to
Pro Football Hall of Fame, after Jim Thorpe. He will be
considered the world’s fastest man by virtue of his
multiple world records in the 60-yard, 100-yard, 220-yard,
and Olympic 100-meter dashes, He will be the first man to
win both an Olympic gold medal and a Super Bowl ring. He
will join the ancestors in Jacksonville, Florida on
September 18, 2002, after succumbing to renal failure,
after battling prostate cancer and liver ailments.

1956 – The African American community of Montgomery, Alabama votes
unanimously to end its 385 day bus-boycott. Montgomery,
Alabama, removes race-based seat assignments on its city’s
buses.

1981 – “Dreamgirls” opens on Broadway at the Imperial Theater.
The musical, which chronicles the rise of a black female
group in the 1960’s, star Jennifer Holliday, Ben Harney,
and Cleavant Derricks. Holliday, Derricks and
choreographer Michael Peters will earn Tony awards for
their work in the musical.

1988 – Max Robinson, the first African American network (ABC) TV
anchor, joins the ancestors after succumbing to
complications of AIDS at the age of 49.

1998 – Nigerian American Nkem Chukwu gives birth in Houston, Texas
to five girls and two boys, 12 days after giving birth to
another child, a girl. The tiniest of the babies will
succumb a week later.
Information retrieved from the Munirah Chronicle and is edited by Rene’ A. Perry.

KRLemmons African American History

December 12 African American Historical Events

* Today in Black History – December 12 *

1870 – Joseph Hayne Rainey is the first African American to serve
in Congress representing South Carolina. He is sworn in
to fill an unexpired term.

1872 – U.S. Attorney General George Williams sends a telegram to
“Acting Governor Pinchback,” saying that the African
American politician “was recognized by the President as
the lawful executive of Louisiana.”

1892 – Minnie Evans, visual artist and painter, is born in Pender
County, North Carolina. One of her more famous works will
be “Lion of Judah.” She will be inducted into the
Wilmington, NC “Walk of Fame.” She will join the ancestors
on December 16, 1987.

1899 – Boston native, dentist, and avid golfer, George F. Grant
receives a patent for a wooden golf tee. Prior to the
use of the tee, wet sand was used to make a small mound
to place the ball. Grant’s invention will revolutionize
the manner in which golfers swing at the ball.

1912 – Henry Melody Jackson, Jr. is born in Columbus, Mississippi.
He will move with his family to St. Louis, Missouri and
become a boxer known as Henry Armstrong. In 1938 he will
become the first boxer to hold three titles at the same
time after winning the lightweight boxing championship.
He will be inducted into the St. Louis Walk of Fame as well
as the International Boxing Hall of Fame. His boxing record
at the time of his retirement in 1945 will be 150 wins, 101
wins by knockout, 21 losses, and 10 draws. After retiring
from boxing, he will become a Baptist minister and will
teach young upcoming fighter how to box. He will join
the ancestors on October 22, 1988 in Los Angeles, California.

1913 – James Cleveland “Jesse” Owens is born in Oakville, Alabama.
He will become a world-class athlete in college, setting
world records in many events. He will go on to win 4 gold
medals in the 1936 Berlin Olympics, spoiling Hitler’s
plans to showcase Aryan sports supremacy. He will join the
ancestors on March 31, 1980.

1918 – Famed jazz singer Joe Williams is born in Cordele, Georgia.
Williams will sing for seven years in Count Basie’s band,
where he will record such hits as “Every Day I have the
Blues.” He will join the ancestors on March 29, 1980.

1929 – Vincent Dacosta Smith is born in New York City. He will
exhibit his works on four continents and be represented in
the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the National
Museum of American Art, and the National Museum of Afro-
American Artists in Boston. He will join the ancestors on
December 27, 2003.

1938 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Missouri that a state must
provide equal educational facilities for African Americans
within its boundaries. Lloyd Gaines, the plaintiff in the
case, disappears after the decision and is never seen
again.

1941 – Dionne Warwick is born in East Orange, New Jersey. Warwick
will sing in a gospel trio with her sister Dee Dee and
cousin Cissy Houston, and begin her solo career in 1960
singing the songs of Burt Bacharach and Hal David. She
will become a three-time Grammy winner.

1943 – Grover Washington, Jr. is born in Buffalo, New York. He
will become a renown jazz artist and famous for his
recording of “Mr. Magic.” He will join the ancestors on
December 17, 1999.

1961 – Martin Luther King Jr., along with over seven hundred
demonstrators is arrested in Albany, Ga., after five mass
marches on city hall to protest segregation. The arrests
trigger the militant Albany movement.

1963 – Kenya achieves its independence from Great Britain with
Jomo Kenyatta as its first prime minister.

1963 – Medgar Wiley Evers is awarded the Spingarn Medal
posthumously for his civil rights leadership.

1965 – Johnny Lee, an actor best known for his portrayal of
“Calhoun” on “The Amos ‘n’ Andy Show,” joins the ancestors
at the age of 67.

1965 – Gale Sayers, of the Chicago Bears, scores 6 touchdowns and
ties the NFL record.

1968 – Arthur Ashe becomes the first African American to be ranked
Number One in tennis.

1975 – The National Association of Black Journalists is formed in
Washington, DC. Among its founding members are Max
Robinson, who will become the first African American anchor
of a national network news program, and Acel Moore, a
future Pulitzer Prize winner.

1979 – Rhodesia becomes the independent nation of Zimbabwe.

1986 – Bone Crusher Smith knocks out WBA champion Tim Witherspoon
in Madison Square Garden in New York City.

2007 – Ike Turner, whose role as one of rock’s critical architects
was overshadowed by his ogre-like image as the man who
brutally abused former wife and rock icon Tina Turner,
joins the ancestors at his home in suburban San Diego at the
age of 76.

Information retrieved from the Munirah Chronicle and is edited by Rene’ A. Perry.

KRLemmons African American History

May 13 African American Historical Events

* Today in Black History – May 13 *

1865 – Two white regiments and an African American regiment, the
Sixty-second U.S. Colored Troops, fight in the last action
of the civil war at White’s Ranch, Texas.

1871 – Alcorn A&M College (now Alcorn A&M University) opens in
Lorman, Mississippi.

1888 – Princess Isabel of Brazil signs the “Lei Aurea” (Golden
Law) which abolishes slavery. Slavery is ended in part to
appease the efforts of abolitionists, but mostly because
it is less expensive for employers to hire wageworkers
than to keep slaves. Plantation owners oppose the law
because they are not compensated for releasing their
slaves. The passage of the law hastens the fall of the
Brazilian monarchy.

1891 – Isaac Murphy becomes the first jockey to win three Kentucky
Derbys as he wins the fabled race astride Kingman.
Kingman was trained by Dud Allen, an African American
trainer.

1914 – Joseph Louis Barrow is born in Lexington, Alabama. He will
be better known as Joe Louis. “The Brown Bomber” will
hold the heavyweight crown from his 1937 title match with
James J. Braddock until his first retirement in 1949. In
his 71 professional fights, he will amass a record of 68
victories, 54 by knockouts. He will join the ancestors on
April 12, 1981.

1933 – John Junior “Johnny” Roseboro is born in Ashland, Ohio. He
will become a professional baseball player in 1957 and will
play as a catcher for the Dodgers from 1957-1967, Minnesota
Twins from 1968 to 1969, and the Washington Senators in
1970. He will join the ancestors on August 16, 2002.

1938 – Louis Armstrong and his Orchestra record the New Orleans’
jazz standard, “When The Saints Go Marching In”, on Decca
Records making it extremely popular.

1943 – Mary Wells is born in Detroit, Michigan. She will become a
singer for the Motown label and record the hits, “My Guy,”
“Two Lovers,” “You Beat Me to the Punch,” and “The One Who
Really Loves You.” She will join the ancestors on July 26,
1992 after succumbing to pneumonia and complications of
larynx cancer.

1949 – Franklin Ajaye is born in Brooklyn, New York. He will
become a comedy writer, comedian and actor. He will appear
in the movies “The Jazz Singer,” “Car Wash,” “Hysterical,”
“The Wrong Guys,” and “Jock Jokes.”

1950 – Steveland Judkins Morris is born in Saginaw, Michigan. As
12-year-old Little Stevie Wonder, he will become a singing
and musical sensation notable for “Fingertips, Part 2.”
Wonder will continue to record through-out adulthood, with
the albums “Talking Book,” “Songs in the Key of Life,” “The
Woman in Red,” and the soundtrack to the movie “Jungle
Fever.” Among other awards he will win more than 16 Grammys
and a 1984 best song Oscar for “I Just Called to Say I Love
You.” He will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of
Fame in 1989.

1961 – Dennis Rodman is born in Texas. He will become a
professional basketball player and will help two different
teams win multiple NBA championships.

1966 – Federal education funding is denied to 12 school districts
in the South because of violations of the 1964 Civil Rights
Act.

1971 – (James) Charles Evers becomes the first African American
mayor of Fayette, Mississippi.

1971 – Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, receives a gold record
for her version of “Bridge Over Troubled Water”, originally
a Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel tune.

1978 – Henry Rono of Kenya sets the record for the 3,000 meter
steeplechase (8:05.4). The record will stand for eleven
years.

1979 – Max Robinson becomes the first African American network news
anchor when he anchors ABC’s World News Tonight.

1983 – Reggie Jackson becomes the first major leaguer to strike out
2,000 times.

1985 – Philadelphia Police bomb a house held by the group “Move”,
killing eleven persons. Ramona Africa and a 13-year-old
boy are the only people to escape the inferno that the
blast caused inside 6221 Osage Street. The heat from the
blast also ignites a fire that destroys 60 other homes and
leaves 250 people homeless, angry and heartbroken in a
working-class section of West Philadelphia.

1990 – George Stallings is ordained as the first bishop of the
newly established African American Catholic Church.
Stallings broke from the Roman Catholic Church in 1989,
citing the church’s failure to meet the needs of African
American Catholics.

1995 – Army Captain Lawrence Rockwood is convicted at his court-
martial in Fort Drum, New York, of conducting an
unauthorized investigation of reported human rights abuses
at a Haitian prison (the next day, Rockwood is dismissed
from the military, but receives no prison time).

Information retrieved from the Munirah Chronicle and is edited by Rene’ A. Perry.

KRLemmons African American History

December 20 African American Historical Events

Today in Black History – December 20 *

1854 – Walter F. Craig is born in Princeton, New Jersey. He
will become a violinist, organizer of Craig’s
Celebrated Orchestra, and, in 1886, the first African
American to be admitted to the Musician’s Protective
Union.

1870 – Robert H. Wood, Mississippi political leader, is elected
mayor of Natchez.

1870 – Allen University, Benedict College and LeMoyne-Owen
College are established.

1870 – Jefferson F. Long of Macon, Georgia, is elected to an
unexpired term in the Forty-first Congress. Georgia
Democrats carry the state election with a campaign of
violence and political intimidation.

1893 – Paul Lawrence Dunbar publishes “Oak and Ivy.” Unable to
afford the $125 publishing costs, he accepts a loan from
a white friend. The loan will be quickly repaid through
book sales, often to passengers in the elevator of the
Dayton, Ohio, building where he works.

1893 – The first state anti-lynching statute is approved in
Georgia.

1938 – Mattie Alou is born in Haina, Dominican Republic. He will
become a professional baseball player like his brother
Felipe. They both will play for the San Francisco Giants.

1942 – Robert “Bob” Hayes is born in Florida. He will become a
world class sprinter for the United States, winning the
Gold Medal in the 100 meter dash in the 1964 Olympic games.
He will later become a wide receiver in the National
Football League.

1956 – The African American community of Montgomery, Alabama votes
unanimously to end its 385 day bus-boycott. Montgomery,
Alabama, removes race-based seat assignments on its city’s
buses.

1981 – “Dreamgirls” opens on Broadway at the Imperial Theater.
The musical, which chronicles the rise of a black female
group in the 1960’s, star Jennifer Holliday, Ben Harney,
and Cleavant Derricks. Holliday, Derricks and
choreographer Michael Peters will earn Tony awards for
their work in the musical.

1988 – Max Robinson, the first African American network (ABC) TV
anchor, joins the ancestors from complications of AIDS at
the age of 49.

1998 – Nigerian American Nkem Chukwu gives birth in Houston, Texas
to five girls and two boys, 12 days after giving birth to
another child, a girl. The tiniest of the babies will
succumb a week later.

Information retrieved from the Munirah Chronicle and is edited by Rene’ A. Perry.

KRLemmons African American History

May 13 African American Historical Events

Today in Black History – May 13 *

1865 – Two white regiments and an African American regiment, the
Sixty-second U.S. Colored Troops, fight in the last action
of the civil war at White’s Ranch, Texas.

1871 – Alcorn A&M College (now Alcorn A&M University) opens in
Lorman, Mississippi.

1888 – Princess Isabel of Brazil signs the “Lei Aurea” (Golden
Law) which abolishes slavery. Slavery is ended in part to
appease the efforts of abolitionists, but mostly because
it is less expensive for employers to hire wageworkers
than to keep slaves. Plantation owners oppose the law
because they are not compensated for releasing their
slaves. The passage of the law hastens the fall of the
Brazilian monarchy.

1891 – Isaac Murphy becomes the first jockey to win three Kentucky
Derbys as he wins the fabled race astride Kingman.
Kingman was trained by Dud Allen, an African American
trainer.

1914 – Joseph Louis Barrow is born in Lexington, Alabama. He will
be better known as Joe Louis. “The Brown Bomber” will
hold the heavyweight crown from his 1937 title match with
James J. Braddock until his first retirement in 1949. In
his 71 professional fights, he will amass a record of 68
victories, 54 by knockouts. He will join the ancestors on
April 12, 1981.

1933 – John Junior “Johnny” Roseboro is born in Ashland, Ohio. He
will become a professional baseball player in 1957 and will
play as a catcher for the Dodgers from 1957-1967, Minnesota
Twins from 1968 to 1969, and the Washington Senators in
1970. He will join the ancestors on August 16, 2002.

1938 – Louis Armstrong and his Orchestra record the New Orleans’
jazz standard, “When The Saints Go Marching In”, on Decca
Records making it extremely popular.

1943 – Mary Wells is born in Detroit, Michigan. She will become a
singer for the Motown label and record the hits, “My Guy,”
“Two Lovers,” “You Beat Me to the Punch,” and “The One Who
Really Loves You.” She will join the ancestors on July 26,
1992 after succumbing to pneumonia and complications of
larynx cancer.

1949 – Franklin Ajaye is born in Brooklyn, New York. He will
become a comedy writer, comedian and actor. He will appear
in the movies “The Jazz Singer,” “Car Wash,” “Hysterical,”
“The Wrong Guys,” and “Jock Jokes.”

1950 – Steveland Judkins Morris is born in Saginaw, Michigan. As
12-year-old Little Stevie Wonder, he will become a singing
and musical sensation notable for “Fingertips, Part 2.”
Wonder will continue to record through-out adulthood, with
the albums “Talking Book,” “Songs in the Key of Life,” “The
Woman in Red,” and the soundtrack to the movie “Jungle
Fever.” Among other awards he will win more than 16 Grammys
and a 1984 best song Oscar for “I Just Called to Say I Love
You.” He will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of
Fame in 1989.

1961 – Dennis Rodman is born in Texas. He will become a
professional basketball player and will help two different
teams win multiple NBA championships.

1966 – Federal education funding is denied to 12 school districts
in the South because of violations of the 1964 Civil Rights
Act.

1971 – (James) Charles Evers becomes the first African American
mayor of Fayette, Mississippi.

1971 – Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, receives a gold record
for her version of “Bridge Over Troubled Water”, originally
a Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel tune.

1978 – Henry Rono of Kenya sets the record for the 3,000 meter
steeplechase (8:05.4). The record will stand for eleven
years.

1979 – Max Robinson becomes the first African American network news
anchor when he anchors ABC’s World News Tonight.

1983 – Reggie Jackson becomes the first major leaguer to strike out
2,000 times.

1985 – Philadelphia Police bomb a house held by the group “Move”,
killing eleven persons. Ramona Africa and a 13-year-old
boy are the only people to escape the inferno that the
blast caused inside 6221 Osage Street. The heat from the
blast also ignites a fire that destroys 60 other homes and
leaves 250 people homeless, angry and heartbroken in a
working-class section of West Philadelphia.

1990 – George Stallings is ordained as the first bishop of the
newly established African American Catholic Church.
Stallings broke from the Roman Catholic Church in 1989,
citing the church’s failure to meet the needs of African
American Catholics.

1995 – Army Captain Lawrence Rockwood is convicted at his court-
martial in Fort Drum, New York, of conducting an
unauthorized investigation of reported human rights abuses
at a Haitian prison (the next day, Rockwood is dismissed
from the military, but receives no prison time).

Information retrieved from the Munirah Chronicle and is edited by Rene’ A. Perry.

KRLemmons African American History

December 20 African American Historical Events

Today in Black History – December 20         *

1854 – Walter F. Craig is born in Princeton, New Jersey.  He
will become a violinist, organizer of Craig’s
Celebrated Orchestra, and, in 1886, the first African
American to be admitted to the Musician’s Protective
Union.

1870 – Robert H. Wood, Mississippi political leader, is elected
mayor of Natchez.

1870 – Allen University, Benedict College and LeMoyne-Owen
College are established.

1870 – Jefferson F. Long of Macon, Georgia, is elected to an
unexpired term in the Forty-first Congress.  Georgia
Democrats carry the state election with a campaign of
violence and political intimidation.

1893 – Paul Lawrence Dunbar publishes “Oak and Ivy.”  Unable to
afford the $125 publishing costs, he accepts a loan from
a white friend.  The loan will be quickly repaid through
book sales, often to passengers in the elevator of the
Dayton, Ohio, building where he works.

1893 – The first state anti-lynching statute is approved in
Georgia.

1938 – Mattie Alou is born in Haina, Dominican Republic.  He will
become a professional baseball player like his brother
Felipe.  They both will play for the San Francisco Giants.

1942  – Robert “Bob” Hayes is born in Florida.  He will become a
world class sprinter for the United States, winning the
Gold Medal in the 100 meter dash in the 1964 Olympic games. 
He will later become a wide receiver in the National
Football League.

1956 – The African American community of Montgomery, Alabama votes
unanimously to end its 385 day bus-boycott.  Montgomery,
Alabama, removes race-based seat assignments on its city’s
buses.

1981 – “Dreamgirls” opens on Broadway at the Imperial Theater. 
The musical, which chronicles the rise of a black female
group in the 1960’s, star Jennifer Holliday, Ben Harney,
and Cleavant Derricks.  Holliday, Derricks and
choreographer Michael Peters will earn Tony awards for
their work in the musical.

1988 – Max Robinson, the first African American network (ABC) TV
anchor, joins the ancestors from complications of AIDS at
the age of 49.

1998 – Nigerian American Nkem Chukwu gives birth in Houston, Texas
to five girls and two boys, 12 days after giving birth to
another child, a girl.  The tiniest of the babies will
succumb a week later.

Information retrieved from the Munirah Chronicle archives and is edited by Rene’ A. Perry.