A non-profit association that recognize Black inventors for their contributions to society. Included on the website is a gallery of the inventors and a description of their inventions. One such inventor is Marie Von Brittan, who with her husband,…
Carter G. Woodson dedicated his life to educating African Americans about the achievements and contributions of their ancestors. In February 1926, Woodson sent out a press release announcing the first Negro History Week. He chose February because the…
Often referred to as "The Black National Anthem," Lift Every Voice and Sing was a hymn written as a poem by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson in 1900. His brother, John Rosamond Johnson (1873-1954), composed the music for the lyrics. A choir of 500…
In 1938, Victor Green, a mail carrier in New York City, recognized a need for a guidebook, describing where African Americans could eat and stay during the years of the Jim Crow segregation. The “Green Book” was published for over 30 years and…
Willa Brown was a high school teacher. a licensed aviator, a licensed aircraft mechanic, and one of the founders of the National Airmen’s Association that was dedicated to increase African American participation in aviation. AOPA Pilot
Almost 40,000 attended the “Blackbirds,” first all-black aerobatic team, perform at the first all-Black air circus. AOPA Pilot July 5, 2009 by Phil Scott.
Excerpt from University of Illinois Springfield African American Studies website: The concept of “Sankofa” is derived from King Adinkera of the Akan people of West Africa. Literally translated, this means “it is not taboo to go back and fetch what…
The investigative journalist and activist Ida B. Wells spearheaded the anti-lynching movement in the United States. Ida wrote A Red Record (1892), using mainstream white newspapers to document a resurgence of white mob violence, and finding that…
On July 17, 1944, explosions killed 320 sailors, Coast Guard personnel, and civilians at the Port Chicago naval facility in California. Black sailors, who refused to go back to work, were charged with mutiny. During the court martial trial, the…
In 1940, Benjamin O. Davis Sr. became the first Black person to achieve the rank of brigadier general in the US Army. In 1960, Benjamin O. Davis Jr. became the first black brigadier general in the US Air Force.
By the end of the Civil War, approximately 179,000 Black men served in the Union Army and 19,000 served in the Navy. Nearly 40,000 black soldiers died during the war.
Educational Resources and Primary Sources:
Preserving the Legacy of the U.S.…
African American Militia Units in Virginia served as part of the state militia, the Virginia Volunteers, between 1872-1899. African Americans fought in all American wars starting with the French and Indian War.
"Being a Brief, Comprehensive Review of the Negro's Participation in the Wars of the United States. Especially Showing the Valor and Heroism of the Negro Soldiers of the Ninth and Tenth Cavalries, and the Twenty-fourth and Twenty-fifth Infantries of…
"Our mission of escort was really the prime mission to carry out successfully and this we did. The 332nd became known as the best escort operator in the 15th Air Force. We never lost a bomber to enemy action of airplanes." — Gen. Benjamin O. Davis,…
The National Guard's history is also replete with examples of African Americans who served with distinction. A notable example existed within the three National Guard regiments that fought in World War I under the U.S. Army's 93rd Division: the…
The African American War experience is described from the Civil War through the Vietnam War, including descriptions of those who were awarded medals of honor.
Profiles, Timeline, and Resources
“Throughout America's history, from the Battle of Lexington to the Battle of Fallujah, Black Soldiers have honorably answered the call to duty, serving with great valor and distinction in America's armed…
Several topics are covered: Origins and Recruitment, Organization and Treatment, Virginia USCT Regiments, Racial Atrocities, After the War, and a Timeline
