People, Locations, Episodes

Thomas M. Stewart, Liberian Administrator born

Thomas McCants Stewart was born on this date in 1854. He was a Black attorney, educator, and minister.

He was born in Charleston, SC. After graduating from the University of South Carolina in 1875, he practiced law in Columbia. Stewart then became a professor of mathematics in the State Agricultural College, in Orangeburg.

John Cheatham, Pullman Porter, and Fireman born

*John Cheatham was born on this date in 1855. He was a Black Pullman Porter and Minnesota Fireman.

Born into slavery in St. Louis, Missouri he was freed on January 1, 1863, when the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect. Shortly afterwards, his family moved to Minneapolis where he attended school. After graduation he held a number of jobs, including porter and church sexton.

The USS Constellation, a story

*On this date in 1855, the USS Constellation was commissioned. Now housed in the Baltimore harbor, this is the last surviving battle ship of the Civil War and was instrumental in fighting The African American slave trade.

Henry O. Flipper, Military Officer born

*This date marks the birth of Henry Ossian Flipper who was the first Black man to graduate from West Point. He came from a family of slaves, born in Thomasville, GA.

Samuel Mahareo, African Chief born

*Samuel Maharero’s birth is celebrated on this date in 1856. He was an African Chief of the Herero people in German Southwest Africa (today Namibia). He is considered a national hero in Namibia. Samuel Maharero was the son of Maharero, an important Herero warrior and cattle raider. He was baptized in 1869 and went to the […]

Robert Terrell, Teacher, and Judge born

*On this date, in 1857, Robert Terrell was born.  He was a Black attorney, teacher, and judge.   Robert Heberton Terrell was born in Orange, Virginia, to parents Harrison and Louisa Ann Terrell.  The family moved to Washington, DC, in 1865 after the American Civil War and emancipation ended.  His father, Harrison Terrell, worked for a prominent businessman. Later, he served […]

Henry Cheatham, Educator, and Congressman born

On this date in 1857, Henry Plummer Cheatham was born. He was a Black politician and a member of the House of Representatives in North Carolina.

Alan Minns, British Politician born

*Allan Minns was born on this date 1858. He was a Black British doctor and politician and the first black man to become a mayor in England. He was elected Mayor of Thetford, Norfolk in 1904.

William Morris Sr., Lawyer, and Professor, born

 *The birth of William R. Morris, Sr. is celebrated on this date in 1859. He was a Black professor and lawyer. William Richard Morris was born into slavery in Flemingsburg, KY. He was the son of Hezekiah (a slave), Elizabeth Hopkins Morris (free), and the brother of Edward H. Morris. Hezekiah bought his freedom and […]

Clement G. Morgan, Lawyer and Activist born

*Clement G. Morgan was born on this date in 1859.  He was a Black attorney, civil rights activist, and city official. Clement Garnett Morgan was born into slavery in Stafford County, Virginia. When the Emancipation Proclamation freed him and his parents in 1863, they moved to Washington, D.C., where Clement attended the M Street High School and trained […]

The Africa Squadron Is Created

*On this date in 1859, The Africa Squadron was created. The Squadron Unit was an outgrowth of the 1819 treaty between the United States and the United Kingdom that was an early step in suppressing the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. It was further paralleled by the Webster–Ashburton Treaty of 1842. Although technically coordinated with a British […]

Edwin Henry Hackley, Lawyer born

*Edwin Henry Hackley was born on this date in 1859. He was a Black lawyer and journalist. His parents were John Hackley and Susan Belmore Hackley from Romeo, Michigan. As a child, he had pneumonia that affected his health into adulthood, and he was black middle class. After graduating from high school, Hackley attended the […]

Warner T. McGuinn, Lawyer born

*The birth of Warner T. McGuinn on November 23rd 1859 is celebrated on this date. He was an African American lawyer and politician.

From Goochland County, near Richmond, Virginia, he was one of three sons of Jared and Fannie McGuinn. His older brother the Rev. Robert A. McGuinn was also born in Virginia and moved to Baltimore. A half-brother, the Rev. William M. Alexander (1852-1919), was pastor of Sharon Baptist Church in Baltimore and the first editor of the Baltimore Afro-American.

Walter Cohen, Politician born

*Walter Louis Cohen was born on this date in 1860. He was an African American politician and businessman.

Cohen was born a free man of color in New Orleans. He was educated at St. Louis Catholic School and Straight College. An active member of Reconstruction politics he was one of the few African Americans to hold political office after Reconstruction. President McKinley appointed him to the office of Customs Inspector, to the position of Registrar of U. S. Land Office by President Theodore Roosevelt, and to the office of Comptroller of Customs by President Harding.

John J. Pershing, Military Officer born

*On this date in 1860, John Pershing was born.  He was a white-American senior United States Army officer.   John Joseph “Blackjack” Pershing was born on a farm near Laclede, Missouri, to businessman John Fletcher Pershing and homemaker Ann Elizabeth Thompson. Pershing’s great-great-grandfather, Frederick Pershing, originally named Pfersching, emigrated from Alsace, leaving Amsterdam on the ship Jacob and arriving in Philadelphia on October 2, 1749. Pershing’s mother was of English descent.   Pershing […]