People, Locations, Episodes

John Langalibalele Dube, Essayist, and Poltician born

*John Langalibalele Dube was born on this date in 1871. He was a Black South African activist, essayist, philosopher, educator, politician, publisher, editor, novelist, and poet. John Langalibalele was born in Natal at the Inanda mission station of the American Zulu Mission (AZM), a branch of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, whose […]

Oscar De Priest, Chicago Politician born

On this date, we recall the birth of Oscar Stanton De Priest in 1871. He was the first African American to win a seat in the U. S. House of Representatives in the 20th century.

The Enforcement Act of 1871 is Passed

*On this date in 1871, the 42nd United States Congress passed the Enforcement Act of 1871, and President Ulysses S. Grant signed it into law.   Also known as the Civil Rights Act of 1871, Force Act of 1871, Ku Klux Klan Act, Third Enforcement Act, or Third Ku Klux Klan Act, it empowered the President to suspend the writ of habeas corpus to combat the Ku Klux Klan and […]

William H. Davis, Government Administrator born.

*William H. Davis was born on this date in 1872. He was a Black educator, pharmacist, and American government official. William Henry Davis was born in Louisville, Kentucky, to former slaves Jerry and Susan Davis. He graduated from Louisville Colored High School in June 1888 at the age of 16, second in his class of […]

The First Black Woman In America Is Admitted To Practice Law

On this date in 1872, Charlotte E. Ray became the first Black woman admitted to practice before the district Supreme Court (Washington D.C.).

Blacks Serge Politically During Reconstruction

On this date in 1872, the Republican National Convention met in Philadelphia. Held during Reconstruction, this gathering was filled with substantial Black representation from Southern states.

For the first time in American History, three Blacks addressed a major national political convention: Robert B. Elliot, chairman of the South Carolina delegation; Joseph H. Rainey, South Carolina delegate; and John R. Lynch, Mississippi delegate.

Ulysses S. Grant was nominated for president and Henry Wilson for vice president.

Blaise Diagne, Legislator, and Diplomat born

*Blaise Diagne was born on this date in 1872. He was a Black Senegalese and French political leader. He was born Gnagna Anthony Pereira Diagne in Gorée to a Senegalese Lebu father (Niokhor Diagne), a cook and sailor, and a Manjack mother of Guinea-Bissau origin. They baptized him as “Blaise.”  He studied in France before joining the […]

The Supreme Court Rules On The Slaughterhouse Cases

On this date in 1873, the Slaughterhouse cases were decided by the Supreme Court. These had a profound affect on former Black slaves and the Fourteenth Amendment of the American Constitution.

William A. White, Canadian Minister and Soldier born

*William A. White II was born on this date in 1874. He was a Black Nova Scotian minister and soldier. William Andrew White II was born to formerly enslaved people in King and Queen County, Virginia. He moved to the city of Baltimore, Maryland, where he lived with his brother and attended Wayland Seminary in […]

The Civil Rights Act of 1875 Is Passed

*On this date, the Civil Rights Act of 1875 was passed.  The Enforcement Act or the Force Act was a United States federal law enacted during Reconstruction in response to civil rights violations against Blacks. The bill was passed by the 43rd United States Congress and signed into law by United States President Ulysses S. Grant.  The act was designed to “protect all citizens in their civil and legal rights”, […]

Three Black Seminole Scouts Receive The Congressional Medal of Honor

*On this date, in 1875, three Black Seminoles received the Congressional Medal of Honor.   America’s highest military decoration was given to Isaac Payne, John Ward, and Pompey Factor for their actions during the Indian Wars. All three Black Seminoles were known as Seminole Negro Indian Scouts. Payne served as a trumpeter, Factor was a private, […]

Samuel J. Brown, Lawyer, and Activist born

*Samuel Joe Brown was born on this date in 1875. He was a Black lawyer and activist. Samuel “Joe” Brown was born in Keosauqua, Iowa, to Elizabeth (Henderson) Brown and Lewis Brown. Lewis, a teamster, traced the family lineage to the original 20 slaves brought to Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619. Moving north from Missouri, his […]

Edward B. Ceruti, Lawyer, and Activist born

*Edward Ceruti was born on this date in 1875. He was a Black attorney and racial justice activist. Edward Burton Ceruti was born in Nassau, the Bahamas. His parents were Eliza Jane Anderson, a mulatto, and Edward Burton Ceruti, Sr. The family moved to the United States when he was four years old. According to the 1880 census, […]

Lutie Lytle, Lawyer and Teacher born

*Lutie A. Lytle was born on this date in 1875. She was a Black lawyer and teacher. Lutie A. Lytle was born in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, one of six surviving children of John R. and Mary Ann “Mollie” (Chesebro) Lytle, both formerly enslaved people. In 1882, the Lytle family moved to Topeka, Kansas. Lutie Lytle attended […]

James R. Johnston, Canadian Lawyer born

*James R. Johnston was born on this date in 1876.  He was a Black Canadian lawyer and community leader.  James Robinson Johnston was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and was the eldest of the five sons of William Johnston, a shoemaker, and Elizabeth Ann Thomas. His maternal grandparents were Reverend James Thomas, a white man from Wales who headed […]