People, Locations, Episodes

Milton Margai, Prime Minister born

*Sir Milton Margai was born on this date in 1895. He was a Black African politician. Margai was born in Gbangabatoke in the Banta Chiefdom, Moyamba District of Sierra Leone. He was the eldest son of a businessman, M.E.S. Margai of Bonthe, and his grandfather was a Mende warrior chief. He received primary and secondary education at the […]

Joseph Danquah, Politician and Lawyer born

*Joseph Danquah was born on this date in 1895. He was an African politician, scholar, lawyer, and statesman. He was a politician in pre- and post-colonial Ghana, formerly the Gold Coast, and gave Ghana its current name. Joseph Kwame Kyeretwie Boakye Danquah was born in Bepong in Kwahu in the Eastern Region of Ghana. He was […]

Freddie Stowers, Soldier born

*Freddie Stowers was born on this date in 1896.  He was a Black corporal in the United States Army. Stowers was born in Sandy Springs, South Carolina, the grandson of slaves.  As a young adult, he worked as a farmhand and married a woman named Pearl, with whom he had one daughter, Minnie Lee. Stowers […]

The 25th Infantry Bicycle Corps is formed

*On this date in 1896, the 25th Infantry Bicycle Corps was formed, the first of its kind in the country. This predominately Black regiment was part of the United States Army. Fort Missoula’s 2nd Lieutenant James A. Moss, a native of Louisiana and a West Point graduate, led the Corps. He was an avid cyclist […]

The Supreme Court Upholds Plessy v. Ferguson

On this date in 1896, the Supreme Court upheld Plessy v. Ferguson. This “separate but equal” Louisiana decree marked the formal beginning of Jim Crow Laws and an end to Reconstruction.

Theodore Boone, Lawyer born.

Theodore Sylvester Boone was born on this date in 1896. He was an African American attorney, pastor, author, and editor.

Born in Winchester, Texas, Boone was the son of Alexander and Lillian (Chaney) Boone. He attended Terrell High School in Terrell, Texas, and a number of universities, including Prairie View A&M and Bishop College in Texas. From 1918 to 1920, he studied at Des Moines University and the University of Iowa. In 1921, one year after graduation, he wrote a book titled “Paramount Facts in Race Development.”

Alfred Gomes, Lawyer, Activist born

*Alfred J. Gomes was born on this date in 1897. He was an African American Attorney, and activist.

‘Bull’ Connor, Segregationist born

*’Bull’ Connor was born on this date in 1897. He was a white-American politician who served as the Commissioner of Public Safety for Birmingham, Alabama, for over two decades.   Theophilus Eugene ‘Bull’ Connor was born in Selma, Alabama, the son of Molly (Godwin) and Hugh King Connor, a train dispatcher and telegraph operator.  He […]

Sadie Alexander, Lawyer born

On this date Sadie Alexander, an African American lawyer and activist was born in in 1898.

Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander was a pioneer among Black women in United States law and education, and a committed civil rights activist. She was born in Philadelphia into an accomplished family. She was educated in Philadelphia and Washington D.C. Alexander graduated from M Street High School (now Dunbar high school) in Washington, and entered the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Education in 1915. Graduating in 1918, she helped found the gamma Chapter of the Delta Theta Sorority.

The “Grandfather Clause” is Enacted

*On this date in 1898, the “Grandfather Clause” was enacted for voting purposes.

The Grandfather Clause was a legal or constitutional mechanism passed by seven Southern states during reconstruction to deny suffrage to black Americans. It meant that those who had enjoyed the right to vote prior to 1867, or their lineal descendants, would be exempt from educational, property, or tax requirements for voting. As a result, even if they met all the requirements, they were not allowed to vote.

Raymond P. Alexander, Lawyer, and Judge born

This date marks the birth of Raymond Pace Alexander in 1898. He was a lawyer, politician, and judge and the first African American to hold a position on the Common Pleas Court of Philadelphia.

Edith Sampson, Lawyer, Judge born

On this date in 1898, Edith Sampson was born in Pittsburgh, the first black woman elected judge to a municipal court.

She was born Edith Spurlock, one of seven children. Her father, Louis Spurlock, earned $75 per month as a shipping clerk in a cleaning, pressing, and dyeing business. Her mother, Elizabeth Spurlock, worked at home making buckram hat frames and twisting switches of false hair.

Edith graduated from Peabody High School, and three years later married Rufus Sampson, a field agent for the Tuskegee Institute.

Duke Slater, Athlete, and Judge born

*”Duke” Slater was born on this date in 1898.  He was a Black football player and judge.   Frederick Wayman “Duke” Slater was born in Normal, Illinois, the son of George Slater, a Methodist minister. As a boy, he somehow picked up the name of the family dog, Duke, as a personal nickname and would carry it all his life. When […]

Alexander Tureaud, Lawyer born

*Alexander Tureaud was born on this date in 1899. He was an African American Attorney and civil rights leader.

Alexander Pierre Tureaud, Sr. grew up at 907 Kerlerac Street, one block below Esplanade, at the bend of Dauphine in New Orleans’ Seventh Ward, known as the black Creole community. His father, Louis Tureaud, was a carpenter/contractor and his mother Eugenia was a housewife and part-time domestic. There were eleven children, six boys and five girls. The family attended St. Augustine Catholic Church.

Clifford Durr, Attorney born

*The birth of Clifford Durr in 1899 is marked on this date. He was a White American lawyer.