People, Locations, Episodes

John A. Lomax, Musicologist born

*John Lomax was born on this date in 1867. He was a white-American teacher, musicologist, and folklorist who did much to preserve American folk music. The Lomax family originally came from England with William Lomax, who settled in Rockingham County in “the colony of North Carolina.” John Avery Lomax was born in Goodman in Holmes […]

Robert Allen Cole Jr., Playwright born

*Robert Allen Cole Jr. was born on this date in 1868.  He was a Black composer, actor, playwright, stage producer, and director.   He was born in Athens, Georgia, where his father, Robert Allen Cole, Sr., and mother, Isabella Thomas Weldon, settled after the Emancipation Proclamation.   There, it became a prosperous city dominated by Black communities and professionals.  His father became well […]

Scott Joplin, Pianist, and Composer born

Scott Joplin was born on this date in 1868. He was an African American composer and pianist, one of the most important developers of ragtime music.

Ida Elizabeth Asbury, Musician, and Teacher born

*Ida Elizabeth Asbury was born this date in 1869. She was an African American musician and teacher.

Will Cook, Composer, and Arranger born

*On this date, Will Cook was born in 1869. He was an African American composer and arranger.

Born in Washington D.C., Will Marion Cook was the son of John Cook, the treasurer of Howard University. In 1882, he went to Oberlin College to study violin, returning three years later to give his first recitals. After studying in Berlin with the great Joseph Joachim, Cook returned to America and within five years was performing at Carnegie Hall.

Harriett Gibbs-Marshall, Pianist, and Educator born

*Harriett Gibbs Marshall was born on this date in 1869. She was an African American concert pianist, author, and educator.

Sissieretta Jones, Opera Singer born

*The birth of Sissieretta Jones is remembered on this date in 1869. She was an African American concert and spiritual singer.

Joseph Douglass, Violinist born

*Joseph Douglass was born on this date in 1869. He was an African American violinist and composer.

The grandson of Frederick Douglass he was born in the Anacostia area of Washington D.C. to Charles and Mary Elizabeth Douglass, their second child and only that would live to adulthood. Following in the path of his famous grandfather and father, Joseph took up the violin at a young age, receiving classical training at the New England Conservatory for five years and later the Boston Conservatory.

Boogie Woogie Music, and Black History, a story

*Boogie-Woogie music and Black History are celebrated on this date in 1870.  This blues music genre was developed in American Black communities in the 1870s and became popular during the late 1920s. It was eventually extended from piano-to-piano duo and trio, guitar, big band, country and western music, and gospel. While standard blues traditionally expresses various […]

William Tyers, Music Arranger born

*On this date, in 1870, William Tyers was born.  He was a Black musician and arranger.    William H. Tyers was born in Petersburg, Virginia, just south of Richmond, to former Virginia slaves Henry Tyers and his wife Jane “Jennie” Jones.  After spending his first 12 years in Richmond, Virginia, Will’s family moved to New York City to find a better situation. He […]

Tom Lemonier, Actor, and Composer, born

*Tom Lemonier was born on this date in 1870. He was a Black actor and composer. Little is known about his childhood. He contributed to popular music during the ragtime era, particularly active in Black Vaudeville. His work has been featured in various musicals. Some of his work was published by the Gotham-Attucks Music Publishing Company. Numerous recordings […]

Thomas W. Talley, Chemist born

*Thomas W. Talley was born on this date in 1870.  He was a chemist, poetry collector, and professor.  Thomas W. Talley was born in Shelbyville, Tennessee. He was one of eight children born to former slaves Charles Washington and Lucinda Talley.  Talley attended public school for six years, followed by high school and college at […]

Estelle Ricketts, Composer born

*This date in 1871 celebrates the birth of Estelle Ricketts, a Black composer who lived in Darby, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia. She lived with her mother, her younger brother, and her father, who operated a boarding stable. She was the only one in her family who could read and write.           Career            Estelle Ricketts’s […]

James Weldon Johnson, Lyricist, and Composer born

James Weldon Johnson was born on this date in 1871. He was an African American composer, lyricist, publisher, lawyer, and educator.

John Work Jr., Musicologist and Choral Director born

*John Work Jr. was born on this date in 1871.  He was a Black musicologist, choral director, educationalist, singer, and songwriter. John Wesley Work Jr. was born in Nashville, Tennessee, and was the son of Samuella and John Wesley Work. His father was a choir director, and some members were in the original Fisk Jubilee […]