People, Locations, Episodes

Florence B. Price, Pianist, and Composer born

On this date in 1877, Florence Smith Price was born. She was an African American composer, concert pianist, and organist.

Meta V.W. Fuller, Sculptor born

*This date marks the birth of Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller in 1877. She was a Black sculptor and one of the earliest studio artists to depict Black themes.

May Howard Jackson, Sculptor born

On this date we celebrate the birth of May Howard Jackson, an African American sculptor, in 1877.

She was born in Philadelphia, PA., the daughter of Floarda Howard and Sallie Durham. She attended public schools and then entered Todd’s Art School. In 1895, she became the first black student to receive a scholarship to attend the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, where she studied for four years with William Merritt Chase, Charles Grafly, and John Joseph Boyle. She graduated in 1899 and married William Sherman Jackson, a mathematics teacher.

Bill Robinson, Dancer born

On this date in 1878, Bill Bojangles Robinson was born. He was an African American tap dancer and entertainer.

Charles Gilpin, Actor born

Charles Gilpin was born on this date in 1878. He was an African American actor and singer.

Born in Richmond, VA, Charles Sidney Gilpin worked as an apprentice in the Richmond Planet print shop before finding his career in theater and becoming one of the most highly regarded actors of the 1920s. He first came on stage as a singer at the age of 12. In 1896, Gilpin joined a minstrel show, leaving Richmond and beginning a life on the road for many years.

Aida Overton Walker, Entertainer born

*On this date we recall Aida Overton Walker, born in 1880. She was a singer, dancer, actress, and choreographer, regarded as the leading African American female performing artist at the turn of the century.

Mary Burrill, Teacher, and Playwright born

*Mary P. Burrill was born on this date in 1881.  She was a Black teacher and playwright.  Born in Washington, D.C., her father was John H. Burrill, and her mother was Clara E. Burrill.    She graduated in 1901 from Washington’s M Street School (later Dunbar High School), entered Emerson College in the fall of […]

Edwin Harleston, Portrait Artist born

*On this date in 1882, Edwin Harleston was born. He was a Black painter. From Charleston, S.C., Edwin Augustus Harleston was one of eight children, his father was a rice planter, a sea captain, and owned a funeral home.

Lester Walton, Composer, and Journalist born

*Lester Walton was born on this date in 1882.  He was a Black composer, diplomat, and journalist.   From St. Louis, Mo, Lester Aglar Walton graduated from a segregated Sumner High School in St. Louis. After graduation, his father provided him with a white tutor to help him graduate from a business school. Walton was an Alpha Phi […]

Hazel Harrison, Pianist and Educator born

Hazel Harrison was an African American pianist and teacher and was born on this date in 1883.

Portia Washington Pittman, Teacher born

Portia Washington Pittman was born on this date in 1883, in Tuskegee, AL. She was an African American musician and teacher, and the only daughter of Booker T. and Fanny (Smith) Washington.

Her father was the founder of Tuskegee Institute. After her mother’s death in 1884, Portia was cared for by nursemaids and two stepmothers. An accomplished pianist by the age of ten, she attended New England’s finest boarding schools, including Framingham State Normal School in Massachusetts in 1895, Tuskegee Institute, and, in 1901, Wellesley College in Massachusetts.

Anita Bush, Actress and, Dancer born

Anita Bush was born on this date in 1883. She was an African American dancer, actress, and theatrical administrator.

Nora Hendrix, Singer, and Dancer born

*Nora” Moore Hendrix was born on this date in 1883.  She was a Black vaudeville singer and dancer.  Born in Georgia, Zenora “Nora” Moore’s parents were Fanny Moore, originally from Ohio, and Robert Moore Sr., a Georgia native.  Fanny Moore was half Cherokee and half African.  Robert Moore Sr. was a freed African slave.  Together […]

Aubrey Lyles, Stage Pioneer born

*Aubrey Lyles was born on this date in 1884.  He was a Black vaudeville performer, playwright, songwriter, and lyricist.   Aubrey Lee Lyles was born in Jackson, Tennessee, and attended Fisk University in Nashville as a medical student. He began performing as one half of a comedy duo, Miller and Lyles, with his friend Flournoy […]

Rose McClendon, Stage Actress born

Rose McClendon was born on this date in 1884. She was an African American actress, theater administrator, and director.