People, Locations, Episodes

Hall Johnson, Vocalist, and Composer born

*Hall Johnson was born on this date in1888. He was an African American concert vocalist and composer.

From Athens, GA his father was a minister in the African Methodist Church and a college president. His earliest interest in music came from his grandmother. She was a former slave who exposed him to spirituals. Johnson graduated from Allen University and also studied at the University of Pennsylvania, the Julliard School and the University of Southern California.

The Tutt Brothers, Vaudeville Act is Formed

*The Tutt Brothers were celebrated on this date in 1888. They were a Black song and dance team that performed in the American Vaudeville era.  They were producers, writers, and performers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Salem Tutt Whitney was born in Logansport, Indiana, and his brother J. Homer Tutt was born there. They […]

William W. Higgins, Vaudeville Entertainer born

*William Higgins was born on this date in 1888. He was a Black vaudeville entertainer, comedian, singer, and songwriter.  William Weldon Higgins was born in Columbia, South Carolina; early on, he was a machinist. He began his career in 1912 on stage; he often worked in blackface and as a singer of ballads at private clubs in his hometown. […]

Sargent Johnson, Artist born

On this date in 1888, Sargent Johnson was born. He was an African American painter and sculptor.

Sargent Claude Johnson was from Boston, the third of six children born to Anderson, who was Swedish and Lizzie Jackson, Cherokee and black. Racial problems and illness resulted in a troubled marriage. Some of the mixed race Johnson children were accepted as Indian or white and lived their lives as such. Sargent Johnson, however, chose to live as a black throughout his life.

Noble Sissle, Lyricist born

Noble Sissle, an African American musician and lyricist, was born on this date in 1889.

Willis Richardson, Playwright born

Willis Richardson, an African American playwright, was born on this date in 1889.

Born in Wilmington, N.C., he and his parents, Willis Wilder and Agnes Ann Harper Richardson, moved to Washington, D.C. shortly after the Wilmington Riots of 1898. The riots resulted in the death of 16 Blacks and affected Richardson as a child. Richardson’s father read to him as a young boy and encouraged his interest in books and writing.

The Harlem Opera House Opens

*On this date, in 1889, the Harlem Opera House opened.  It was an American opera house in the Harlem community of Manhattan in New York City. It was built in 1875 and designed by architect John B. McElfatrick by Oscar Hammerstein; it was his first theater in New York City. An early work at the […]

Nancy Elizabeth Prophet, Sculptor born

*Nancy Elizabeth Prophet was born on this date in 1890. She was an African American sculptor.

An only child from Providence, Rhode Island, her father, William H. Prophet, was employed by that city, and her mother, Rose Walker Prophet, was a housewife. Encouraged by family and friends after high school, Prophet enrolled in the renowned Rhode Island School of Design, working as a domestic to pay her tuition. Her graduation and the Harlem Renaissance occurred at the same time, where she lived briefly.

Osceola Macarthy Adams, Actress, and Teacher born

*Osceola Macarthy Adams was born on this date in 1890.  She was a Black actress, drama teacher, director, and clothing designer.   Born to a life insurance executive in Albany, Georgia, Osceola Macarthy was mixed with white-European, Native American, and Black African heritage.  She attended schools in Albany, Georgia, including Albany Normal School, a predecessor […]

The First Black Woman Performers On An American Stage

*On this date in 1890 Sam T. Jacks’ play Creoles opens.

The Haverhill, Massachusetts’s production is the first time African American women are featured as performers on stage

Asadata Dafora, Musician born

*Asadata Dafora was born on this date in 1890.  He was a Black multidisciplinary musician. He was among the first Africans to introduce African drumming music to the United States.   Austin Dafora Horton was born into the Creole ethnic group in Freetown, British Sierra Leone. The son of John ‘Johnnie’ Warner M. Horton, the […]

Lillian E. Evanti, Vocalist born

*Lillian Evans Evanti was born on this date in 1890. A lyric soprano, she was the first African American to sing opera with an organized company in Europe.

Palmer Hayden, Artist born

On this date we celebrate Palmer Hayden’s birth in 1890. He was an African American painter whose work became known during the Harlem Renaissance.

Born Peyton Cole Hedgeman in Wide Water, Virginia, he was a prolific artist of his era. He depicted African American life, painting in both oils and watercolors.

John Hardrick, Artist born

*On this date in 1891, John Wesley Hardrick was born. He was an African American painter.

Alma Thomas, Artist, and Instructor born

*On this date in 1891, Alma Thomas was born. She was an African American Painter and instructor.

From Columbus, Georgia, Thomas moved to Washington as a young girl. In 1924 she became the first graduate of the art department of Howard University and ten years later received an M. A. from Columbia University. She taught art at Shaw Junior High School in the nations capitol for thirty-six years until she retired in 1960 to devote her energies to painting. During her long tenure at Shaw, Thomas was a dedicated and imaginative teacher.