People, Locations, Episodes

Archibald Motley, Artist born

On this date in 1891, Archibald J. Motley, Jr. was born. He was an African American artist.

He was born in New Orleans, to Archibald Motley, Sr., and Mary Huff. His family moved to Chicago, where his father worked as a Pullman Porter, and the family settled into a quiet neighborhood on the West Side. In his home he would listen to his father and A. Phillip Randolph discuss the organization of the Pullman Porter’s Union. He also watched his nephew Williard Motley struggle to write. The hard work and ambition that he witnessed as a child would carry him through his artistic career.

Augusta Savage, Sculptor born

*This date celebrates the birth of Augusta Christine Savage in 1892. She was an American sculptor and educator who battled racism to secure a place for blacks in the art world.

From Green Cove Springs, Fla., Savage’s family moved to West Palm Beach about 1907, where she thrived academically, conducting art classes for a dollar a day while she was still a student herself. After failing to make a living by executing commissioned busts of Jacksonville’s well-to-do blacks, she moved to New York City to study art.

Minnie Evans, Artist born

Minnie Evans was born on this date in 1892. She was an African American artist.

Minnie Jones was born and raised in a log cabin in Long Creek, Pender County, North Carolina, to Ella Jones, later Ella Jones Kelly. She and her mother moved to Wilmington in early 1893. Minnie left school after the fifth grade to work as a “sounder,” selling oysters and clams door-to-door.

Emma Chambers Maitland, Dancer and Boxer born

*Emma Chambers Maitland was born on this date in 1893. She was a Black dancer, teacher, and boxer. Born Jane Chambers, she was from near Richmond, Virginia, the daughter of Wyatt Chambers and Cora Chambers. Her parents were sharecroppers, and she had seven brothers. She was educated at a convent school in Rock Castle, Virginia, and […]

Dox Thrash, Artist, and Printer born

*Dox Thrash, born on this date in 1893, was an African American artist and printer.

Lawrence Brown, Composer and Pianist born

*Lawrence Brown was born on this date in 1893. He was a Black Gay vocalist (tenor), composer and pianist. Lawrence Benjamin Brown was born in Jacksonville, Florida, and raised by his father, Clark Benjamin Brown, and his stepmother, Cenia Brown. Lawrence’s birth mother died when he was three years old. Clark and his father were […]

Mabel Ridley, Mezzo-Soprano born

*The birth of Mabel Ridley is celebrated on this date in 1894. She was a Black mezzo-soprano singer who appeared in Broadway theatre and revues in the 1920s and 1930s. Mabel Ridley was born in Augusta, Georgia, to Charles and Katherine Ridley in January 1894. Back in 1843, on their marriage, her grandparents, Ulysses Ridley […]

Eulalie Spence, Playwright, and Actress born

*Eulalie Spence was born on this date in 1894.  She was a Black writer, teacher, stage director, actress, and playwright.  Eulalie Spence was born on the island of Nevis in the British West Indies to Robert and Eno Lake Spence, the oldest of seven girls. She spent her formative years on her father’s sugar plantation. […]

Mercedes Gilbert, Actress born

*Mercedes Gilbert was born on this date in 1894. She was a Black actress, novelist, and poet. Gilbert was a native of Jacksonville, Florida, and attended Edward Waters College. She originally trained as a nurse before coming to New York and entering the entertainment profession, first as a songwriter and then as a stage actress. Career […]

Hector Hyppolite, Haitian Artist born

*Hector Hyppolite was born on this date 1894. He was a African Haitian painter.

Hilda Wilkinson Brown, Artist, and Teacher born

*The birth of Hilda Wilkinson Brown is celebrated on this date in 1894.  She was a Black artist and teacher.   Hilda Rue Wilkinson was born in Washington, D.C., and was the only one of five grandchildren to have remained in Washington, D.C., where her great-grandmother first moved after being freed from slavery in 1835. […]

Susie Edwards, Vaudeville Actress born

*The birth of Susie Edwards is celebrated on this date in 1894. She was a vaudeville singer. As a young blues singer and actress from Pensacola, Florida, Susie Hawthornes met singer-dancer Jodie “Butterbeans” Edwards in the Black touring revue “The Smart Set.” She married Jody Edwards during a show in 1917 when a publicity agent offered them […]

Eva Jessye, Stage Artist born

*Eva Jessye was born on this date in 1895. She was an African American singer, composer, choral director and actress.

She was one of the few musical phenomenons of the twentieth century. Born Eva Alberta Jessye in Coffeyville, Kansas near Oklahoma, her father supported the family as a chicken picker. She was an avid reader who sang as a child, writing her first poem at the age of seven; winning a contest at thirteen. Jessye studied choral music and music theory at the now defunct Western University in Quindaro, Kansas, graduating in 1914.

William Grant Still, Symphonic Composer born

On this date in 1895, William Grant Still was born. He was an African American musician and composer.

William J. Rapp, Playwright born

*William Rapp was born on this date in 1895. He was a white-American playwright, author, and news writer.    Born in NYC, William Jourdan Rapp was the son of a cigar manufacturer and merchant.  He graduated from Cornell, Class of 1917, and volunteered for Army service. Rapp served in France and remained in Europe until 1924.  He worked […]