Little Known Black History Facts

Viro Small a.k.a. “Black Sam of Vermont” was one of the first black professional wrestlers in America. The 5′ 10″ heavyweight started as a collar-and-elbow wrestler around 1880. A former slave in Buford, South Carolina, Small’s first documented match was against Mike Horogan. He lost the match but was taken in by Horogan as a […]

Tony Hansberry Jr. was a child prodigy of the medical field. At 14 years old, Hansberry developed a new suture method for hysterectomy patients. Because of Hansberry, patients now have decreased hospital stays and more efficient surgeries. His breakthrough was fueled by his loss at his eighth grade science fair at Darnell Cookman School of […]

According to a new study conducted by the Association of American Medical Colleges, Xavier University in New Orleans is now the number one college for black graduates in Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM). In 2011, Xavier was the top producer of African-American students who earned medical degrees. The school beat out Harvard, Yale and Stanford. […]

Coleman Young was the first black mayor of Detroit. Young served the city of Detroit for 20 years. The Tuscaloosa, Alabama native was born in 1918, moving to Detroit’s Black Bottom ghetto in the 1920’s. He served as a Tuskegee Airman in WWII before becoming an activist with the United Auto Workers. Active in politics, […]

The Gennett Record Company was significant to the music careers of Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Earl Hines, who were all signed to the label. The first commercially released recordings of a white jazz band with a black featured soloist happened at Gennett Records: Jelly Roll Morton with the New Orleans Rhythm Kings. Gennett was […]

Bernard and Shirley Kinsey are African American art collectors who have used their love of black art and history to raise money for many organizations. The Kinsey Collection of art has been on display all over the country, including at the Smithsonian.  It includes a collective display of black history and artifacts, spanning 400 years. […]

Judge Bernette Johnson will be the first black Chief Justice of the Louisiana State Court. Johnson was first voted into the Louisiana State Appeals Court in 1994. Her appointment was during a discrimination lawsuit settlement regarding the election system of judges. The system then apparently violated the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Civil rights activists, […]

Emperor Mansa Musa I, an African King from the late 13th century, has been named the richest person who ever lived. CelebrityNetWorth.com listed Musa I on the ranks with Warren Buffet, Bill Gates and Muammar Ghaddafi, below his name. Mansa Musa I was the ruler of the Mali Empire, which included Timbuktu, Ghana and Mali. […]

Andrew Brimmer, a former Harvard professor, was the first black person appointed to the Federal Reserve Board. President Lyndon B. Johnson gave him the position in 1966. Brimmer was working as the Assistant Secretary of Commerce of Economic Affairs when President Johnson took notice. His appointment caused uproar on the Federal Reserve Board and in […]

Henry Blair received his first patent on October 14, 1834 for his seed planter invention. He was the second black man to patent his own creation. The Montgomery County, Maryland native looked for ways to help corn farmers plant seeds more effectively. Because Blair was illiterate, he could not read or write, and therefore signed […]

Edith Sampson was the first black person appointed to the United Nations. She was a Pittsburgh native who found her calling in social work. Sampson was forced to leave school at age 14 to work and support her family but later graduated from college. She was encouraged to attend law school and would graduate number […]

Joaquim Barbosa has been selected as Brazil’s first black Supreme Court Justice President. A veteran on the bench, Barbosa is currently presiding over a high-profile corruption trial involving a congressional cash-for-votes scheme. He became a Justice of the Supreme Court in 2003. Judge Barbosa was born in Paracatu in the state of Minas Gerais. He […]